Day 9: “When” Writing

In Pat Pattison’s book “SONG-WRITING WITHOUT BOUNDARIES” I am following the outline as presented for timed writing. I ordered the book and started this challenge.

The picture above is for two of the prompts listed.

It’s day nine today, I am starting day nine with “When” writing. I have done Who and What writing in previous days. It is good to make small changes to keep from getting bored!

The prompt “When” is being timed and the idea is to include as many of these as I can; sight, sound, taste, touch, smell, body, motion!

Remember that the timer can go off in the middle of a sentence, or word. Please complete it the best you can using your thoughts! Thank you.

This is day nine prompts:

Timed for 5 minutes: Summer Rainstorm.

We needed this rain. I don’t know that we especially needed the storm. Storms can be scary.

I grew up loving to watch storms until I saw too many stories about lightning strikes. Some kill people or start fires and still survive after being struck by lightning.

Then there has been more than one story of men getting hit by lightning more than once. I always wonder why and what happens to them after a strike or is there any difference for them.

Our area can use more water. Rain would be nice right now. Well, it would be nice as long as it is not freezing rain. The snow takes a foot for once inch of rain I’m told. That is a whole lot of snow that we didn’t get this year.

Maybe a summer rainstorm is just what we need! It is only officially spring, however!

Timed for 10 minutes: Graduation.

Graduation is coming soon. I have a grandson graduating from high school, and a granddaughter graduating from a Tribal college. A two-year program. She is transferring to a 4-year program. The grandson is being recruited for a manager position.

There have to be others but it’s still early. My brain hasn’t kicked in yet. I didn’t graduate from high school. I was married at 17 and there were two of us in my high school that married early. I think they wanted me out, so they stamped me a hardship case, and allowed me to take the GED and start college.

I graduated from college with a Bachelor of Science in Applied Psychology, it used to be called a community service degree. Then several years later I received an MSE, master's degree in counseling education with a specialty in Families and Couples Counseling.

That should have been enough. But I let a friend talk me into going back to school for a doctorate in Education Administration and Policy. I stand at ABD, all but dissertation having completed my coursework but not the dissertation.

I won’t graduate with that degree and does it matter at age 70? No. I decided I would take it if I got it but I felt no pressure to finish. When my mother got ill I was beginning the process of dissertation. I couldn’t do what it took. I had obligations.

Before my mother died I told her I would pick it up again, but I didn’t and I’m okay with that decision. Those two years off made it so I would have had to retake a class or two. No, thank you. No graduation.

Timed for 90 seconds: Wedding Rehearsal Dinner.

The wedding rehearsal dinner was fun all three times.

Well, officially we didn’t have a rehearsal dinner this last time. We were planning to elope and at the last minute, a minister friend agreed to marry us.

She said we didn’t need witnesses or any guests. Then at the last minute, we invited …

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First published by Mercury Press on medium.com