Blame The Camels
Good metaphors are about remarking connections between what superficially appear to be unrelated things. Once when I was doing a stint in a grade school class as part of the Writers In The Schools program, I gave the kids this exercise in finding metaphors (similes, actually). I asked for some random child to name anything, and then asked another kid to name something very different. Then I asked for anyone to put up their hand when they could say how the two objects were similar. Someone suggested a motorcycle, and the second child said a camel. I was disappointed in these selections, because the easy answer is obvious and hardly creative. Nevertheless I asked, “How is a motorcycle like a camel?” One boy’s hand shot instantly, so I pointed to him. “They both have gas!” was his answer. Now that’s a creative answer, although how he knew that camels are flatulent, I have no idea! But, incidentally, it is true.