#56 The Best Gift -- Words of Wisdom

Here is the original prompt as written in Poets and Writers (July/August 2019).  Below it I wrote some suggested variations.

Fiction: The Best Gift
"We must believe in our souls that we are somebody, that we are significant, that we are worthful, and we must walk the streets of life every day with this sense of dignity and this sense of somebody-ness." In Colson Whitehead's seventh novel, The Nickel Boys, the protagonist, Elwood Curtis, replays these powerful words by Martin Luther King Jr. from a record album he received as a young boy in the early 1960s, which he considers "the best gift of his life." Throughout the book Elwood repeatedly refers to King's words as a source of guidance, inspiration, and morality. Write a short story in which your main character is similarly inspired by an important historical figure's words -- words of wisdom written or spoken by an artist, author, or activist. How did you character first come across the words? Are they comforting or provocative? Does the meaning or significance of the words change over time as the character evolves? #

Variations on the Theme
As Trail Brazens, I think we've already established that we never had to write in a specified genre. Feel free to parlay this into a memoir or poem or any other form that inspires you.

I encourage you to find a quote you have never worked with before. It does not have to be a super famous person. It can be any words spoken that could be useful wisdom.

I almost passed on this idea because I feel we have done things like this a lot. But I am hoping we can stretch in new directions.  Here is an example:

The other day Laurie posted a poem about words of wisdom that Mr. Williams used to speak to the girls at PACE. If someone wanted to use these words, there are many ways to approach. It could be a story about a girl who was inspired and lived her life better because of the words.  Or the opposite -- someone who forgot, suffered, and came back to the words later in life. It could be a memoir of how these words matter to you. Or it could be a narrative poem imagining a story about how Mr. Williams came to believe these words to be important, perhaps a childhood experience with the women in his life. There are so many different ways to take it. The words of wisdom might also be misinterpreted or misconstrued as a way to create kind of an anti-wisdom conflict. #

So even though I was concerned that this prompt might seem too ordinary to us, the more I thought about it the more I realized it could push us a little deeper.

Find the perfect quote. Get creative. Have fun!