Writing Challenge: Baskets, Buckets and Boxes

In our house, we sort things by categories so my children know where they go when it is time to clean. For example, we have an art bucket for art supplies, a Barbie box for all Barbie related items, a bucket for toy cars (and anything else with wheels), and so on. I picked up this idea from a parenting book when my first child was starting to accumulate toys. We stuck with it through the years.

This week, my youngest daughter wanted to fill one of our large buckets with water so she could sit in it and pretend we had a pool. She dumped the contents out on the floor and headed outside to begin her swimming adventure. Later, of course, we had to refill the buckets with the toys. We decided to look at each toy and decide if we still used it (or if we needed to donate it). It was fun to watch my daughter rediscover some fun items she had forgotten about.

Write about a basket, a box or a bucket in your home that holds treasured items or accumulated odds and ends. In 600 words or less, describe the container and its contents without describing a person looking at them. See if you think of the items in a new way or if you rediscover your fondness for a forgotten item.

 (OK--sometimes our cats take over the boxes. Marshmallow likes our homeschool boxes.) 

Writing Challenge: Senses and Such

Because my oldest daughter was born with a sensory disorder, I am reading a book about our senses and how they develop from birth through adulthood. I realize that I take my senses for granted. Because I have not lost my sight, my hearing or my other senses, I don’t spend a lot of time thinking about them in my own life. Because my father has lost his hearing and my daughter faces difficulties related to all of her senses, however, I do know how disrupted life can be when we face challenges related to our senses.  

So here’s my writing challenge:

In at least 500 words, describe a scene that involves sight, taste, smell, hearing and touch. The descriptive words have to let us as the readers know what is being seen, heard, smelled, tasted and touched by a character. Don’t go over 1,000 words.

Follow this challenge by describing how a person reacts to the same scene or setting when they have lost three of their senses. They must encounter the same place or situation but without the same abilities. You can choose which senses the person has lost (sight, hearing, etc.).