avatarVidya Sury, Collecting Smiles

Summary

Dancing Elephants Press has released its 50th weekly writing prompt, inviting writers to reflect on the most valuable life lessons they've learned.

Abstract

Dancing Elephants Press is nearing the end of its year-long series of writing prompts, currently at prompt 50 of 52. This week's prompt encourages writers to consider the most valuable lessons they have learned in life, suggesting that they focus on significant life events to draw inspiration. The prompt emphasizes that no learning is too minor and encourages writers to share their insights and stories. The initiative is part of a larger effort to foster a community of writers and readers, with a live book featuring responses from previous prompts and an invitation to join a WhatsApp community for DEP writers.

Opinions

  • The author, Vidya Sury, shares personal lessons learned about the importance of slowing down and enjoying life, the regret of missed opportunities, and the wisdom of embracing the present.
  • Sury emphasizes the value of unconditional love, mindfulness, kindness, and the importance of expressing love, as well as the strength found in overcoming challenges.
  • The prompt is presented as a broad question but is meant to be reflective rather than daunting, encouraging writers to extract profound insights from their experiences.
  • The importance of learning from mistakes and the rewards of persistence and consistency are highlighted as valuable life lessons.
  • The editors of Dancing Elephants Press express their gratitude for the community's support and encourage writers to continue sharing their work and engaging with each other's content.
  • There is an open invitation for DEP writers to join the DEP Community on WhatsApp, indicating a commitment to building a supportive network.
  • The prompt is part of a series aimed at inspiring creativity and personal growth through the act of writing and sharing stories.

ANNOUNCEMENT

What Is the Most Valuable Thing You Have Learned in Your Life?

Dancing Elephants Press weekly prompt 50 of 52

© Vidya Sury’s clock and candle stands

Isn’t it amazing that we are at weekly prompt 50 of 52? Just two more weeks to go to wrap up a whole year’s worth of fabulous writing prompts! And good news — there’s no time limit for responding to them. You can find the whole list here, waiting for you to help you get your creative juices to flow.

As I pondered on this week’s writing prompt, this one came to me quickly. Let me explain why. I have had a few hectic weeks behind me, and the ones that will follow will be busy too. I’ve experienced feelings of overwhelm and happiness, side by side even as I tried to contain my stress.

I had to pause to think — what have I learned from this? And voila! here’s this week’s prompt for you to reflect upon and respond with your wise words.

What is the most valuable thing you have learned from this life?

Now that seems like a very broad question. Don’t let it freak you out though. Just pick a major incident or two from your life and review what you learned from them. Simple!

In my case, here’s what I have learned.

Throughout my corporate career, I was on a hamster wheel. I loved to say I don't have time for many things, and in the process, missed out on wonderful moments. The result? Regret. From years of being busy, I have learned that it is mandatory to slow down and enjoy life. So when my son was born, I opted to work from home so that I would not miss watching him grow up. What a wonderful decision that has been! Today, I do what I love and love what I do.

Our biggest regrets are not for the things we have done but for the things we haven’t done. — Chad Michael Murray

When my mom was in and out of hospital due to a chronic illness, I would worry all the time. She would hold my hand and tell me, “Vidya, we cannot turn back the clock. Don’t waste all your time worrying. Some things are out of our control. Make time to enjoy what you have.” Golden words indeed. She taught me to be mindful and enjoy the present moment even if it is staring into a cup of coffee.

Lost time is never found again — Benjamin Franklin

Through various other incidents, I have learned

  • I am stronger than I think I am.
  • I love unconditionally and that’s my strong point.
  • Enjoy the present moment, and take time to smell the flowers.
  • Kindness rules.
  • Don’t forget to say your I love yous — we never know what might happen the next moment.
  • It is absolutely okay to make mistakes, what matters is the lesson we take away.
  • Persistence and consistency are always rewarded.

The best thing is, we continue to learn something every day!

Now, I would love to know about the most valuable lessons you have learned in life.

Remember, no learning is too minor.

Recall an incident in your life that taught you an important life lesson.

Think about an experience you had and what you learned from it.

Did you learn something by watching someone? Describe what it was and what you learned.

Did someone in your life teach you something by example? Your parents, your friends, relatives…?

Write about it and inspire us too!

Guidelines:

  • Please use this subtitle: In response to Dancing Elephants prompt 50 of 52
  • Use the tag: dancingelepehantspress
  • Respond to this prompt anytime — there is no time limit.
  • Never miss a prompt: Here’s the list of Prompts 1 to 50 of 52

Check out the live book on our home page with all the responses so far!

Questions/clarifications/suggestions?

Email us at [email protected], comment on this post, or leave a private note.

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Thank you for your amazing support.

Please support each other by tagging and highlighting another DEP writer’s work you have read in your post.

🐘🐘Please e-mail us your contact information so we can add you to our DEP Community on Whatsapp if you are not a participant yet. This invitation is open to all DEP writers.🐘🐘

With love from your editors:

Lady Dr. Gabriella Korosi, Dr. Preeti Singh, Annelise Lords and Vidya Sury, Collecting Smiles

Vidya Sury, Collecting Smiles ❤ Did you smile today?

Help me support underprivileged children via Ko-Fi. Thank you!

Let’s connect! Website | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest | Facebook | Mastodon Subscribe to my Medium posts Enjoy my one-minute motivational tip posts on Substack

Thank you for being here with us at Dancing Elephants Press and sending positivity out to the world.

DR Rawson — The Possibilist, Joyce Nielsen, Jo An Fox-Wright Maddox, Antonis Iliakis, Dr. Preeti Singh, Trista Signe Ainsworth, Ayoub Mouhachtt, Vidya Sury, Collecting Smiles, Carrie, Cynthia A. Morgan, Cypriano Mokobia, Tunnel Books, author and creator, Francis Edwards, Filiz Özer, Christina DeFeo, Natalie Gasper, Alejandro Betancourt, Neal Lemery, Art Bram, Victoria Gregg, Jodian Marie Thomas, MS, Bsc, Asc, Sumit Kumar,

Siobhan Champion, Synthia Stark, Saif Farooqi, PhD, Rane Kelze, Rahul Anand, Nimity, Nikki Waterson, B.R. Shenoy, Umme Salma, Nathalie Clair, Marrisa W., Kevin J Fellows, Kedy, E. Katherine Kottaras, Judey Kalchik, Darlene Corbett, Holly Faupel, Pius Adejumobi, Bright Okeye, Andreas D., Alex Lorenzen, Agnes Davis, Adam Nathan Wieland, Bridie D, Tamil,

Carmen Micsa, Lucia Landini, CARMEN F. MICSA, Juana Flor, Monoreena Acharjee Majumdar, Alan Simpson, Nada Chehade, Purbita Chakraborty, Niall Leah, Anjali Joshi, B.R. Shenoy, Suma Narayan, Karen Schwartz, Pene Hodge, Lola Rosario, Vashni Stories, Libby Shively McAvoy, Mary Vraa, Christina, Sally Prag, Bernie Pullen, Bingz Huang, Arup Purkayastha,

Jennifer Dunne, Mawde Olssen, Jodie Helm, Erin M., Anaya Nosso, Barbara Cook, DesaraeBlack, Divya Goswami, Misti Lynn, Patricia Pixie❤, David Amato, Omy, Drashti Shroff, Mahein Kazi, Lalitha Brahma, Ticapo, Shev K, Amanda Payne, Amina Giselle, B A Little, Life not abrupt (L.n.a.), Aarti Tailor, Adrianna Lagorio, Amaya Island Girl, Dave Amato, Paul Gardner,

Gulsun Uluer, Janet Mary Cobb (she/her), Jielynne Barao, Jerry Pompilio, Kasturi Patra, Lillian Esther, Mohini Vats, Neera Handa Dr, Neha Sonney, Author, Patrick Parker, Pam Winter, Susie Pinon, AliB, Ron Van Fleet, Shaqib Akram, Zack Harris, Pauline Evanosky, David Stockar, Anurag Paul,

Anna Boulas, Blogs by J, Sahil Patel, Deb Fiore, Pam Avila, Buddhi Ruparathna, Kerrie Gutierrez-Diaz, Allison Church, The Sturg, Melissa Gray, G. Hobson Goff III, Kennedie, GnanVi_Speaks, Judy Walker, Akemi Sagawa, Malini, Shubha Apte, Leonard Tillerman, From the Mountain ~ Stories & Photos of JD Adams, Sangeetha Shankar, Lswanberg,

Lotus Empress, Rupa Mahanti, Doren Damico, Elin Melaas, Enne Baker, Law Of Life, NancyO, Marilyn Glover, Dr. Fatima Imam, Sanghita Pal, William J Spirdione, Hermione Wilds Writes, Benito Bartolo, NomadlandArt, Lisa Precious / Smiley Blue, Phoenix Garcia, Erika Burkhalter, Terry Day, Jenine “Jeni” Baines, Garima Sharma,

James Stephens, Mike Riley, Randall Snyder, Leah Lynch, Pratik Asija, The Silent Monk, Christopher Grant, Sebastyan Papp ✨, Warren “Storyteller” Brown, Paul, Krystyna Szul, Tina 🫧 FireWolf 🔥, Every Day Life Improvement, Ravyne Hawke, Neera Handa Dr, Anthony O’Dugan, Janin Lyndovsky, Trisha Faye, Eko BP, Anu Maarit Simard, Lubna Yusuf,

Sabih ul Hassan, My mind, Nevena Pascaleva, Claudia G. Ciobanu, McCaylee Putney, Priyanka Priyadarshini, Linde Chen, Muhammad Nasrullah Khan, Penofgold, Anthony David Vernon, Angel Axuly, Mike Hickman, Kelli Murbach, Josh E., Michelle Jimerson Morris, Surekha Chandrasekhar, Connie Song, Indirah Ambrose, Vanita Cyril,

Amna fayyaz, Dr. Tracy Davis, Douglas Lim, Gael MacLean, Maximilian G. Wolf, Heaven’s Healthy Healing, Nicole Campbell, Kaustubh Deshmukh, Vera-Marie Landi, Izzy Galantino, Rick Allen, Suzie Alexander, 𝐤𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐨𝐯𝐚𝐢 [𝐡.𝐚.𝐥𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐞], Chris Yanda, Justin Delay, MHA, MPH, Athena Milios, D. Almand, Audrey Malone, James Boylan, Marmotian, Nathan Chen, Bella Smith ⭐, Joan Didak, Eddie Biggins, Reginald Ben-Halliday,

Nicholas Breen, A Shayens Abran, Saima Saleem, Rene Volpi Jr., JB Writes, Lewiscoaches, Bonnie, arun, Leah Hamilton, Esther Olive, Sana Zafar, David Cerqueira, D Writervyas, Nikita Singh, Erie Astin, Aleena G, Vera-Marie Landi, Ramya Ethiraj, Amy Christie, Ashllyn T., K.A poems, Bhavnaa Narula, Claire Kelly, Motaz Majed “My To-Do List is Laughing at Me!!!”, Anish Bhattacharyya, Dr. Nishtha Srivastava, your name goes here

If we missed your name please let us know. If you do not want to be tagged in announcements and prompts please let us know. Thank you.

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