Reminiscences: Musings in Memoir - Prompt #8

PROMPT #8 — ANIMAL

I think I could turn and live with the animals, they are so placid and self-contained,
I stand and look at them long and long.
They do not sweat and whine about their condition,
They do not lie awake in the dark and weep for their sins,
They do not make me sick discussing their duty to God,
Not one is dissatisfied, not one is demented with the mania of owning things,
Not one kneels to another, nor to his kind that lived thousands of years ago,
Not one is respectable or unhappy over the whole earth.
Walt Whitman (Song of Myself)

Animal: There are many to choose from, found in habitats and living in conditions strange to humans. They are domestic and wild, tame and feral, ancient and newborn. Animals can be companions (pets) or work tools (think: farm horses), and fall in several places on the food chain.

Animal *instincts* are generally considered atavistic impulses, but analogous language exists for the comparison of animal behaviors with a variety of human characteristics. Personality-wise — Someone who is hawk-like, for example, displays very different behaviors than a person who is bovine. Physically — A visual can easily be conjured of someone’s hairdo using animal references (a cockatoo has a very different look than a wild roan, for instance), or eye glare (eagle-eyed) or wha-wha-wha…? mouthing in stupidity or disbelief (like a guppy).

Depending on one’s religious and/or ethnic background and beliefs, animals might be spirit guides or totems, and their appearance in the flesh may signify something of great importance. Minus the spiritual significance and regardless of life experience, many people feel an affinity for a certain animal. Personally speaking: I once collected elephant paraphernalia of all kinds and still have a soft spot for them in ceramic form; my cookie jar collection features pigs, dogs, bears, and even a llama; I own apparel and accessories that has animalistic appeal in the form of penguin/flamingo/owl/llama/giraffe/leopard/insert-animal-here prints, pictures, and designs.

Musically, there are plenty of animal-ish options to choose from:

Three Dog Night had a number of hits, including one that began Jeremiah was a bullfrog…
A drunken Dumbo had soap-bubble gin hallucinations to the tune of Pink Elephants
And we all know that In the jungle, the mighty jungle, the lion sleeps tonight…

So for Prompt #8 in the Reminiscences summer writing project, please consider ‘animal’ (either literally or figuratively).

Did you raise animals of any kind as a kid?
Have you ever experienced a bond with a special pet?
Perhaps you’ve worked in (or been inspired by) animal rescue?
Did you ever behave in a way that was animalistic?
Or maybe you have memories tied to *this* Animal:

The point of this writing project is to create new content by writing from your personal memories, with a focus on the form of memoir.

Prompts will be posted on the 10th, 20th, and 30th of each month through August 10th. The purpose of the prompts is simply to provide inspiration. You are welcome to use the prompt literally or figuratively, or as a jumping off point that leads you in another direction all together. You are also welcome to revisit past prompts as the project progresses. Your timing is your own, and adherence to the prompt{s} is not required.

To play:

Write a memoir-esque post.
Link your post either to this prompt or to the Reminiscences project description page. (Use of the badge is optional.)
Leave a comment below – you can use CommentLuv to create a live link to your post on my comment form – to let me know you’re playing.

If you’re not sure how to start or are unsure of how to approach your memoir writing, I encourage you to visit the bloggers who participated in writing for the previous prompt for inspiration:

If you wrote something for Prompt #7 – or wrote your memories with (or without) any of the previous prompts as guidance – over the past ten days and do not see your name above, it means I don’t have your link. Please leave one for me and I will add your post! 🙂

For more information about this writing project, see here.

If you have any additional questions, please let me know. 🙂