#Discipline that connects

[beccawise7]

Who and what you allow into your life matters. If they aren't feeding you, they are draining you.

Life is a balance between give and take. A partnership. If they aren't contributing, only taking... move along. ~beccawise7 💜🖤

[flowersdiceandlove]

The burial mounds, a place of mystery, the place of the dead, cannot be comprehended by humans. It is a place warped by time and resentful energy and the intentions of those who inhabit it and who knows what else. It is sentient and has a strong will of its own. It’s said that no one can leave the Burial Mounds, and that is true as much as it’s not. The burial mounds keeps what is theirs; protects what is theirs. No one can escape from the Burial Mounds bc more often than not, once you enter, the Burial Mounds see you as theirs. It does not take well to people hurting and taking what is theirs. (And, maybe this is why a certain demonic cultivator was able to survive and leave that place. Maybe he understood this will and resentment bc he too would do anything to protect those he loves. For him as well, once he considers someone family, they are family. And nothing will change that. No matter what happens, his family is his family, and those under his protection are fully under his protection. They can see a kindred spirit in each other, and so the Burial Mounds let him go, knowing that he will always carry part of the Burial Mounds with him. The souls in his sleeves and the resentful energy he welcomes into his body. The boon that the Burial Mounds grants him.)

It is for these reasons that WWX knows to bring the Wen remnants there. Not only does he know he can defend them if needed in that place teeming with resentment, he knows the Burial Mounds themselves will protect them. It protects its own, and the Burial Mounds knows these people that WWX brought are his, so they are its. It’s as simple as that. And, the Burial Mounds likes it. It likes having these people here, milling about and carving a life on it. It likes how they turns its soil from barren to fruitful. It likes how they are happy and content. It likes being their home and haven. It will do anything to protect them.

When the first siege comes, the Burial Mounds try to protect what is theirs. These people who have made a home on it. But, they are all grieving deeply, and it’s beautiful child, the first to even understand them and want to make peace with them instead of destroying them, is breaking apart. He is breaking apart with the weight of someone who could not protect that which is most precious to him. And he has been breaking with this weight for months now, every day chipping another piece of himself away, every day pulling further and further into himself, every day driving him just a little more insane. The Burial Mounds have no problem with madness. They will still embrace him fully and without question, but it pains them to see him like this. They are all breaking under the pressure of what the world outside its borders do. This is no longer their haven, but now their place of imminent doom. It is only a matter of time until the cultivators attack. The Burial Mounds fights back as it always does to protect those that are its. But, some of these living cultivators attacking are family of WWX and it cannot attack family. And, it knows that even should he wipe all these harmful intruders out, that will not stop more from coming, and more after that. The Burial Mounds would fight every wave they send, but that is not the issue. The issue is that its people are grieving and breaking. The issue is that it cannot do anything to fix that and every attack will break their spirits just that much more.

So instead, the Burial Mounds decide to change it. As the cultivators pour in, the Burial Mounds pulls its energy from defending and into charging its intention.  Some of its people get cut down, but that is fine, it will still work, they do not have to be alive. Just as WWX is about to destroy the Stygian Tiger Amulet (oh, and look at their brave boy, but don’t do that, my child, it will tear you apart) a large pulse of resentful energy ripples out over the battlefield, shaking the ground and seeping into all that is theirs. The air and ground starts to ripple, unstable and warping like swirls of marble, until none can stay standing in this odd happening, toppling over, nauseous from the swirling. Those that are theirs are sucked into the soil, deep into its power, and it embraces them into its depths.

Then—

They open their eyes.

WWX is seven, on the streets of Yiling, and turns his head to the Burial Mounds so close by, calling to him. Come home, my child, it whispers. Come to me; I will protect you.

Wen Ning is eight and Wen Qing 14. They also look in the direction of Yiling—of the Burial Mounds. They too hear the call. There are gasps rippling around their home, and people bursting through doors, embracing each other, crying in joy. Eyes flick around at everyone. They know. All those that were on the Burial Mounds, as well as Wen Qing and Wen Ning remember. They know what Wen Ruohan is planning. They also know what will happen to their real family.

They go to Yiling. Just a few at first. They lost many people in their branch before they were saved by WWX, and those people are more than hesitant to go to that cursed place. Those that remember can’t simply leave them to their fates again. So, some go, while some stay. They will convince the rest later. When they arrive at the base of the Burial Mounds, there is already a large collapse in the wall surrounding it looking to be made recently. The paths open up for them as they start their ascent. The path is just as they remember, the corpses and spirits howling, but leaving them be. They know they are already part of them. Granny Wen and Wen Qing are at the front of the group, leading the way. Wen Qing wishes her brother was there, but that was not something their parents would budge on. They barely let her go, and only because Granny was insisting as well and promised to look after her.

They reach the clearing where their homes were, and there they are. Their little shacks that barely stay standing. The patches of land they’d tilled and toiled over. And there, perched on a tree stump by the side of the road is a boy, even smaller than A-Ning, covered in dirt and grime that can’t all be from the Burial Mounds, spinning a black, bamboo dizi in his tiny hands. He watches them with shining eyes and a large smile they’d know anywhere breaks out on his face, then—

He laughs. The boy laughs loud and clear and bright as he topples off the stump in his joy. Many of them join in the laughter as well. Amazed and in disbelief. Wen Qing, granny, and a few others rush over to the little Wei Wuxian and pull him into a crushing embrace. The laughter soon turns to wracking sobs as they all cling to each other and let it all sink in. 

They are alive. They are together.

And, they will make sure it stays that way.

The Burial Mounds hum around them, welcoming them home.

[beyond-far-horizons]

I know I’m spiralling because of depression and burn out right now and I’m trying my best so I’ll just check soon and get what passes for tlc in my life right now. But I just gotta say this:

So many things in my life esp my work feel like a series of doors 🚪 slamming in my face. I’ve spent SO LONG struggling away at the coal face researching and working towards meaningful employment- things that not only feed my soul but could really make s difference in the world. And it’s just really f*cking hard…

I hate feeling hateful and resentful towards older people who hoard wealth, even if they are basically decent people. It’s just ground in your face over and over and over again that the world is unjust and unfair and you’ve just got to take it. They’ve taken so much that my generation and younger can’t better themselves or even survive and it means me so angry.

All I want is the basic resources I need to survive and dare I say thrive and they are so little! But yeah, honestly gotta vent because I’m losing faith here. I’ve got so many good things developing but it’s taken so long to get them anywhere close to fruition and so hard to struggle daily in the mean time.

Honestly f*ck capitalism!

Ps I’ll probably be okay and I’m not looking for advice. Just gotta vent because I’ve been holding on too long.

[blueeyesfilledwithpassion]

Discipline 🩶

The discipline of strength instills resistance without complaint, and also teaches courtesy. It demands that we not ruin the pleasure or serenity of others through the expression of our own sadness or pain.

Inazo Nitobe

[jimmyspades]

[coralineandthesapphicfantastic]

I've been writing a lot more lately, which you won't see, but I am tempted to finish up the outline on my concept "sadomasculinity", or the punitive, sexualized nature of enforcing toxic masculinity. See: frat hazing, corrective sexual assaults in sports, sexualized abuse in "men's spaces", etc.

[talk-soon]

why do you run?

My writing comes to me from a space within my chest.

Rather, it doesn’t come

but chases, until I collapse into submission.

Tired, running from myself surrender an encompassing presence.

“Why do you run?”, it asks

Soon I remember that these words come from my heart.

So I learn to trust them again.

Tears feel near When it’s been too long since we’ve come back together

And before long I find myself in surrender to this part of me as well.

Their cascade down my cheeks lace a salty path from mind back to heart.

And when I forget again

the path forms

a circle.

Mind to heart

Heart back to mind

Slowly I pray it will close in on itself

Until with wet cheeks I remember for the last time I’m home.

Why do you run?

[beccawise7]

Morning yoga practice is calming for the soul. Cleansing for the mind and essential to focusing one's self on the day ahead.

It also allows the body, mind, and spirit to engage in a manner that is necessary to achieve greater depths of ecstasy both in play and other intimate moments with the one you adore. ~beccawise7 💜🖤

[verifiablebot]

my riding instructor is selling the farm and the new owner is only offering boarding, not lessons, so now i get to start the process of finding a new barn to take lessons and and gfdhfhdfhdfghdf it's so hard to find dressage lessons that don't require you to compete or own your own horseeee

[bruhainrot]

This is so rad URGHHHDD

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Did a little art trade with @rune-v THEY DID SUCH A GOOD JOB !! They sent a funny bunny reel too go like ❤️

@_runev on IG

[raffaellopalandri]

Cultivating Growth: My Journey to Lifelong Learning

Daily writing promptDescribe one positive change you have made in your life.View all responses There’s a quote by Benjamin Franklin that I have always found resonating deeply with me: “An investment in knowledge pays the best interest“. Or this one, from Ralph Waldo Emerson: “The only person you are destined to become is the person you decide to be“. Photo by Ivo Rainha on Pexels.com The…

[rainia]

every fucking time I return to this site after taking a social media break, I recommend it to all of yall, right. which is kinda funny when you think about it - “hey so, i just got back but I really recommend Leaving again ahah.” The thing is, after a day or so of not using your phone, you feel like your whole brain settles and clears. calms, even. suddenly I was reading an entire book a day like I was 12 yrs old again. my attention span isn’t gone, it’s just so hard to compete with the rush of social media. And I was sleeping deeper without it. Wanting to try new things. All after a few days away.

thing is, it’s fucking difficult right? difficult to near impossible, to just put social media aside for a while. But that said, I think it’s worth the struggle it takes. I don’t really have any advice to make it easier to distance oneself (fuck knows I find it hard), but I do know that it’s a worthwhile thing to strive for.

[idkhowtopickausername]

It’s wild realizing that day to day tasks actually are easier to do when you’re happier and you have a life that you want to feel clean and prepared and organized for and you’re not just fundamentally a slovenly, selfish person

[theravenlyn]

thinking about how isabella was just ranting away to herself in the diving bell and suhail was like 'she's gonna want this written down for future reference' aND HE DID IT

[sibyl-of-space]

I was feeling restless this afternoon and I knew I wanted to work a little on Amadeus but I also knew that I'm way too exhausted from Next Fest to do anything that requires making new things. Music composition, background art drawing, writing narrative, that was all out the window. So instead I started testing out some narrative workflow tools that one of my friends who is a game writer suggested (notion, which is more project management focused but it has some features that Asana doesn't that might make it useful for writing in particular; and campfire, which I think is going to be a complete game changer in organizing all of my brainstorming about plot and character motivations and stuff)

I'm going to spend some more time this next week building those out some more but I really think it's going to help me a lot. I kind of reached critical mass of what I could achieve in terms of writing with my existing and extremely disorganized tools, while also keeping track of changes and revisions and implementation and remembering what my big major overarching five episode plot is; this is going to make all of that so much easier I think...

[dawning-day]

what if i said kevin day was one thousand million percent a piano kid growing up. what then