My oldest son, The Writer, had an interesting assignment last week --- write not one, but five, six-word memoirs. His teacher (he is enrolled in an on-line distance learning program for high school) stressed the importance of each sentence telling a story, not just stating a fact. She used the example of Ernest Hemingway, who once (it is said) answered a challenge by telling the following six-word story: "For Sale: Baby shoes, never worn." The Writer's teacher asked her students to do the same --- tell a story, tell five stories, in six words each.
My boy rose to the challenge, and earned a grade of 100 for his efforts. In the process, he delighted me as well, and I can't help but share his stories with you. Enjoy!
1. Do school, eat, walk dogs. Repeat.
2. Architect, explorer, game-maker... On Minecraft.
3. Moved to Brazil. Learned unique things.
4. Joined a youth group. Made friends.
5. Wrote some six word masterpieces today!
My favorite, of course, is number five. That sums up my boy's humor in one perfect sentence. That he would have that confidence throughout all of his life.....that is my hope and prayer for him. He writes well. He is a hard worker, unafraid to try new things, to push himself beyond his comfort zone. I love all of this about him, every story so carefully told in the allotted six words.....each one means something to me. My boy, my oldest son, who wrote some six word masterpieces this past week. How I love my boy!
I use this on my course too (just finishing the coursework and student handouts) it is always interesting to see what people create and reveal.
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