Yes to You

a writing prompt for you (yes, you) to use + March Writing Hour this Sunday

Who in your life has said yes to you? Not just yes to your questions, but yes to YOU?

• Yes, you can.

• Yes, you should.

• Yes, I’m on your side—your biggest fan.

• Yes, you can do that—be that—love that—love them—even if no one else does or is or would.

• Yes, you should dream that wild dream and do that big thing.

• Yes, my door is always open to you, no matter what.

• Yes, you look great and should totally wear those red boots.

• Yes, you deserve goodness.

• Yes, you are enough.

• Yes, you are lovable and loved.

• Yes, you belong.

• Yes, I’m here.

• Yes, child, yes.

The poem below by Kaylin Haught is a resounding YES for each of us, today.

It’s Poem 126 in the Poetry 180 project at the Library of Congress website. The project is the brainchild of poet Billy Collins, a former Poet Laureate, who developed the collection “to make it easy for students to hear or read a poem on each of the 180 days of the school year.” I don’t know about you, but I could have used this poem in middle and high school. And plenty of days since.

God Says Yes To Me

I asked God if it was okay to be melodramatic
and she said yes
I asked her if it was okay to be short
and she said it sure is
I asked her if I could wear nail polish
or not wear nail polish
and she said honey
she calls me that sometimes
she said you can do just exactly
what you want to
Thanks God I said
And is it even okay if I don't paragraph
my letters
Sweetcakes God said
who knows where she picked that up
what I'm telling you is
Yes Yes Yes

—Kaylin Haught

a writing prompt

When have you heard yes to you? Write about that.

Or who can you say yes to?

Or using Haught’s poem as a template, start with “I asked God if it was okay to….” and then see what yes you get to on the page.

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March Writing Hour - Sunday, March 26 at 4 pm Eastern

Our next live writing hour on Zoom for paid subscribers is this Sunday, March 26th at 4 pm Eastern. If you want to write in company with others, you are welcome to join us. You can upgrade your subscription for a month ($7) just to try it. A separate email to paid subscribers will go out soon with the link. Let’s write together.

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Photo by Jonathan Taylor on Unsplash