I'm brain dead for a topic for today so I just googled journal writing prompts to see what I would get. On thing I hate, as a writer and as a teacher, is that all journaling topics are so personal and force self reflection. The times when I turn to a journal topic is when I don't want to be self reflective.
In all honesty, I had a GREAT day and then Mac had a shitty night at school and he talked about it with me. He wasn't mean or nasty to me (for once) just shared about his class experience which ten grew into a why he hates himself conversation. Or rather, he conversed and I listened and felt bad. So my super great day just feels so distant because my only child is so unhappy and miserable and I can do nothing to help him; his issues are greater than me.
So I turn to google to give me something NON Personal journal topics and instead find myself inundated with self reflective personal introspective junk.
In my last year of teaching I bought a fabulous book that was titled something like "Journal Topics for the Classroom that are not introspective nor personal." I loved that book. I know many of students hated being given a topic that forced them to share with me if they didn't want to. I tried variations and lots of things worked through the years but then I found this book and it was fun and different and creative. I got some great ideas and some great writings from my kids, too, which was the whole point. And until you teach high school and have kids write personal stuff to you, you haven't "lived" *Yes there's sarcasm there. Frankly. it was sometimes (often) scary to read student personal journals, especially when they decided to trust you. So I loved the book with its silly topics. And if I couldn't found that book right this second, I wouldn't pulled a topic out of it and wrote.
Hmmmmmmmmmmm, gee this whole post about not having a topic turned out to be a post. Has that sort of Seinfeld-esque quality to it, eh?
And here I thought I was going to resort to writing about the topic "are you afraid of the dark? Explain" Guess I can save that one for another day.
Mags
2 comments:
Hi! Haven't seen you in a while. Come visit. I tend to change subjects when blogging too! I will come back to see your afraid of the dark post! Have a good week.
Anyone who blogs with any regularity could use that book. Bring it home.
Glad Mac wasn't mean or nasty to you. It must be my turn!
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