Writing Prompts

Note to self :   When suffering from Writer's Block use a writing prompt.  Here was one that came in an e-mail today from Jen Violi, an author whose work I enjoy:

Winter Sustenance Idea #2:
Start with One Word
 

For one small writing step this month, why not use one of the most basic increments?  

All you need to do is open the book closest to you, let your finger drop onto the page, see what word you landed on, and using that word to fill in the blank, write for five minutes from the prompt: "Everything I know about ____."

So pick a word, any word, and write from there. Turn off your inner judge/critic/butthead commentator, and go. Five minutes.  You've got this.

The book closest to me is "Joy for Beginners" by Erica Bauermeister.  It is by my desk waiting to be returned to the library.  The word my finger landed on was "boundaries".  

Everything I know about boundaries:

I know that sometimes I forget about boundaries and share too much information or ask too personal of questions.  I am pretty good with personal space boundaries, but when it comes to feelings, emotions, etc I am much too open and curious.

There are boundaries for land.  The lot we live on has boundaries that are marked in the back by a fence.  Countries have boundaries, many of which you can't cross without proper documentation.   Relationships have boundaries.  There are things that are inappropriate to do or say to certain people depending on your relationship.  The boundaries you have with your close friends are very different from the boundaries that you have for your relatives, neighbors, authority figures or the other people who inhabit your life.  

Boundaries is a pretty boring word to have picked.  Why couldn't I have picked something more interesting?  I guess I followed the rules which are basically boundaries.  Some people like to overstep their boundaries.  I'm pretty sure this is the most uninteresting blog post I have ever written.