Becoming Your Own — Tapping into the Soft Spot
A response to a writing prompt about independence and freedom
The First Prompt:
Think back to your first memory of independence.
i crossed i crossed the median two lanes done heart racing, watching traffic pedal hard, lift the front tire, down again uped and over i crossed two lanes more
a rite of passage a moment of triumph
old enough to go to Polo’s on my own can I buy myself a freeze pop?
burger chef is now within reach the fixins’ bar, all mine — wow
my blue-framed saddled hand me down and i we will make trails, memories
freedom -
The Second Prompt:
Do you agree?
“Freedom (n.): To ask nothing. To expect nothing. To depend on nothing” -Ayn Rand, The Foutainhead
“Expect nothing. Be ready for anything” Dan Millman
Freedom is to do what is your will to do. It would be to ask anything. To expect nothing frees you from humanly desire, thereby letting go of suffering when what’s desired is not gotten. To depend on or need nothing creates a dependence on self and to not expect or need, allows you to accept anything that comes your way. Do I agree? Yes and no. Free to ask anything yet not be dependent on the outcome of the asking can create the space for acceptance and freedom from want.
The Third Prompt:
“Don’t be satisfied with stories, how things have gone with others. Unfold your own myth.” -Rumi, The Essential Rumi
Roller coaster ride in the tides of eight.
Did I write my own story, yes, still writing. A southern family is a strong wall to come up against. To be outside of the norm of baseball, work hard, and raise a family is a lonely place to be until you realize that it is your story you are writing, not someone else’s story written for you. Then the stomp of independence reverberates through the ears of parents long trying to shove you into a mold that doesn’t fit. A foot down! Shedding the onion skin. The first layer of gaining independence.
These three bits of writing were done in response to Ellie Jacobson’s Freewriting Friday prompts about independence and freedom. The experience of setting the timer and then letting the writing come through without force was very freeing and fun. Thank you Ellie for that! Here is the prompt:
