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Wednesday, August 19, 2009

Writing Exercise #16

Ingredients:

1. what you stole

2. what you should not have let him/her take

3. what you want back


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Write an apology list poem. To everyone. One per line. DO NOT list who the apology belongs to. If you broke mom's favorite picture frame, write "broken picture frame." then let that image graduate into something else, like, "cracked third grade smile." If you stole someone's car, let that graduate into, "the missing engine." see?!?!? that's IT. None of these have to be real. Except for the things you listed in #1 & 2. When referencing #2, of course, it is an apology to yourself. The importance here is in the specific details. And in keeping each apology as private as possible. And in never actually writing the word "sorry" or "apology." After all that, figure out a way to squeeze some of the lines into a poem about what you wrote for #3.

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(This exercise was inspired by my obsession with creating new lists to mine from.)