What I'll Miss When You're Gone

It's funny, I've had that song running through my head off an on for quite a while now. You know the one: "Cups (You're Gonna Miss Me)."

Then the other morning as I was feeling irritable at the toothpaste splatters on my bathroom mirror, I decided that mess wasn't anything to be cranky about; one day when my nest is empty, I will miss it. Later I read the writing prompt at Wordsmith Studio: "What You'll Miss."

I love synchronicity. And from it, the below (rough draft of a) poem was born.

Empty Nest Syndrome and a Clean Bathroom Mirror

Shells Left in the Nest

I strain through tired
eyes and toothpaste-
splattered mirror to understand
how you have grown
from toddling babbler to spilling
teen, tall with confidence
for all you have become,
then shying away from all you are
not yet. Oh, beautiful trail-
maker, paper scraps dotting
the roads you’ve traveled, stirring
up grumbles from deep within
me. But in ten, I’m pretty sure I’ll be
longing to pick up your messes,
attempting to hide
I’m a mess
that you are gone.

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Writer's Block? Six Tips to Stimulate Writing Ideas

Yes, Just Do It

It happens to most writers at least sometimes. You need to write a blog post, article, or story, but the old “idea tank” sits on empty. Don’t panic. Below are a few suggestions to help move your gauge up to full again.

1) Take a walk. Not just any walk. Stroll along with your senses. Start with the nose; what do you smell? Note all the tones in the air. What thoughts do they bring to mind? Does that dog doo-doo bring tears for your childhood best friend, Fido? Spin a story from it. Let your mind wander. 

2) Follow your dreams. The ones you have when you sleep. Get into the habit of writing them down every morning. Jot down images, words, or characters you remember. Turn them into a tale.

3) Read the news. Dig through small town community newspapers or Google “bizarre headlines.” You might unearth a story about a man skydiving with an umbrella. Look for odd or interesting stories and then write them all down, but give the stories a new twist. 

4) Eavesdrop. This is fun because you get to enjoy a coffee or tea, workout, or some other activity while you are doing it. I was once walking down the street in New York and I heard an old lady say, “That was around the time I met Stravinsky.” Wow. Seinfeld flashback. 

5) Throw your laptop. Okay, this may be extreme. Maybe you should just put it aside instead; grab a pad and pen and let your hand rip! Move the pen in whatever way you feel like. Big swoops, tiny random letters, hard, dark scribbles. Get it all out. Slowly turn those marks into words and then into sentences. Awww . . . release.

6) Write with a partner. Write down an assortment of nouns, verbs, and adjectives on pieces of paper, and then place them inside a container. Take turns with your friend, pulling them out one at a time and then put the words together into phrases to use as prompts. Umm . . . that's how I came up with an "undulating summer sausage." Sounds tasty, doesn't it? (Well, maybe not.)

These are only a sampling of methods for coming up with story ideas. If you still need help, there are plenty of books and/or websites that offer writing prompts. Google (or some other search engine) is your friend. (This "writing prompts" website came up at the top of my search results.)

Most importantly, loosen up, lighten up, and play, and hopefully, before you know it, you can just write instead of worrying what to write about.

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[Please note: I had this on my old website before redirecting my domain name here. When I made the move, this post was lost, so I decided to re-post it.]

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