Daily writing prompt

What does your ideal home look like?

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I feel I should write about the philosophy of an “ideal” and how that applied to me. But I am not.

My ideal home is the one I am living in right now. It is the fullness of my dreams. It has a library and a chapel. It is close to church and the shops. It is the right size and the right age.

A home is different to a house in that it expresses relationships. My home is within a community that has set aside this house for me. So it is ideal because it expresses my relationship to the community and allows me to express my relationship with God.

BTW: I recall writing about this before?!

Daily writing prompt

What brings a tear of joy to your eye?

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I want to say something meaningful like world peace, a child’s love for their parent, the beauty of nature, or a beautiful piece of music. But the reality is that a book is most likely to bring a tear of joy to my eye. Not any book! A book that I desire for its content. I have a few with pictures in them and they are nice too. Yet nothing beats a good book with “mind-altering” content.

Daily writing prompt

Why do you blog?

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Why would anyone not blog? It is a form of expression. A way to learn to order your feelings, emotions, and affections. It is “journalling” for a digital age!

That being said, I do not blog for others! I used to write for the “hits” – optimise the SEO and share “secret” information. I blog for me. I like the process. I like the technology (and, hence, I use WordPress). I like these prompts as they make me think and look more closely at my daily life.

So, why do I blog? So that the “me” in me can express itself.

Daily writing prompt

Interview someone — a friend, another blogger, your mother, the mailman — and write a post based on their responses.

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So the simple answer is “no”. The longer answer is “nooooooooooooooooooo”. (And, to be honest, I want my blogging streak to continue so I am answering differently.)

I interact with people only via email (and occasionally text). So, in place of an interview, read my About me? page.

Daily writing prompt

How are you feeling right now?

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It is early in the morning and I am having a cup of tea – so I am feeling ok. But, to be honest, I have struggled. I had a dentist appointment yesterday and that was extremely stressful. I am worried and I am prone to overthinking.

But there is another side: sometimes before the light comes the darkness. Sometimes in the struggle, I have clarity. Sometimes the decision to move on is also a painful decision to surrender the past. I can only control “me”.

Daily writing prompt

What daily habit do you do that improves your quality of life?

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I should say something religious like prayer, meditation, or mental prayer. All of which I do and it does improve my daily life.

The habit is no habit but a place. The place that most improves the quality of my life is “The Anchorage”. It is the place where I live my vocation – my enclosure. I am “me” in this place. I need to return, feel the absence, and am drained by being away from this place.

Maybe I should say that this habit is really a habit!?

Daily writing prompt

What was the last thing you searched for online? Why were you looking for it?

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I google different things during the day: TV cast for shows that I am watching or the background of an author. But the last thing I searched for online is “absurdism“.

Why? It is just part of the things that make up my life. I was preaching this week and wondered afterwards how close it was to absurdism. Still not sure!

Most searches end up in a rabbit hole. One article leads to another and then another google for a new concept. And before I know it, an hour is gone.

Daily writing prompt

What’s your favorite time of day?

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For once, this is pretty easy. I love the time before sunrise. I wake up early and just sit listening to the birds outside. The silence is so real at that time of day. And the solitude.

I normally say Morning Prayer at sunrise (or just before). And my day starts.

Daily writing prompt

What’s your favorite recipe?

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I recently decided to follow a vegan diet. No meat, no dairy, and no eggs – no animal products. I live alone so it is pretty easy to control what I eat. And often I slip and forget to check! The “anchorite” tradition is vegetarian but my system does not like dairy so I thought I would go all the way.

I do not have a favourite recipe. I have enjoyed trying new things with tofu. And I have discovered Dahl. Sometimes I miss a food – burgers – but I have found vegan alternatives that taste much better. I miss some of the things I used to mindlessly eat – potato chips and chocolate. But I feel better for my choice.

Daily writing prompt

Tell us about the last thing you got excited about.

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It is all about a book. I found a book online – a book I desired for a long time. A book that I believed was unavailable since it was a limited run. This book arrived! And I was excited.

The book is a 1961 edition of the Directory of Anglican Religious Communities. It smells of incense and is packed with information about monasteries, friars, and other houses of religious life. It is old-fashioned in its language and has no pictures.