In the News

by Nancy Casey

When somebody uses the phrase, “In the middle”, they could be talking about a lifespan, a seating arrangement, or a sandwich. Look around the world in front of you. Scour your memories and imagination. Ask yourself, “What’s in the middle?”  Write about that today.

Before you begin writing, take a few breaths and settle yourself into the task. Get your page set up by drawing a line across the top where you will write a title when you have finished. Set aside some space for illustration if you like. As you do this, think about “middles.”

Sometimes the middle is in space. Two objects exist somewhere, and between them is something else. The two objects could be fence posts, houseplants, or galaxies. They don’t have to be identical objects, either. A shoe that sits between a purse and a dog is in the middle. The thing you are looking for can be in the middle of a pile or the middle of the floor.

The middle can also exist in time. Lunch, for example is before dinner and after breakfast, so it’s in the middle. Any moment in time has a moment that comes before it and one that comes after, so it’s in the middle. You could pick a moment in time and ask yourself what that moment is in the middle of.

What tends to happen in the middle of the day? What about the middle of the night?

Situations can have middles, too. It’s not pleasant to be caught in the middle of somebody else’s conflict. We don’t like to be interrupted when we are in the middle of something. 

Write about a location, a time, or a situation that has a middle. What’s in the middle? Provide as much information as you would like: what it is, how it got there, whether or not it belongs there or will stay there. You can write about several different middles, or maybe you have so much to say about the first one that it will fill your page.

However your page fills up, look back over you work. Add illustration or decoration if you like. Do your ideas form any kind of a pattern? Do they seem to be about a bigger idea that you hadn’t really planned on writing about? If they do, maybe you can use that insight to think up a title. If they don’t, make up some kind of a title anyway and write it at the top of the page.

Put your initials or a signature on the page, too. And write the date on it. Here is just one example of the type of thing someone could write.

You can share your work by posting it as a comment below. You can type it in, or take a photo of it and upload the image.

Nancy Casey has lived in Latah County for many years. You can find more of her work here. If you would like some help with your writing, contact Nancy or the Latah Recovery Center. In-person Write-for You classes have been suspended for now, but when Covid recedes, they will return.

by Nancy Casey

Sometimes “finding” first involves “losing” and “looking for.” Other times “finding” is a complete surprise, and neither “losing” nor “looking for” are part of the story at all. Today, write about what you have found today, this week, or sometime in your life.

Take a moment to set up your page before you begin writing. Use the time to turn your mind to the task you are about to do. Watch your pen draw a slow, careful line at the top of the page where your title will go. Choose a spot on your page that you can use for drawing or illustration, and draw a careful line around that area as well. Thicken the lines, or draw over them a couple of times, watching the ink flow out of the end of your pen, and settle yourself into the time you’ll spend writing.

As soon as an idea about finding comes into your mind, write down some details about it. Don’t make yourself wait for a perfect idea, just start writing about the one that comes to you first. If you think of another idea while writing about the first one, finish the first one up and write about the new one, too. If your idea-bank feels empty, doodle on the page, keep watching the ink roll out of tip of your pen and murmur to yourself, I found… I found… I found… An idea will eventually come to you.

Maybe you will write about how a lost item turned up again and tell that story in a few sentences.

You might end up writing about an experience of looking for an item that you’ve never had. That kind of “finding” has the feel of discovery to it. You might have a story of hunting for wildflowers in the woods, or searching in several grocery stores for a food that a recipe needs and you’ve never heard of. Maybe you’ve been in a strange town looking for a place to eat or sleep, in the library looking for a book, or in a store looking for the right shoes for a job interview. When your search ends successfully, you are happy to find something that was never lost.

Sometimes we find something without looking for it at all. A bracelet on the street, a trinket in the thrift store, a social media posting that changes the shape of our day.

Another kind of “finding” is “finding out.” Think of times when you found that you liked something more (or less) than you used to. Maybe you found a dreaded event to be not-so-bad. You can find yourself to be delighted or annoyed about something. You might find a meal to be too hot, too cold, or just right. Maybe you have a story about finding yourself in good company, in trouble, or absolutely right (or wrong) about something.

After you have filled the page with one or more “finding” stories, look back over your work. Make small changes or additions if you want to clarify something. Add illustration or decoration, too, if you like.

Do your ideas form any kind of a pattern? Do they seem to be about a bigger idea that you hadn’t really planned on writing about? If they do, maybe you can use that insight to think up a title. If they don’t, make up some kind of a title anyway and write it at the top of the page.

Put your initials or a signature on the page, too. And write the date on it.

Here is just one example of the type of thing someone could write.

You can share your work by posting it as a comment below. You can type it in, or take a photo of it and upload the image.

Nancy Casey has lived in Latah County for many years. You can find more of her work here. If you would like some help with your writing, contact Nancy or the Latah Recovery Center. In-person Write-for You classes have been suspended for now, but when Covid recedes, they will return.

by Nancy Casey

Much of what we do every day is “out of habit.” Our “bad” habits get a lot of attention. We’re either trying to change them, or wish we didn’t have them, or keep remembering reasons why they aren’t good for us.

On the other hand, we hardly notice our good habits, because they don’t get in the way. Today, write about some of your best and favorite habits—what they are, how you got in to that habit (if you remember) and why you are glad you have that habit.

A habit is something you do without thinking about it first. So it might take a moment to answer when you ask yourself, “What are some of the things I do every day without thinking?” And then you have to narrow down those answers to the ones that you are glad that you do.

Try to get your mind moving in that direction as you set up your page. Draw a line at the top where your title will go. If a good-habit idea hasn’t come into your mind after that, start doodling or drawing somewhere on the page until one does. You might want to draw a box or blob to set aside some space for doodling or drawing later, too.

As soon as you remind yourself of one good habit that you have, start writing about it. Explain what the habit is and why doing this automatically is a good thing for you. How long have you had that habit? Do you recall how or when you “got into it?”

You can take yourself on a mental tour of your habits by thinking about everyday things: hygiene and housecleaning, food and drink, transportation, entertainment, relaxing, reacting to people, parts of your work day, sleep … What are some of thing things that you do all the time? Which of those are habits? Which of those are good things to do?

If you start to focus your mind on habits that are good, the annoying part of your brain might remind you that you aren’t perfect and tell you your habit isn’t all that great, or start preaching about a related not-so-good habit that you have. If that happens to you, don’t write any of that stuff down. Just remind your brain that you are only writing about good habits now and there will be plenty time to get to those other things about habits later. Maybe doodling will help your mind stay in the good-habit groove while you are thinking.

When the page is filled up, look over your work. Pause to add illustration or decoration if you like. Do your ideas form any kind of a pattern? Do they seem to be about a bigger idea that you hadn’t really planned on writing about? If they do, maybe you can use that insight to think up a title. If they don’t, make up some kind of a title anyway and write it at the top of the page.

Put your initials or a signature on the page, too. And write the date on it. Here is just one example of the type of thing someone could write.

You can share your work by posting it as a comment below. You can type it in, or take a photo of it and upload the image.

Nancy Casey has lived in Latah County for many years. You can find more of her work here. If you would like some help with your writing, contact Nancy or the Latah Recovery Center. In-person Write-for You classes have been suspended for now, but when Covid recedes, they will return.

by Nancy Casey

The word if. We say it all the time. When we do, we are experimenting with an idea that isn’t quite real. Although dwelling constantly in a state of unreality is never recommended, a bit of if-thinking about what’s not real can give us insight into what is real.

Sometimes we say if to speculate about the future and perhaps express our hopes or concerns. If it rains tomorrow… If everything goes as planned… If I can’t sleep tonight… In cases like that, the word if allows us to make plans and consider alternatives.

We can use if to contemplate the impossible.  If I had enough money… If I was on vacation now… If it was summer and not winter… Using if in this way gives us a chance to imagine the world the way we wish it was. This kind of thinking can often help us clarify what we want.

If can also be a word that allows us to contemplate our regrets, to look at the past and wish it was different. If my friend was still alive… If I had done better on that test… If I had remembered my keys… We are advised not to wallow in this kind of if, but these types of statements help us express grief and understand problems.

Sometimes we look at the past with relief, not regret. If helps us do that, too. If that car had hit me… If I hadn’t found a job… If I hadn’t arrived on time… In cases like that, if  helps us appreciate our good fortune.

Today, in your writing, use the word if as much as you can. Before you begin writing, draw a line at the top of your page where your title will go. Set aside some space for illustration or doodling if you like.

Get your writing started, by putting down the word If, and continue on with whatever pops into your mind next. Explain it as much as your care to, and then continue and write another statement that begins with If. If you find yourself making a long explanation of an if–idea, maybe you can insert an if-statement into the explanation of the if-statement that you started with.

Don’t worry too much about reality or organization. Instead, as you write the page, try to use the word if as many times as you can.

When your page has filled up, look back over your work. Pause to add illustration or decoration if you like. Do your ideas form any kind of a pattern? Do they seem to be about a bigger idea that you hadn’t really planned on writing about? If they do, maybe you can use that insight to think up a title. If they don’t, make up some kind of a title anyway and write it at the top of the page.

Put your initials or a signature on the page, too. And write the date on it. Here is just one example of what someone could write.

You can share your work by posting it as a comment below. You can type it in, or take a photo of it and upload the image.

Nancy Casey has lived in Latah County for many years. You can find more of her work here. If you would like some help with your writing, contact Nancy or the Latah Recovery Center. In-person Write-for You classes have been suspended for now, but when Covid recedes, they will return.