For the month of March I will be participating in the Slice of Life Challenge sponsored by The Two Writing Teachers Blog. Each day I will be sharing a Quick Write as my way of slicing. The idea is to offer a SPARK that will kindle thinking and then write as quickly as you can for 5-10 minutes. No filters, no revisions. I’ve been curating a collection of Sparks and will share some with you all month. It’s a great way to ignite your writing life.

MUSIC 

I’ve curated a selection of instrumental music pieces from classical to contemporary to share with students to Spark their imaginations and appreciation. Here’s my Padlet, but I would encourage you to create your own cache of eclectic music. (It’s important to be aware of our personal favorites/biases and stretch out of our comfort zones to expand our students’ appreciation for a world of different musical tastes and traditions.)

Here’s my Quick Write. Can you tell which piece I am responding to?

I don’t know if I should be waltzing about my room or lying my head on my pillow as I breathe in this sweet melody. Each touch of the keyboard strikes a chord in my soul, and makes me wish I could play the piano. I alternate between images in nature, a dancer on the stage, and gazing up at the heavens. My mind cannot settle on a single image, but my heart has a constant pulse of calm joy. I guess this isn’t a composition to overthink, just to feel. Just as I settle into a calm, the tune dives into intensity and then drifts back into a melancholia. Yes, it is dreamy, but not entirely sweet dreams. It is not a lullaby but a prayer perhaps. As the day draws to a close I can recount the highs and lows and release them into the ethosphere. Music plays such an important role in my life and sometimes I don’t give it the attention or appreciation it deserves.

Ok, a bit rambling. But that’s a five minute quick write for you. What piece of music could you write to? (Did you guess mine?)