Six Words
Photo by Glen Carrie on Unsplash
I have long been fascinated
By the six-word story –
Six words to tell a complete tale,
Six words to capture an experience,
Six words to engender emotion,
Six words to draw the reader in,
And
To leave the reader changed,
Six words to say everything there is to say,
Six words –
Succinct,
Carefully chosen,
Complete.
I first discovered the six-word
Phenomenon
several years ago
when I was reading memoirs.
My goal was to read
a book a week,
And in the process,
I searched for titles
by reading reviews online.
One day,
when I was scrolling through the results for
“must read memoirs,”
I stumbled upon
The Six Word Memoir ® project.
After finding the website,
I ordered and read,
“Not Quite What I Was Planning: Six-Word Memoirs,
by Writers Famous and Obscure,”
edited by Rachel Fershleiser and Larry Smith.
By page 20,
I was hooked.
As I read
Entry after entry,
I was amazed
at how just six words
spoke volumes.
Six words
told complete stories.
Six words
captured
Moods
and memories.
Conflicts
and crises,
People
and poignancy.
“Born in the desert, still thirsty.”
-Georgene Nunn
“Savior complex makes for many disappointments.”
-Alanna Schubach
“Joined Army. Came out. Got booted.”
-John Baumeister
“Followed rules, not dreams. Never again.”
-Margaret Hellerstein
“On the playground, alone. 1970, today.”
-Charles Warren
“Everyone who loved me is dead.”
-Ellen Fanning
“Time to start over again, again.”
-Dan Petronelli
And, still one of my favorite –
“Asked to quiet down; spoke louder.”
-Wendy Lee.
It wasn’t long
before six words
became a regular spiritual practice for me.
Review the day
in six words.
Portray the experience
in six words.
Process the feelings
in six words.
Succinctly summarize
both joys and sorrows,
trials and triumphs,
hopes and fears
in six words,
Day after day,
Week after week,
Month after month -
It became a framework
to put things into a healthy perspective,
to both celebrate
and let things go.
Before I knew it,
I found myself
thinking in six words
about things both
humorous
and serious.
It even became a part of my
sermon preparation –
Write the sermon in six words –
and then write the whole sermon.
It was –
and is –
Both life-giving
and life-saving.
When the pandemic descended
upon
and engulfed the world
in early 2020,
I found myself
wondering what I could do
that would give people
a space,
a place,
and community
amid lockdown
and isolation
to not feel so alone.
We couldn’t be together,
but we needed each other.
With so much
Upended
And suspended,
I – we –
Needed some way to
Articulate,
Put into words -
Name
what we were
Thinking,
Feeling,
and Experiencing
amid so much fear and uncertainty.
Late one night,
In March of 2020,
I formed a Facebook group -
“Six Word Snapshots.”
The timeline photo
said then,
And still says now -
“Staying home
Washing hands
Praying more.”
The invitation is this:
In six words only,
write about what you are doing
amid these changing times.
What brings you joy?
How has your life changed?
What are your challenges?
How are you passing the time?
How are you
"making the best of it?"
What are you thinking about it?
Remember –
six words only –
no more, no less!
I invited a handful of my friends.
They invited more.
And it grew exponentially
In a matter of hours.
People wrote -
People responded
And with one six-word post
after another,
a community was formed.
People wrote of their sorrows:
And suddenly tears, despite the sun.
People wrote of their exhaustion.
I miss my motivation. Too tired.
People wrote of their loved ones who were sick:
Rest eternally, Dad. Kick COVID, Mom.
People wrote of strained relationships:
Painful relationship with mother. Weird day.
People wrote of unemployment:
Husband’s job loss is permanent. Sigh.
People wrote of the unsettled-ness of time:
Really? It’s not Friday? Who knew?
People wrote of the everyday things that were keeping them going:
Warm, delicious homemade cinnamon raison bread.
People wrote
and wrote
and wrote,
and they are still writing.
The posts are more infrequent now
and are often not related to the pandemic –
Prayers, friend's heart valve surgery tomorrow
Friends' happiness makes my heart giggle
Yippee, back to work at 80
Making play dough tonight! Kneading …Therapeutic.
But there is something profoundly holy
about this
six-word experience
and the ongoing way that
it meets people’s needs
to speak
and be heard,
to name something –
anything, really -
and have someone respond.
In recent months,
my personal six-word practice
has taken on
yet another
a new form.
Through my work as the
Program Director for Congregational Thriving
at St. Olaf College,
I have the privilege of
stewarding
The Nourishing Vocation Project,
a project through the
Lutheran Center
for Faith, Values, and Community
with generous support from
Lilly Endowment Inc.
The Nourishing Vocation Project
is a four-phase experience
that invites individual participants
and whole congregations
to deepen their understanding
of God’s call
upon their life and work
so that they can thrive.
Foundational to this project
is a spiritual practice
that I have created, called
Vocare.
from the Latin,
meaning “to call,”
is designed to
help you discern
and embrace
your multiple vocations
so that
you can more intentionally
live life on purpose
for the common good.
Vocare
invites ongoing reflection upon
six words –
Values,
Openness,
Call,
Attentiveness,
Regrets,
Experiences
of God’s presence.
Vocare
invites you to regularly
dwell with these questions –
What do I value,
and how am I living my values?
To what am I being asked to be open?
How do I respond?
What voices are calling to me?
Which ones do I listen to, and why?
Where am I giving my attention?
Does my attention align with my values?
What are my regrets?
What insight do I gain from them?
When, where, and how have I experienced
the presence of the God in my everyday life?
Values
Openness
Call
Attentiveness
Regret
Experience –
Six words
that can
nourish ongoing discernment,
Six words
that can
nourish the pursuit of purpose,
Six words
that can
nourish the living of
our multiple vocations in daily life,
Six words
that can
lead you to more intentionally
live life on purpose for the common good.
I commend this practice
and its six words
to you.
Incorporate it
into something you are already doing –
Put these six words
in your head
and write them on your heart.
Think on them
when you go for a walk,
Or
Commute to work,
Or
Have your devotions,
Or
Mow your lawn,
Or
Sit down at table with your family,
Or
Take a shower,
Or
Plan your budget,
Or
Lay out your monthly calendar.
Give them space in your thoughts
when you go to bed at night.
Let them greet you
when you wake
In the morning.
Welcome them
as a companion
on your daily journey –
whatever that journey may be
and wherever that journey
may take you.
You just might be surprised at how
these six words
lead you to clarity
when life is confusing –
Point you toward intention
when meaning is allusive,
And deepen your understanding
of God’s call
upon your life and work –
in the everyday moments
of everyday life
so that
you can
more intentionally,
live life on purpose for the common good.
And who knows,
You may even end up with some
Amazing six-word stories along the way!
