What If You Remembered?
What does your past taste like? What important people represent the milestones of your life? What do you remember of your childhood lair and plans? What stars (real or metaphorical) were you born under?
This week my students and I embarked on an exploration of our origin story and the twists and turns that describe that journey. This is the third time I have taken students on this “What If” journey inspired by Marvel’s What If animated series (and the butterfly effect), the #WalkMyWorld Project, and the National Writing Project’s American Creed (and personal values). We began by writing about the butterfly moments in our lives. Small moments or decisions that led to something much bigger that changed the course of our lives, the formation of our family, or led to key relationships.
We then explored the importance of the kitchen table beginning with Joy Harjo, Perhaps the World Ends Here, and Knoxville, Tennessee by Nikki Giovanni. We then focused on specific food memories with In Praise of Okra by January Gill O’Neil.
We also explored our fears using Joseph Fasano’s Hearing Wolves Through the Dark Pines and detailed our hometowns and neighborhoods using South Side (V) by Taylor Byas. Then we dug into our family’s emotional history using If Being a Man Allowed for Emotion by Junious Ward. We wrapped up our week’s explorations with Poem by Sandra Lim and Remember by Joy Harjo.
These were journey’s well worth taking!
