You rush over to the poor tortoise with your last gasping breath to save it, only to discover that it’s a helmet filled with water. You drink the water and put the shade giving helmet on your head. Compassion saved the day! Hooray.
I’m reminded of my husband slipping off the ladder he was standing on while trying to install a curtain rod. Because he was standing on the ladder when he slipped he bumped into the top of the blue, leather couch we had moved to install the curtain rod.
Backwards momentum flipped him right over the couch and he landed on his back like an upside down tortoise in the desert.
His legs were wedged against the couch back and his torso was laying flat out on the cushions.
At first he looked at me by tilting his head back to see me sitting across from him.
“How did I end up here?” Bob asked me.
“Just stay still for a while and make sure everything is okay.” I cautioned.
“Nothing hurts. I can’t believe I didn’t hit my head on the coffee table.”
It had been moved too,and the hard corner was mere inches from where he landed.
“ I can’t believe you landed in the one soft spot. You look trapped like an upside down tortoise!” I said laughing.
Bob laughed too and wriggled against a plastic tool bin we had placed for access on the couch.
“I can’t get out of here. I can’t move to get up.” He added in frustration.
I got up and told him to do just what I asked him to do. He had to roll over on to his side. I carefully bent and positioned his legs urging him to roll slowly to the right.
It took another couple of careful placements of his legs to allow him to turn and finally tuck his legs under himself and I helped him roll right into a standing position.
Bob was a bit dizzy but that quickly changed.
In essence my 66year old sweet husband did a backflip over the couch to land like a tortoise tipped over in the desert.
As a Booster, I want to double click on a point you made:
Everyone should be writing with the goal of an article being "boost-worthy," even if you don't care about the program itself? Why? Because the criteria Boosters are using are the same goals writers should be aiming for: engaging content, informative, evergreen, etc.
And if you are looking to get boosted, delivering consistent quality is the best way to get on a nominator's radar. We're always looking for new writers work to surface, but there are a handful of writers I /know/ will consistently deliver top notch articles. I will always check in to see what they're doing.
Mr.MacRae, I enjoyed reading your anecdote. I hope you don't mind that I restacked (I hope that’s correct-it’s late) your response. I particularly liked the quote you selected from Mandela.
There was a young man, restless by nature, who entered a new town looking for a place to settle down and begin anew his life. Upon his arrival, he went to the local monastery and asked to see the abbot, an old man both venerable and wise. He asked the abbot, ‘What are the people like in this town?’ The old man paused for a moment and then asked the young man, ‘What were people like in the last town that you lived in?’ The young man replied, ‘Oh, they were horrible folk: greedy and lustful and mean-spirited!’ The abbot replied, ‘That is exactly what people are like in this town.’ And so the young man moved on from town to town and never found a home to settle down.
A few days later, another young man entered the town looking for a place to settle down and like his predecessor, sought out the advice of the venerable old abbot. ‘What are people like in this town?’, he asked. ‘What were people like in the last town that you lived in?’ asked the abbot. The young man replied, ‘Oh, they were kind and generous and filled with the joy of living. They were wonderful folks!’ The abbot replied, ‘That is exactly what people are like in this town. You are in luck!’ And so the second young man settled down in the town, married, raised his children and lived a long and happy life.
There is an old Buddhist teaching which says ‘Most people appear as pigs in the eyes of a pig, whereas, other people appear as buddhas in the eyes of a buddha.’
If we are always looking for and expecting the worst from people, that is exactly what we will see, what we will get back. On the other hand, if we make an effort to always look for the good in others, that is exactly what we will see in others and will get back. Our perceptions of others determine how we interact with them. If you treat others with kindness and respect, more often than not, you will receive kindness and respect back.
“It never hurts to think too highly of a person; often they become ennobled by it and act better because of it.” Nelson Mandela
Your article helped me understand the value of the boosting structure on Medium. I also have a renewed reverence for personal anecdotes and authentic personal stories.
Wow! I'm going to read back over your entire article once again tomorrow! I thoroughly enjoyed reading it and want to make sure I was able to pay specific attention to all the points being made. You have cultivated what I consider an easy-to-follow, enjoyable-to-read writing voice. To my reading ear, your writing is almost sing-songy as I read through your piece.
You rush over to the poor tortoise with your last gasping breath to save it, only to discover that it’s a helmet filled with water. You drink the water and put the shade giving helmet on your head. Compassion saved the day! Hooray.
I subscribed today Walter, I like this kind of content, thank for sharing this.
Excellent, Walter. Thanks for sharing about the boost process.
Congratulations on your boosted stories, that's wonderful.
I’m reminded of my husband slipping off the ladder he was standing on while trying to install a curtain rod. Because he was standing on the ladder when he slipped he bumped into the top of the blue, leather couch we had moved to install the curtain rod.
Backwards momentum flipped him right over the couch and he landed on his back like an upside down tortoise in the desert.
His legs were wedged against the couch back and his torso was laying flat out on the cushions.
At first he looked at me by tilting his head back to see me sitting across from him.
“How did I end up here?” Bob asked me.
“Just stay still for a while and make sure everything is okay.” I cautioned.
“Nothing hurts. I can’t believe I didn’t hit my head on the coffee table.”
It had been moved too,and the hard corner was mere inches from where he landed.
“ I can’t believe you landed in the one soft spot. You look trapped like an upside down tortoise!” I said laughing.
Bob laughed too and wriggled against a plastic tool bin we had placed for access on the couch.
“I can’t get out of here. I can’t move to get up.” He added in frustration.
I got up and told him to do just what I asked him to do. He had to roll over on to his side. I carefully bent and positioned his legs urging him to roll slowly to the right.
It took another couple of careful placements of his legs to allow him to turn and finally tuck his legs under himself and I helped him roll right into a standing position.
Bob was a bit dizzy but that quickly changed.
In essence my 66year old sweet husband did a backflip over the couch to land like a tortoise tipped over in the desert.
Who said old guys don’t got what it takes!
No AI story generator beats real life!
Wow, Walter - that is insane. Nice work.
You deserve it as your stuff is really good.
Something for all of us to strive for.
I had 12 of 18 stories Boosted for a rate of 66%. I'll add this to today's guest post from you, Walter!
INSANE!!
I also sent you a DM via our Online Writing School for an AWESOME opportunity :D
Does Substack of a program like this?
Fantastic work, Walter!
As a Booster, I want to double click on a point you made:
Everyone should be writing with the goal of an article being "boost-worthy," even if you don't care about the program itself? Why? Because the criteria Boosters are using are the same goals writers should be aiming for: engaging content, informative, evergreen, etc.
And if you are looking to get boosted, delivering consistent quality is the best way to get on a nominator's radar. We're always looking for new writers work to surface, but there are a handful of writers I /know/ will consistently deliver top notch articles. I will always check in to see what they're doing.
Mr.MacRae, I enjoyed reading your anecdote. I hope you don't mind that I restacked (I hope that’s correct-it’s late) your response. I particularly liked the quote you selected from Mandela.
BUDDHAS AND PIGS
There was a young man, restless by nature, who entered a new town looking for a place to settle down and begin anew his life. Upon his arrival, he went to the local monastery and asked to see the abbot, an old man both venerable and wise. He asked the abbot, ‘What are the people like in this town?’ The old man paused for a moment and then asked the young man, ‘What were people like in the last town that you lived in?’ The young man replied, ‘Oh, they were horrible folk: greedy and lustful and mean-spirited!’ The abbot replied, ‘That is exactly what people are like in this town.’ And so the young man moved on from town to town and never found a home to settle down.
A few days later, another young man entered the town looking for a place to settle down and like his predecessor, sought out the advice of the venerable old abbot. ‘What are people like in this town?’, he asked. ‘What were people like in the last town that you lived in?’ asked the abbot. The young man replied, ‘Oh, they were kind and generous and filled with the joy of living. They were wonderful folks!’ The abbot replied, ‘That is exactly what people are like in this town. You are in luck!’ And so the second young man settled down in the town, married, raised his children and lived a long and happy life.
There is an old Buddhist teaching which says ‘Most people appear as pigs in the eyes of a pig, whereas, other people appear as buddhas in the eyes of a buddha.’
If we are always looking for and expecting the worst from people, that is exactly what we will see, what we will get back. On the other hand, if we make an effort to always look for the good in others, that is exactly what we will see in others and will get back. Our perceptions of others determine how we interact with them. If you treat others with kindness and respect, more often than not, you will receive kindness and respect back.
“It never hurts to think too highly of a person; often they become ennobled by it and act better because of it.” Nelson Mandela
Your article helped me understand the value of the boosting structure on Medium. I also have a renewed reverence for personal anecdotes and authentic personal stories.
Hi Walter, can you explain a bit how so many of your stories get selected? And how do you know? Is it the little arrow next it that means 'boosted'?
Are all of these stories published in different publications who can boost?
Wow! I'm going to read back over your entire article once again tomorrow! I thoroughly enjoyed reading it and want to make sure I was able to pay specific attention to all the points being made. You have cultivated what I consider an easy-to-follow, enjoyable-to-read writing voice. To my reading ear, your writing is almost sing-songy as I read through your piece.