Six Word Memoir

I was tagged by Tonya at A Day In My Life inviting me to partake in a six word memoir. The Meme originated over an idea that was prompted by the book written by Larry Smith and Rachel Fershleiser, Not Quite What I was Planning: Six Word Memoires by Writers Famous and Obscure. It's a compilation based on the story that Hemingway once bet ten dollars that he could sum up his life in six words. His words were- For Sale: baby shoes, never worn.

This was an interesting exercise to do. I had unwittingly did this a week go when I was inspired by a board post on babycenter.com but it was directly related to "life as a mom" not life as me per say. I considered the adjectives which could describe who I am and the nouns to describe what I have done or desire to do. It just turned into a long list of things, near impossible to whittle down to a mere six without missing a small shade of who I am or who I want to be.

For inspiration, I recalled a novel of Hemingway's I read once. A Farewell to Arms. The story moved me to tears when I first read it eight years ago. I believe it was based on Hemmingway's own life and knowing this gives a powerful view of his choice of six words. There are many things in life which define, shape and alter you; the big ones are life and death. Hemingway's six words represent both of those. I wonder how difficult or easy it was for him to choose just six words for such a profound experience such as his.


So, without further ado, my six words:

Loved, birth, life, learn, freedom, chance

Pausing to take in Hemmingway's message, I choose to base my six words in recognizing my privileged life. Loved represents significant others in my life who have shown me unconditional love and those who I have loved without pretence and expectation. Birth represents the birth of my children who very much define who I am today and who I will be in the future. Life represents the longevity of my life and the loved ones around me, a reminder to me to live and not wallow in self pity. Learn represents my passion for learning and belief in that you should always strive to be open to new ideas. Freedom represents that I live in a free state and pays tribute to the men and women who have fought before me and shall fight after me for the freedom of all people. Chance represents the opportunities that have come knocking and the calculated risks I have taken in life. I have been blessed.


In response, I tag some of the few people I follow on blogsphere (I'm a newbie at this game).

Amber at Real Life Begins for her love of words, book and a challenge.
Lisa at Janstas Eggis because I love her so and I'm pretty sure T has been strategic in her selection (sneaky T) with the hopes that I will tag her.
Ceci at My Chaos, My Bliss because she always has a good story.

For the last two I have selected some random blogs by linking from my profile to see what comes up. It will be interesting to see if anyone takes up the challenge, and if you do -- I thank you. I shan't post your blog link here for the sake of your own privacy but please, join in the fun and remember to post your blog and six word memoir in my comments.


Here are the rules: 1. Write your own six word memoir. 2. Post it on your blog and include a visual illustration if you’d like. 3. Link to the person that tagged you in your post and to this original post if possible so we can track it as it travels across the blogosphere. 4 .Tag five more blogs with links. 5. And don’t forget to leave a comment on the tagged blogs with an invitation to play!