Six-Word Memoirs

Legend has it that Ernest Hemingway won a $10 bet by claiming he could write a complete, heartbreaking novel in just six words. He took a paper napkin and won the wager by writing:

For sale: baby shoes, never worn.

The iceberg theory, or the theory of omission, states that deeper meaning in stories should be submerged beneath the surface. Let the reader develop their own views. The Hemingway anecdote directly inspired the Six-Word Memoir Project and a series of books titled, It All Changed in an Instant.

A few of my favorites:

"The miserable childhood leads to royalties." – Frank McCourt

“I picked passion. Now I'm poor.” – Kathleen E. Whitlock

“At least I never voted Republican.” – Tony Kushner

We played this game around the dinner table on Royal Belize last week. The creativity on display was impressive. The winning entry was, “Met wife at her bachelorette party.”

The big table at Royal Belize has creative energy. I think that it sits in some sort of cosmic zone, or maybe it has a connection to the ancients who lived around here. Great ideas flow at the table.

I’ve written about my six-word memoir in the past. I still think that it captures my life pretty well: “Big choices were made for me.” It’s not Hemingway, but it follows the iceberg theory.

I decided to try some new ones for the dinner game:

“Life is graded on a curve.”

“Luck, labor, and love. Result: Awesome.”

“Meandering through life, stumbling on happiness.”

Each of these possesses a core truth about my life and worldview. There was no plan. There is no plan. There is just showing up, doing the work, and expecting good things to happen.

The kids showed up on island yesterday with toddlers in tow. After one night, I have a new six-word memoir:

“Babysitting is fun. Giving them back.”

If you have made it this far, let me just add, “Some Sundays are better than others.”