Move it like a rock star flash fiction

Move it like a rock star

51 Replies

Charli Mill's flash fiction challenge - rock star

This week at the Carrot Ranch, Charli Mills challenged writers to In 99 words (no more, no less) write a story about a rock star. You can feature a central character or write about the feeling like a rock star. Go where the prompt leads!

One of my favourite TED talks is Ken Robinson’s Do Schools Kill Creativity? If you haven’t watched it yet, I recommend it as a very entertaining 20 minutes. I find it both heartbreaking and inspiring at the same time.

In the video, Ken suggests that “all kids have tremendous talents, and we squander them, pretty ruthlessly.” He quotes Pablo Picasso as saying that every child is an artist. Remaining one into adulthood is the problem.

Robinson then goes on to talk about having lived at Snitterfield “just outside Stratford, which is where Shakespeare’s father was born.”

He asks, “Are you struck by a new thought? I was. You don’t think of Shakespeare having a father, do you? Do you? Because you don’t think of Shakespeare being a child, do you? Shakespeare being seven? I never thought of it. I mean, he was seven at some point. He was in somebody’s English class, wasn’t he?”

Now that’s an interesting thought. I wonder if your English teachers remember you from their classes. Could they have made any of the comments that Robinson suggests may have been made about the young William Shakespeare, including:

“Must try harder.”

or at bedtime, being sent to bed by his dad,

“Go to bed, now!”

“And put the pencil down!”

“Stop speaking like that.”

“It’s confusing everybody.”

It’s quite a thought. Perhaps as writers, we should reveal our school reports that are relevant to our writing careers. How well did our teachers predict our futures?

But we’re not discussing writers in this post. We’re discussing rock stars. I guess most rock stars started out in someone’s classroom too. And that made me think of this inspirational video by Clint Pulver, professional drummer and motivational speaker, who discusses one moment and one teacher who changed his life.

We all hope for a Mr Jensen in our lives to help us realise our full potential.

Movin’ It

Miss Prim turned from the board just in time to see Max land a punch on Michael.

“Ma-ax!”

“He bumped me.”

Miss Prim sighed. “What were you doing, Michael?”

“Noth—”

“He was rocking the desk again.”

“How many times—”

Without direction, Michael removed himself to sit in the corner. Before long, his feet were twitching, his elbows were pumping and his whole body was squirming.

“Michael!”

Everyone looked.

“Sorry, Miss,” Michael muttered.

But he couldn’t keep still.

Years later, when he was a rock star, Miss Prim said, “I knew he’d make something of himself one day.”

«»

I chose the name Michael for my character for three rock stars, only one of whom is still living (the oldest) but all of whom had the moves.

Mick Jagger

Michael Hutchence

Michael Jackson

Thank you blog post

Thank you for reading. I appreciate your feedback. Please share your thoughts.

51 thoughts on “Move it like a rock star”

  1. Pingback: Apples for the teacher | Norah Colvin

  3. Darlene

    I love Ken Robinson’s Ted Talk. I worked with youth-at-risk for a few years and could see how the education system failed these young, creative minds. Love your story and video choices.

    Liked by 2 people

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  5. Christy B

    A wise choice to name your character Michael! Well done, Norah – and I like thinking about Shakespeare as a boy. Now I’m wondering if he was all about the English classes like I was in my education 😉

    Like

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  7. Charli Mills

    That’s a great point — what was Shakespeare’s life like at 17? How was he encouraged or recognized? He must have had a teacher — someone who taught him both Middle English and the Modern version he helped solidify. A wonderful, rich post, Norah! I appreciate that your Michael character could be one of several rock stars. I think he was Mick Jagger!

    Liked by 2 people

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  9. D. Avery @shiftnshake

    Wow, you rocked this prompt! I am always amazed and humbled by your passion and your ability to connect the prompts to education, more specifically, to children and their development. When we look at the whole child we might also consider past, present, and future, at how their interests and tendencies might be encouraged and nurtured that they develop into their best selves.

    Liked by 3 people

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    1. Norah Post author

      Thank you, D. I had some good material to start with. It wasn’t all my own. I wish we did more for the whole child in schools. While it happens in many places, it doesn’t happen often enough.

      Liked by 1 person

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      1. D. Avery @shiftnshake

        Yep. I was digging back into some of my grad school stuff today, didn’t end up using it after all, but wow, what idealism (and common sense realism) back then. I was rereading Edith Cobb, Joseph Chilton Pearce… importance of interacting with nature in the middle childhood years…

        Liked by 1 person

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    1. Norah Post author

      I’m pleased that I introduced them to you, Jacqui. I love videos like these about education. They inspire me when I need to be inspired most.

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  13. Jennie

    I loved this, Norah. There’s so much here! From Shakespeare to Picasso, everyone was a child at one time, and every child has talent. Don’t squelch it. I must watch the Ted Talk. Your take on the prompt was spot on with Michael.

    Liked by 2 people

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    1. Norah Post author

      Thank you, Jennie. I’m pleased you enjoyed the post and my story. Children are amazing. We just need to give them the opportunity of showing it. 🙂 I’m sure you will enjoy Ken Robinson’s talk.

      Liked by 1 person

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  15. petespringerauthor

    Great post, Norah. I’ve seen the YouTube about Clint and Mr. Pulver before, but I don’t think I’ve shared it. Hope it’s okay with you to share it on the Facebook site. It seems impossible that school can already be starting up in our neck of the woods in two weeks. There are going to be plenty of more kids like Clint, and I hope that their teachers are wise enough to realize that these children are often not even aware of what they are doing with their bodies.

    By the way, Ken Robinson’s TED talk is one of my favorites too.

    Liked by 3 people

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    1. Norah Post author

      I think it’s wonderful that you will share it in the Facebook group, Pete. I’m sure other members of your group will enjoy it too.
      I’m pleased you enjoy Ken Robinson’s talk too. 🙂

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  16. Miriam Hurdle

    Great post, Norah. There were (are) many stars (rock stars) have tough childhood. The parents started with encouraging their talented kids, but some just got greedy. I know of many stories of Michael Jackson. Before he died, he had to use IV to infuse sleeping med to get some sleep.
    I used to have a child star in my classroom. When she had to go to Hollywood, I had to prepare homework assignment package for her. She had her tutor at the movie shooting. Those kids done have regular childhood friends.

    Liked by 3 people

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    1. Norah Post author

      I think each stage of life can have its own challenges, Miriam. I haven’t yet decided which is the easiest. While my children might disagree, I’m yet to try really old. 🙂
      It must be hard to have regular friends when you spend so much time on a movie set. Is she anyone that we may have heard of (knowing that I know almost nobody as I watch so few movies and little television). How was she as a student? Did you have any difficulties?

      Liked by 2 people

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    2. petespringerauthor

      What an interesting fact to have one of your students be a child star, Miriam. I hope the child’s parents kept her grounded. As far as I know, none of my students were or became celebrities The closest thing would be that one of my more brighter students went to an Ivy League school to become a lawyer, and now she is Jennifer Lopez’s (the singer and actress) nanny. What an unusual change in careers.

      Liked by 2 people

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  17. robbiesinspiration

    An interesting post today, Norah. We don’t think of famous people as being children and a lot of them had difficult childhoods. Shakespeare’s life was changed when he escaped an outbreak of the plague that reached his doorstep in 1606. After this outbreak, London’s boy companies started to come to an end and Shakespeare’s company was able to replace its boy players.

    Liked by 3 people

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    1. Norah Post author

      Thanks, Robbie. I think many creatives had difficult childhoods because they didn’t fit the mould. Not all were difficult though. Thanks for adding more information to the post.

      Liked by 1 person

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