#like jesus christ am i reading shakespeare???

[hoss-bonaventure]

fnaf as a franchise is so deeply unserious but then scott cawthon will randomly add the most poetic ass monologue amongst all the murder robots and dead kids. "it’s a vicious cycle, you know. but then, most things in life are. the pendulum swings one way, then it swings the other. now we return to darkness,” is a quote so raw and so impactful and it’s from fucking fnaf world. not even the main game—it’s from the HALLOWEEN UPDATE 😭

[bidokja]

so like. was anyone. was anyone gonna warn me that. the "baekyeon and haero" chapters in mystic prince would just. rip my heart directly out of my chest. and then shred it into pieces right in front of me. was anyone gonna warn me. was anyone gonna-

[enchxanting]

our love is god [ethan landry]

read part 2 here || all parts

pairing: ethan landry x fem!reader

warnings: nothing yet but this fic is heathers-inspired, so be warned for the future.

author's note: hi guys, long time lurker first time poster. this is my first time WRITING fic so feel free to leave any critique. also i don't know if i did the cut right lol i have a lot planned and hope you like!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Dear Diary,

I should’ve never let Mindy convince me to start this operation. 

Sure, it’s nice to have a steady cash flow, but nothing is more aggravating than everyone and their mother asking for doctor’s notes, report cards, prescriptions, and absence notes when I’m just trying to make it to fourth-period math. When I was ten, I expected to use my Nancy-Drew-inspired skills to unearth hidden staircases or find whistling statues, not help someone’s checked-out mom get a Xanax. 

Yet I forged three (3) permission slips today. Why? Because, next to mysteries, I love the sweet smell of cash in the morning. Yesterday, I added $150 to the rainy day fund. Hopefully, when the weather’s right, I'll be inspired to buy a car and ditch Woodsboro. This town is fucked, alright. Just ask Chad, Mindy, Sam, or–

“Tara! Jesus Christ!” I rub my leg where her sneaker connected. “What’s your damage?”

“Are you done, Shakespeare? You said you’d get lunch with me like, fifteen minutes ago.”

Tara isn’t so great with patience. But, again, I am not so great at keeping track of time. “Yeah, whatever,” I say. “Let’s go see what they’ve cooked up for us today.”

I follow her through the winding path of tables, chairs, and teenage bodies. As we go, I collect bills from outstretched hands and replace them with papers of varying sizes. Tara turns to smirk at me. “What was the event this time?”

“Oh, you know. It’s report card season, and this school is not known for its stellar GPAs.”

“We just have you to thank for keeping it floating below a 3.0,” she teases. “Tell me, Y/N. Does all that extra brainpower of yours get used up matching the way people dot their i’s and cross their t’s?”

I roll my eyes at her. “Sure, Tara. Let’s just get some lunch. I’m seriously starving.”

We grab trays and join the line, aimlessly chattering about the day. Tara’s been my friend since the beginning of the year when I was the only new kid in a town struck by tragedy. We were the only new buyers in Woodsboro over the summer. The rest are still empty, the memory of last year’s Ghostface attacks having driven out long-time residents.

What’s surprising, though, is that the so-called “Woodsboro Four” are still here. Sure, Sam, Tara, Mindy, and Chad mostly stick together, but despite the terrible tragedy that they witnessed, they let me and Annika, Mindy’s current girlfriend, into their lives. I could never measure up to that. I’m just glad they want to be my friend.

I’m taken out of my musings on friendship when I feel someone’s eyes on my back. Without turning around, I recite my usual speech. “$5 for report cards, $10 for prescriptions and absence notes, and an extra $5 for rush fees.”

“Woah, um, tempting, but I’m not looking for any forgery.”

Confused, I turn around to put a face to an unfamiliar voice. The guy’s tall, almost as tall as Chad, with curly brown hair and brown eyes that widen when I meet them. “Sorry, I was just going to get my lunch, but you dropped some cash back here.”

For some reason, my voice is not working. All I can do is look up at him, suddenly captivated by how shy he seems to be. When I pause for a few moments too long, Tara reaches around and takes the money from his hand. “Uh, thanks. I’m sure my friend here appreciates it. Usually she’s more talkative.”

“Oh, god, yeah, sorry,” I finally get out, stumbling over my words. “Thanks.”

“No problem.” Suddenly, I think he remembers to be bashful and walks away without another word.

When he’s gone, Tara laughs. “God, Y/N, drool much? I’ve never seen you like that before.”

I flush red. “Whatever, Tara, you’re the worst.” I give her a playful shove and walk off to buy my lunch. I hand the money to the cashier, but all I can think about are those big, brown eyes, and I know I’m fucked.

[parhelios]

ok sorry if this is messy or incoherent i am sick as hell rn but here is the lestat & gabrielle posting i promised. one of the first things in tvl we learn about her is that gabrielle's main coping mechanism is reading books, books which she never teaches her son to read or even to write basic words. as we learn from lestat, the only things he could write confidently by the time he was turned into a vampire were his name, and 'lord jesus christ', both of which he is implied to have learned at the monastary he went to when he was 12. while his mother did pay for him to study there, she never takes into her own hands anything regarding lestat's education or connecting with him through literature, something we know he does come to love in his later life, at least in the form of shakespeare and theatric literature.

what she does provide lestat, like the monastic education, are his guns and his dogs, all of which are associated with the roles men are expected to play. in this way, he is pushed towards not just the role of the provider for the family, but an idealized masculinized role. gabrielle, as we see, connects closer with lestat than the rest of the family, or at the very least, identifies with him, his anger, and she provides him with what could be seen as tools that can enact that anger, and no other coping mechanisms. however, lestat is someone who is fundamentally compassionate to those he feels connected to. this forces him exclusively into the role of provider, even when he no longer has to hunt for it. we see in interview with the vampire how he attempts to care for his father, providing him with lavish gifts and trappings and caring for his every earthly need (despite despising him to the bone). all this is to say, that for gabrielle, lestat acts as an idealized masculine avatar of herself, able to take up masculine roles in the household and engage in masculine forms of behavior which are barred to her in her position as a wife and mother. she projects on him, telling him her fantasies both violent and sexual but never truly sharing the tools which she uses to make an escape from the household. he is an extension of her desire, and she controls what he learns and what he does without ever really investing into him, caring for him. he is a vessel for her desire, someone she speaks to as an adult and a confidant, but not her child.

[live-from-flaturn]

Chay, Hope, and “The New Hunger”

An unnecessary metatextual analysis by an excited English MA queer.

So it all started with this shot from Episode 7 of KinnPorsche:

I zoomed in on the novel next to Chay’s desk out of curiosity and discovered that it was The New Hunger by Isaac Marion. Not a super old book by any means, and definitely one that Chay would realistically be reading.

Also a brief cameo that lets this single comedic shot FORESHADOW SO MUCH OF CHAY’S TRAGIC PLOTLINE without likely intending to do that at all.

Because The New Hunger, published in 2013, is a functional prequel to Marion’s 2010 novel Warm Bodies.

Warm Bodies is by far one of the most beautifully written and engaging re-interpretations of Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet” probably ever written (and I spent 3 summers at Shakespeare camp, so this approval is not coming from a casual fan perspective). There are zombies, apocalyptic drama, Daddy issues, and a LOT of stuff about not losing hope in the face of annihilation, loss, and loneliness. 

R spends most of the novel talking TO HIMSELF and coping with HOW TO BE ALONE. He is doing exactly what Chay is forced to do for survival: Create his own joy and entertainment. He’s abandoned by the world around him and must fight at every turn to maintain a sense of agency, all while desperately clinging to the idea that hope is everywhere. Here are some of my favorite Warm Bodies quotes for perspective:

“It frustrates and fascinates me that we'll never know for sure, that despite the best efforts of historians and scientists and poets, there are some things we'll just never know. What the first song sounded like. How it felt to see the first photograph. Who kissed the first kiss, and if it was any good.”

“What wonderful thing didn’t start out scary?”

“You should always be taking pictures, if not with a camera then with your mind. Memories you capture on purpose are always more vivid than the ones you pick up by accident.”

“’What's wrong with people?’ she says, almost too quiet for me to hear. ‘Were they born with parts missing or did it [love] fall out somewhere along the way?’“

“The sky is blue. The grass is green. The sun is warm on our skin. We smile, because this is how we save the world. We will not let Earth become a tomb, a mass grave spinning through space. We will exhume ourselves. We will fight the curse and break it.”

“Deep under our feet the Earth holds its molten breath, while the bones of countless generations watch us and wait.”

BUT THEN YOU HAVE THE NEW HUNGER.

“Nothing is permanent. Not even the end of the world.”

“Enough white lies can scorch the earth black.”

“What happened? How did I get here? How could I have known that my choices mattered?”

“Crying. Expelling grief from the body in the form of salt water. What's its purpose? How did it evolve, and why are humans the only creatures on Earth that do it?”

He has not reached the point of exhumation yet. 

Porchay must first be burned down. He must experience the hopelessness, loss, and devastation of betrayal first. 

Like yeah, sure, this is a throwaway shot and someone on the set probably grabbed a handful of random books to use but HOLY FUCK they really could not have made a better (potentially) accidental choice!

Like... Jesus Christ in Heat do I love these books more than life itself. Warm Bodies is my second favorite book of all time and again, I read books for a living. You should go check them out if you like romance, comedy, zombies, or really just feeling good about the end of a novel. Isaac Marion will fundamentally change your life and the way you look at the world and it’s a wonderful experience.

But also the accidental foreshadowing of Porchay’s world being burnt up... of his memories being tainted and blackened by Kim’s lying and Porsche’s secrecy... Ugh it hurts. I am having some feelings in this Chili’s tonight. 

[simmyfrobby]

Brad and Bergy as Judas and Jesus 👀👀

Oh, so we're doing this?

Okay. Buckle up. I have Thoughts. I have Feelings. I Don’t Have a Brain to Mouth Filter.

So first of all, Brad Marchand did all the heavy lifting for me on this one. Him talking about Patrice Bergeron being ABOVE??? JESUS??? HELLO??? Their relationship. Their personalities. The “Saint Patrice” nickname. The dedication. The potential for ANGST

The way Marchand looks at him.

ALL THE TIME.

I didn’t make this up he did this to himself.

(note: I’ve seen other people talk about this as well. Linking this post by @hard4softthings because I like the way they phrased their response, but there’s other people who’ve been talking about this recently I just don’t remember any specific posts.)

Now. Here comes the Narrative:

We’re all on Tumblr so we’ve probably all come across this line from Stephen Adly Guirgis´ The Last Days of Judas Iscariot (2005) that reads like a punch to the fucking gut:

Which is an INCREDIBLE line, but the play itself is actually .. um.. a very different vibe:

Tell me Judas doesn’t read a whole lot like Brad Marchand. I dare you.

The line that precedes this is also pretty Brad/Bergy.

Is it ever anybody else? No. It’s Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand and it’s BEEN the two of them together at the centre of all this for years. It’s Jesus and Judas, Bergeron and Marchand, their names go together.

One of my personal favourite Judases is played by Carl Anderson in Jesus Christ Superstar (1973). He really embodies the Tragic Villain I believe Judas to be. In several of his lines/lyrics he talks about the myth/person dichotomy. He loves Jesus of Nazareth, but does not know how to feel about Jesus Christ the Son of God. 

Link

Link (SERIOUS TRIGGER WARNING: SUICIDE)

Which becomes especially relevant if you think about Bergeron being Saint Patrice, and Marchand being The Rat.

Borrowing from Frank Bidart’s “Guilty of Dust”:

Except we’re taking the Mythology approach to this: your name is your fate. 

Now the real tragedy of Judas Iscariot is that his name is Judas Iscariot. We are all familiar with the bible story and as a result, the actor playing the part of Judas simply HAS TO betray Jesus. It’s what his entire identity is centred around. If he didn’t, the audience wouldn’t be able to recognise the character as Judas.

(Obligatory Richard Siken:

Snow and Dirty Rain)

That’s just tragic inevitability for you bay-bey.

In Jesus Christ Superstar, Judas’ name is repeated twice right after he betrays Jesus:

“Well done, Judas. Good old Judas” = Good job person who claims to be Judas, you have betrayed Jesus and proved yourself to be Judas. You are now “Good old Judas”, which is to say, the Judas we recognise from the Bible.

A lot of theatre productions play with this idea of inevitability & living up to ones name in interesting ways.

(See: Shakespeare’s Antony & Cleopatra & their repeated failure to live up to their own myths / Troilus & Cressida “This is and is not Cressid” (5.2.175) when Cressida lives up to her name by being unfaithful, which Troilus thinks is unlike the Cressida he knows personally / Iago’s “I am not what I am,” (Othello, 1.1.65) - I am Othello’s loyal friend except that I’m not, I am Iago & will betray Othello, except that I am not yet because I haven’t betrayed him yet & earned the name Iago)

In Terrence McNally´s play Corpus Christ there is a moment where Judas becomes Judas:

The actor stops shuddering, has now been Named Judas and will go on to fulfil the ROLE of Judas. 

In the case of Marchand and Bergeron I am most interested in the ways in which their nicknames become their fate:

Brad the rat - This one’s relatively straight forward. Marchand accepts this role and really works hard to seep living up to it. He has received the Rat label and My God he will act like the rat you think he is.

Saint Patrice - a nickname Bergeron has said he does not particularly like or agree with, but which DOES affect his behaviour and our perception of him. If Bergeron was to take on the role of the rat, that would be weird and uncomfortable to us. We expect Patrice Bergeron to act “like himself”.

Which ties it back to Jesus Christ Superstar: “If you strip away the myth from the man / You will see where we all soon will be”. Carl Anderson’s (brilliant) Judas struggles with the fact that he loves Jesus the man, but not Jesus the myth. In the case of NHL stardom you can look at this in terms of the difference between their on-ice personalities vs. their off ice friendship. Brad loves Patrice The Man, Patrice His Friend, he is less concerned with Patrice The Myth.

I also cast Brad as Dionysus in my little hockey mythologies. There are a few obvious (and slightly silly) reasons for this: Dionysus being the god of the grape harvest (read: wine, drunken revelry), festivity, insanity, (religious ecstasy .. interpret that however you will.. ), but it is partly because Dionysus is the god of theatre. 

(I will circle back around to Brad/Judas I promise)

Dionysus = Theatre = The Rat Persona As Performance

(Note: person/persona/personality, from πρόσωπον or perhaps persōna = mask)

Now this idea of the Persona (rat personality) as that which helps the audience recognise your role in the play (the name of the character you play and the expectations that come with said name) and mask as something used to obscure your actual face is really interesting!! 

It comes back to this question of free will vs. predestination. How much of what Judas does is the Human Person, how much of it is his Name-Fate. How much of The Rat is Brad. How much is just him living up to his reputation/nickname.

Oscar Wilde has a fun little quote about this that’ll complicate it further:

“Man is least himself when he talks in his own person. Give him a mask, and he will tell you the truth.” 

(The internet informs me this is from The Happy Prince & Other Tales but I will admit I only know it from the end of a Criminal Minds episode)

Michael Kinnucan in my favourite essay ever written about anything ever The Gods Show Up writes:

Brad is the rat, the rat is brad. It’s a person. It’s an act. It’s a mask. We know it’s a mask, but how much of it is a mask. No idea. COMPELLING THOUGH.

This same essay then brings us back to the tragedy of Judas:

Now this is where it gets niche.

(I´ll continue in a second post.)

[everythinandanything]

O Where Is My Fair Sun

This is a monologue I created for a Shakespeare class a few years ago, (and I am very proud of it) so I decided to post it here!

The basic premise is that in this AU, Romeo and Juliet survived the events of the show. They are at a party where they know no one else, and at some point they get separated.

TW: I didn't write it intentionally like this, but looking back I've realized that this is one giant panic attack being experienced by Romeo. If you aren't in the mental headspace to read that, I'd recommend skipping this.

The title is from a line in "But soft, what light through yonder window breaks": Arise, fair sun, and kill the envious moon.

Where is my wife?

This champagne tastes horrible

I don’t know anyone here

Why did I attend this?

“Can someone help me find my wife Juliet!”

“Excuse me, can you-nope”

Oh god oh god oh god someone’s coming near me

I don’t know what to say

What should I say?

Should I just run to the bathroom?

No no no no no, please just ignore me, I’m looking for Juliet, I can’t-

“Hi! It's so nice to see you again!”

Have I ever met him?

He’s just talking on and on

Maybe I can sneak away

Where is Juliet

I don’t know what to say to these people

What if I say the wrong thing and everyone thinks I’m a weirdo?

“I’m so sorry to interrupt, but can you-

I’d also love to hear your story-”

What did he say it was about?

“But I need to find my wife!"

Can someone please help me find her!”

Everyone is talking so loud

Why can’t I breathe?

Where is my wife

The voices are too loud

They’re screaming all around me

Screaming

So much screaming

I’m going to die right here aren’t I?

The voices are getting louder

Louder

Louder

Oh god I can’t breathe

Everyone is screaming so fast

Screaming

Why is everyone screaming like this?

I can’t shut the noises off

“CAN EVERYONE PLEASE JUST STOP SCREAMING!”

Goddamnit, Romeo

What have you done?

If I had any chance of navigating this party before

I sure as hell don’t have it now

Couldn’t keep your damn mouth shut, couldn’t you?

Jesus Christ, they’re all looking at me

Probably think I’m a fucking lunatic

"Get out of the way!"

“I’m sorry everyone, I just can’t talk right now!”

Thank god, the bathroom is empty

Peace, quiet

You can breathe easy

Where is my wife?

“No, no, no, you can’t freak out again”

I can’t go out there now

Can’t face them after this disaster.

“Juliet’s fine, Juliet’s fine, she would have texted me if she was hurt”

What if she’s dead?

“You would have heard sirens, Romeo”

What if she left you?

“No, no, she wouldn’t do that!”

Are you sure?

“Shut up, shut up, SHUT UP!”

Wait, there's someone in the next stall.

“Juliet, are you there?”

“Yes, honey, I'm here.”

“I've missed you too”

[kimyoonmiauthor]

Character arcs in China, Korea and Japan v. the US/UK/AU and religion.

I have somewhat of a confession to make. That is that every year since I was little, I've always watched alone, a Christmas Rom Com. Was it high class? No. It was likely Lifetime, Hallmark or TNT. And the thing about that is the majority did not have Asian people in them. They were antithetical to everything I am except for the "Lead must be creative."

I made an expected plot event list around here, too. Here, in case you can't find it.

You might think this is not related, but I'm getting there...

The point is that out of all of the genres of movies I've watched from various dramas and movies, this correlates the strongest to the type of character "Development" (if you can call it that) I am talking about.

US Christmas Movies

Character has X, Y and Z problems in US Christmas movie. And in fact, as the plot goes along, those problems what? Multiply. This is a conflict plot.

So for example, you have Kevin from Home Alone. Kevin hates his family. His mother doesn't pay attention to him, Santa doesn't really seem to care. He has a scary neighbor he doesn't like. AND there are burglars to take care of.

By the end of the movie, there is a transformation arc after using Rube Goldberg machines, thus all of these things are fixed (until Home Alone 2).

In the Rom com, this is usually something like workaholic is paid an exorbitant amount of money AND hasn't found a SO, usually a man, since this is written for cishet women, and occasionally gay men these days (not lesbians?). Or the person is ignoring their own needs, whatever, there are a few plots. Which if you've been following along with my story structure series--the multiple plotline direction and threads is likely from Shakespeare's time, though I read the paper on it, the evidence–on the origin from whom is a bit murky on that count, which often happens in cultural phenomena, especially that far back in time.

However, the multiplication of problems and conflicts is more of recent thing. (Which to be clear in present time ends with a lot of reviewers on Youtube calling it "Fake" and "Unnecessary" etc. Millennials and Gen Z in particular hate it and call the multiplication of this terrible, particularly among women reviewers over men.)

Anyway, the point is that in particularly Christmas movies, which often double down on the religious aspects, huge problem, transformation, then every last problem about the character is fixed. Or for Christians (since Freytag said he based his on Christianity rather blatantly): It follows the Bible in simplified terms.

The connection to Christianity

You have Genesis, then all the stuff in the middle you kinda ignore and then all things go wrong, and then, OMG, there is salvation. Or the simplified version of crucifixion because you fell asleep in church, Jesus exists. Jesus preaches and gets people to hate Him. He dies. He gets ressurrected.

This is transformation. Through this Jesus what? Absolves all of your sins. You, not just Jesus are also transformed.

The majority of the authors that argued for this type of story structure with the diagrams were also Christians. The Jews I found didn't have the diagram.

Back to the Christmas Rom Com

Usually the cast also sings. And there is a part that's not in other Three-act-ish dramas: The Preaching. The incessant preaching.

The types of preaching come in these forms:

Woman (usually, though sometimes gay man who is femme) is told by her friends she is in love with target the audience is supposed to like–like it or not this is supposed to be the OTP, no matter the chemistry on screen.

Woman gets preached to about dead relative, previous Christmas, or some event from the past

You have the unbeliever of Christmas (which may be Christmas Carol+Grinch) and the true believer. Usually in the leads.

The male lead, usually is scarred by a previous Christmas.

All of these get transformed by the end, like a wafer to the body of Christ.

All sins are forgiven, and the preaching in these movies works every time. And usually the rich socialite ends up what? More humble and thus moves to a humble town (though this most of the time is to make filming cheaper, tbh.).

These Middle class main lead often to another middle class main lead or richer person.

All problems solved, world peace, every character flaw is fixed and forgiven.

Cue around here, Brecht throwing up at the blatant misuse of his input into story structure and probably several other theorists scratching their heads at "What is this Holiday Christmas movie?"

And the thing about Christmas movies, if you like them or hate them, they hit the time stamps for what they need to do perfectly. There is no flaw in the timing. The dialogue is flat and not that sparkly, and the introspection is externalized, like a cross, and there you go. This is how the character changes. All is fixed and well.

Shintoism, Buddhism, Mugyo, and general East Asian Philosophy

Particularly said of Japan, Japan is accused of being FLAT character arcs. People go into it and find out character has XYZ problems. Those problems might add, but not multiply, and then at the end, only X or Z problem is solved. It's not a story of transformation at all.

Character is poor and might end poor. That's not solved by magical benefactor.

Character starts off with an oppressive mother, their boss hates them, they don't have romance, and they feel unloved. The character arc fixes the "They don't feel loved." The other stuff is ignored and only there to serve the self-discovery of the character on their journey towards inner peace despite the chaos around them.

This is because the main point is not transformation, but self-realization of oneself.

This ties very, very heavily to the various religions in the region, which focus more on inward growth towards outward control, than outward circumstance towards outward control. Change is thought to be slow, hard to achieve and often either cyclical, or circular until one digs into ones self and really finds a way to say, escape the cycle so they can get out of it to reach say, Nirvana, The Next Life, harmony with all living beings, etc.

In another words, to shape the outer world, one has to work on oneself first, because there is no great Jewish not-white not long-haired savior to help you externally, it comes from your own work within, which is often said to be painful slow and comes with a lot of attachments you might not need. And if you stay attached to those worldly things, it will create evil. (this is true of Shintoism, Mugyo, and Buddhism.) There is no one to save but yourself. And the healthy attachments are often good deeds from within yourself towards others.

Examples

Spirited Away, Chihiro forgets her entire adventure. She gains a new head elastic, but as the beginning said, she won't really forget her experience. What's the singular thing that Sen/Chihiro gained?

The confidence to face new challenges.

You've gone through the entire movie, and she has not had a huge transformation arc where everything was fixed. Her parents still aren't that great. She still has to move to a new town. And not all of her problems were solved. Haku is still a roaming spirit, No Face might have found a home and a place, but still has its flaw. Not everything was fixed. There was only one thing that totally transformed and changed for our main lead Chihiro.

And the thing is Miyazaki and his animators pulls this all of the time without fail and you still feel wrapped into his world and point of view.

This is true of Ashes of Love, (Chinese) as well. A-Z problems are not solved for the characters. One character flaw is changed for each character, which is a kind of spoiler here. While they do learn and grow, there are still problems looming in the distance that might come back at a later date. Also the ending feels a little bit bittersweet. Following the formula of qichengzhuanhe, it does not linger on the ending, but instead gives us a cyclical feel.

I think the one that drove people up the wall, personally, was Stranger Again. (Korean drama) People argued that it was a "Sad ending" but from the perspective of the characters it was a happy ending. The themes of the drama were met by the end of the drama showing that sometimes love isn't enough to keep a couple together. It really dug deep into what love is and isn't and the imperfections and blemishes of it. But people still struggled really deep with the idea that not everything is fixable. They wanted that transformation, but the drama never promised a transformation. It only promised, from the title and beginning to ending to make sure people understood why people sometimes need to divorce and not to be caught so strongly in hate or so strongly in love, but that middle of finding a way to move forward without another person. The change for the characters, wasn't through conflict--the conflict made their ability to solve things more tangled and worse. The solution came in the form of self-realization and contemplation, where they discovered the painful truth and then were able to let go. And that was the happiest ending for the characters, but those addicted to Christianity's total transformation, sacrifice as ideas of love hated it.

But I dislike the idea that someone needs to give up all of their happiness in order to make another person happy until they are angry and resentful at them. Because then, is that really love? And so if you sat there and thought through the morality and the things the drama was saying that was the happiest ending. But not the one that you wanted. However, it lingered and made you more honest about facing your relationships and the world because it forced you to question yourself and self-reflect–and that's the whole point of a lot of these stories that don't fix everything. The world is messy, and though you might get cooperation, the only thing you can control is yourself, so you need to respect others and their choices and the best way to do that is to know yourself before facing others rather than waiting for a savior to fix it for you.

BTW, I can do this with Taiwanese dramas too. It's rare for an East Asian drama to try to fix everything for the characters. If anything, the characters crawl towards finding their own solutions. Think through some of the dramas you've watched.

[bedofthistles]

The Little White Horse: The Parson and Christianity

An analysis of the character of the Parson, and the Christian ideals written into the book

TL;DR

I don’t have a lot of issues with the Parson other than he kidnaps children. 

“She got up, went to the open window and looked out. And this time the listener was not the small fairy like figure who had vanished like a dream, but a tall old man who came out from among the rose trees and came up to the window and held out his hand to her. It was Old Parson. Without a word Maria put on her bonnet and cloak, climbed up on the window sill, stepped out of the window, took his hand and jumped down beside him, and hand-in-hand and in silence they walked through the rose garden and the formal garden and out into the park.”

This is how children get kidnapped, okay? It’s not stranger danger, its people known to them, family members, family friends, trusted individuals within the community. 

While present in the Mini-series, Moonacre, the Parson's role of telling Maria about the curse is replaced by a magic book, that continuously records the Chronicles of the Valley, and Marmaduke Scarlet, who tells her who to break the Curse.

That’s all I really had to say about the parson, and so I wanted to pair this section with my thoughts on the Christian undertones within the book. 

For my credentials: I have attended Bible College, I have been going to church all my life, and I am still an active member in my church. I teach the children’s bible study on Wednesday nights, as well as helping and sometimes teaching on Sunday Mornings. I am qualified to talk about my religion. 

I can only believe that the Christian ideals Goudge has, have been influenced  by the time and world she existed and was raised in. She was born in 1900 and passed in 1984, her father was Principal at a theological college, Sarum, that focused on courses in Christian Spirituality, Theology, Imagination and Culture, and later became Regius Professor of Divinity at the University. Goudge and her family were Anglicans, a religion that claims to be both Catholic and Reformed. 

As mentioned in the summary, Goudge has this thing against female curiosity, vanity, and humility. 

Her messages on pride and love fall short when paired with the predatory and abusive men she has written as her love interests. And her idea of sacrificing one’s pride is not asking the enemy for help to find peace, but literally lowering one’s self for the continuation of a society. 

Our modern understanding of humbleness is almost that of lowliness, ‘oh no, I’m not that great, please, I’m only doing what I can’. When, in reality, that is not what humbleness is. An inflated ego, of claiming you’re something greater than what you are, is not being humble, in direct opposition, saying you’re nothing but the dirt under someone’s foot, is not humbleness either. 

We can even use Jesus Christ himself as an example. How often does he proclaim himself to be the Son of God? Kind of every chapter. Jesus is not being self-deprecating, he is not lowering himself, he is saying exactly what he is and that is true humbleness. 

What am I? Some great writer comparable to Shakespeare and Jane Austen? No of course not! But I know I am a good writer. Humbleness is acknowledging what you are, and not forcing yourself to be anything less. 

Christians do teach the values of being a good servant, of respect, and not thinking highly of yourself, we should know that we aren’t gods, creators of the universe, worthy of praise and worship. The idea of lowering one’s self comes from this idea that we should love another and treat each other as equals, and yes that does involve sacrifice, putting others before ourselves, but that is not the lesson Goudge is teaching. 

While the Parson is telling Maria the story of Sir Wrolf, he tells her that a Moon Princess must humble herself and her pride and marry someone poor so that she can bring peace to the Valley. 

Now, in case you didn’t read in the summary, or in case you did and didn’t catch it, there’s no curse in Moonacre Valley. There’s no looming threat that the Valley is in danger. There is only the wickedness of the De Noir’s, the fight between Loveday and Sir Benjamin, and the stolen monastery. (Stolen by Sir Wrolf). So what exactly is the purpose of this? 

It’s simply Ms. Goudge’s world views coming in contact with her work. 

Again, it's the idea of lowering one’s self so low, of ‘humbling’ oneself, and putting aside their pride for the sake of others. The idea that a woman is expected to carry the world on her shoulders, of her husbands, her children, her families, her houses, of a thousand different responsibilities, and just taking it, allowing it to happen and putting aside herself to step into those roles. 

The problem then arises that this is not a Christian view, but a sexist one. 

In my personal view, I don't think the teachings of Jesus are sexist. He taught men and women alike, talked to women as equals, encouraged women to sit down and listen rather than do the work while the men got to listen, he said pluck your eye if it is causing you to sin in regards to men's lusting after women. The line that gets drawn, however, is when humans enter the equation. I think Christianity the religion is marred by sin, power hungry pastors, predators, and the idea that women are lesser than men.

I also think she may or may not have inadvertently written Maria as a sort of pseudo-Jesus, Moonacre Valley as Israel, and the De Noir’s as Sin and Death. 

And I am quite serious about that, there are many parallels, which I may get into some other time.

Prev | Next

[theinfinitedivides]

being british is not "a fast track to being not decent". if you're not living in britain then your perception is being altered by the fact that the only ones you ever fucking see on screen were born into the 0.1%.

also how did you miss the entire point of that post, the point is that any english actor allowed to have any kind of career these days is the opposite of representative of the majority of citizens. hopefully you're just a kid but if not jesus christ learn to fucking read

i was going to start this with the traditional pleasantries but it seems my general use of sarcasm (humorous or otherwise) on this main for the past 3+ years is lost on you (even though i am trying to give you the benefit of the doubt by saying that you're coming across me for the first time), so let me make it very clear: my ancestors were f*cking enslaved by the UK. there are ancestors that haven't been confirmed except through word of mouth that were most likely f*cked over by the UK in various ways. i think then, in this circumstance, that i have the right to say that the British government in general has done f*cking horrible things. the British themselves have done f*cking horrible things. i am not talking about individual people on the streets and in the countryside just trying to live their lives, i am talking about the entire f*cking system that enables sh*t like this. the British system is not decent. not at all, and if you're steeped in that like a mf*cking teabag for God knows how long, i've found it hard to discover exceptions to the societal bedrock that is racism, classism and white jackassery since we're talking about the same place that, despite giving us Shakespeare and Rickman and Princess Diana (landed gentry aside) also gave us Churchill (took the UK through WWII but engineered a f*cking famine in India bc according to him they 'breed like rabbits'), the f*cking Fiennes clan (Ralph is a JKR supporter), and Charles and Andrew and the rest of the royal f*cking family, so if that isn't a fast track to being not decent then idk what is.

that being said, sure, as cynical of a bitch that i am maybe my perception is less than ideal bc of the 0.1%, but if all of the f*cking people in charge are part of the 0.1% then how tf do you expect me to say otherwise, exactly? the reason there isn't representation is bc the industry sucks ass, which is why the only actors i'm interested in are Welsh and Irish and Scottish—the status quo rn is not concerned with allowing people with a regular 'English' background to have their time on screen, let alone LGBTQ+ and POC. and so yes, the nepo babies are going to continue to have a career, even if they act worse than f*cking paint on a drywall, and the cycle will start all over again, and we can forget about having a f*cking accurate portrayal of the average citizen any time soon, and this goes for the British film industry and Hollywood and Bollywood—contrary to your belief, i am privileged enough to have been able to learn in such a way that i was able to pick up the necessary comprehension skills needed to function meaningfully in this society without being disenfranchised. (PSA: others, i know, have not been able to. that does not make them worth any less.) i didn't know, however, that i was supposed to write an entire essay in the f*cking tags??? to explain that i did, in fact, comprehend??? and to reiterate what was already f*cking there??? i'm sorry??? just bc i chose not to address the aforementioned info and instead indirectly acknowledged that it was correct by emphazing what i did doesn't mean i didn't see it—i literally put a qualifier for the first point you brought up (something like '... if the ancestors minded their f*cking business #and lived their lives like normal human beings'). generational tendencies and traits are a thing, that's why we have a whole subset of American citizens who still think it's alright to use the f*cking N word to refer to Black people

look, i really don't know what side of the bed you woke up on and i'm sorry you felt the need to come into my inbox and bitch about this, but i hope you felt better after sending this and didn't put any of this toxicity into anyone else's space, OK? ty <333

[arielmagicesi]

ugggghhh ok so I’m reading some books to prep for my student teaching in the fall, the ones that my host teacher knows are likely to be in the curriculum, and first of all why is it a thing that high schoolers are made to read Contemporary Lit Fic that can be summed up as “how many gory explicit descriptions of traumatic abuse can we fit into one book”, like every year it’s just One Standard Shakespeare Play, One Twentieth-Century American Classic, throw in some other shit, and Somebody’s Fucked-Up Memoir From A Decade Or So Ago. Are there any contemporary books that are good but NOT traumatizing? If not, I’m happy to stick to classic lit personally

ANYWAY so I’m reading this book to prep for the fall and I ended up skimming the whole latter 3/4 or so of the book to spoil it for myself so the suspense wouldn’t kill me, and now I’m up late despite being super tired because my brain is just cycling through every horrific thing in the book, plus the reviews I read online, some of which are insanely saying shit like “wah wah, get over it, stop whining, we all had rough times in our childhood” and I’m like... Am I the softest, most naive baby on the planet for reacting to this horrific memoir by feeling bad for the author and thinking that maybe we don’t need to be making high schoolers read this? I’m not saying it’s not well-written- it is well-written, and well-structured, but Jesus Christ.

(also why are we allowed to make students read horrifying memoirs of abuse but god forbid they know that slavery happened in this country, but that’s a different issue altogether)

so yeah I now have managed to make my entire evening about Trying And Failing To Get Some Images Out of My Head, which sucks because I had a LOVELY day and was looking forward to some well-earned sleep, and also I’m gonna have to go back and read the entire book so that I’m able to teach it properly and know all the literary devices in it and shit. Cool cool cool

[jdgo51]

Beautiful Word: Luke — It’s Not Because We’re Deserving. It’s Because of His Grace

Today's inspiration comes from Luke: Gut-Level Compassion

by Lisa Harper

Luke: Gut-Level Compassion OBS

"'Hey y’all, my name’s Lisa Harper. I’m a middle-aged chick – which basically means that my hair’s chemically dependent and my favorite pants are stretchy! More importantly, Jesus is my first love, my Savior, my living hope, and my main squeeze. Second only to my love for Jesus, is my love for my daughter Missy, who God blessed me with through the miracle of adoption. In addition to being a passionate Christ-follower and passionately biased mom, I’m a mediocre author, Bible teacher, recovering Pharisee, Tex-Mex food lover, a doctoral candidate at Denver Seminary, and a bona-fide, born and bred storyteller.

My mom, Patti Angel (yes, that’s her real last name), will tell you that I started telling stories as soon as I could string a few words together and only got windier as I grew up! I’ve always loved stories – telling stories, listening to stories, reading stories, and writing stories because I think human narrative is the heartbeat of real life. More significantly, as a Christian I believe that at its core, the Bible is a love story. Which leads me to a good-natured warning: this new Bible study on Luke is going to contain lots of stories and the Hero of every single one will be Jesus!

Speaking of stories, a few years ago I went to church with a young friend named Laurie who I met while volunteering at a faith-based, addiction recovery program. Laurie had turned her life over to Jesus after experiencing horrific abuse, which led to drug addiction and ultimately being arrested for possession with intent to sell. And like most of my friends in recovery she is refreshingly honest. Even in church! After listening to the pastor preach for a few minutes about what a motley crew the disciples were – how they were largely uneducated, coarse, and mistake-prone men – Laurie elbowed me in the ribs and whispered loud enough for most of the congregation to hear, “Hey Miss Lisa, Jesus has a thing for losers, doesn’t He?”

Although it’s admittedly informal, “Jesus has a thing for losers” could be an apropos subtitle for the Gospel according to Luke because his narrative reads more like Jerry Springer than Shakespeare! It’s replete with stories about Jesus engaging with outliers and outcasts like Samaritans, tax collectors, and the poor – people that ancient culture would surely have labeled as losers – yet the King of all kings lavished them with unconditional love and what some regarded as scandalous grace.

Luke: Gut-Level Compassion OBS

A great example of our Redeemer’s counter cultural compassion is found in Luke 18, which Luke frames in verse 9:

Then He told this story to some who boasted of their virtue and scorned everyone else.

In other words, the audience Jesus told the following parable to was a haughty group of yahoos who had the double whammy of being self-righteous and judgmental, which is like going to the movies only to find out the audio isn’t working and the popcorn’s stale!

Anyway, here’s the story our Savior told those supercilious stinkers:

Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.’ But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted. — Luke 18:9-14

It wasn’t uncommon in the First Century to lump tax collectors with sinners because ancient tax collectors – also called “publicans” because they collected public revenue on behalf of the government - were about as well loved as dinner-time telemarketers! And to add insult to injury, they were infamous for charging whatever the market would bear and then skimming off the top before turning the coffers over to Rome. Which meant Jewish tax collectors built their bank accounts on the backs of their fellow countrymen making them the worse kind of traitors because their Beemers and fancy Mediterranean homes came at the expense of their friends, family, and neighbors.

Yet Luke makes one of those ancient Jewish IRS agents the unlikely star of this story! The takeaway is:

being reconciled into a right relationship with God isn’t based on our deservedness, it’s based on His divine grace!

Human nature presumes that we have to earn favor with God. That we have to justify ourselves by checking off all the boxes on some sort of spiritual “to do” list. But the tenor and tone of our Redeemer’s earthly life and ministry prove otherwise. Luke paints a compelling portrait of Jesus opening the restorative refuge of His arms wide to include mistake prone misfits and that is the really, really good news of his gospel account!

I’m so excited we’re going to be diving deep into Luke together – this is going to be an awesome adventure, y’all!"'

Written for FaithGateway by Lisa Harper, author of Beautiful Word: Luke.

[starw1sh]

finished if we were v*llains and damn it, I really enjoyed the last 30 pages. Which is so unfortunate, because I hate read most of that book and only finished it because I bought a physical copy and there's no way I'm wasting money like that. More thoughts (with major spoilers) under the cut because jesus christ

Oh man, I am not immune to whatever the FUCK was happening between Oliver and James. There's a comparison to be made with their dynamic and Hannibal and Will in NBC's Hannibal that I can't quite put words to it yet. Like they made each other so much worse but would do anything for each other. Oliver finding out James literally MURDERED Richard and then deciding he would take the fall for the crime like 2 hours later was crazy. AND THEIR ONLY KISS BEING ON STAGE???? PERFORMING THE SAME SCENE WHERE IN REHEARSAL JAMES BROKE OLIVER'S NOSE???? Insane. Insane. How am I supposed to be normal about this. Yes he loved him. But the truth was, he still did. I need to run laps over this.

And God I LOVE an ambiguous ending. Like I do think James is dead at the end, but that one quote from earlier in the novel (and I'm paraphrasing) where it was like 'a tragedy always has you hoping everything will work out until the very end'. Like I do think ultimately Oliver's life IS a tragedy and it's that hope that will keep him going even if it's doomed. That’s why we don't get any confirmation that James is 100% dead or if he's 100% alive. There has to be hope. It's kind of like Richard not dying immediately in the water but being left to die, like he COULD have survived but he didn't. James COULD have survived but I don't think he did. That being said, Richard could have survived if he has been helped and Alexander ended up surviving his OD because he was helped. So maybe since it's implied that Oliver is going to go searching for James (and since he's already helped him by taking the fall for the crime), he will be able to "save" James and find him alive.

But what then? James is still overcome with guilt about Richard's death and Oliver is still Oliver. How do they move on from that?

Other than the ending, this book pissed me off. The way characters found out information felt contrived (ESPECIALLY Oliver having to do "work study" by cleaning his own house?? Which leads to him overhearing a bunch and finding a bunch of spooky clues. That was so stupid), the pacing felt unintentionally slow, and I think the whole book was bloated with characters that didn't really matter. Like I enjoyed Alexander and Wren, but besides occasionally pushing the plot along they didn't really do much. They just weren't fleshed out besides "queer guy who does a lot of drugs" and "weirdo rich blond girl who I imagine walks around with the scariest blue eye stare". And don't even get me started on the handful of side characters who get even less attention.

Also I UNDERSTAND the author has a masters in Shakespearen literature but god damn did a lot of that fly over my head. Honestly I didn't dislike the book more or less because of it but it was a little frustrating. The characters kept getting casting lists and I was like "wow :) idk what that means but congratulations or I'm so sorry"

Ughhhh I also feel like because of how HEAVILY this text relies on theatre and Shakespeare, it would be better in a different medium - like theatre or tv. I have not read a book in a while that I think could benefit so obviously from a good adaptation. Especially since Oliver is so oblivious, his internal narration could translate to just staring at people intensively without loosing much narrative weight.

Final rating is probably 2 and half stars out of 5. The ending did save it for me and there were some really compelling scenes but most of the time it was just. Annoying.

[leonbloder]

Learning To Love Like Jesus

One of the most difficult things to do as a follower of Jesus is to follow Jesus. 

Because following Jesus means that we surrender something of ourselves to become more like the One we say we are following.  And to do this well is something that we all struggle to do in our own way. 

Perhaps the most challenging aspect of following Jesus (and the one that probably trips us up) is learning to love others in the way Jesus commanded his followers to love. 

In Luke's Gospel, Jesus put it like this: 

27 “But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. 

This is exactly what Jesus did.  He even prayed for the forgiveness of the very people who crucified him and treated him with unbelievable cruelty.  

And the kind of love that we are talking about here is the kind that gives without expecting anything in return.  It's the kind that heals wounds and bridges divisions.  It's the kind that can change the world if we embrace it and learn to share it. 

I also am fully aware of my own shortcomings when it comes to this kind of love. Sometimes, it seems easier just to focus on myself, to guard my heart against being wounded.  

This is why this quote from Ilia Delo was so impactful to me when I read it recently: 

We long for oneness of heart, mind and soul, but we fear the demands of unity. Sometimes I think we choose to be alone because it is safe. To be comfortable in our isolation is our greatest poverty.   

Truly, many of us live like this.  We close off the world around us because it feels unsafe.  We hide our hearts for fear of them being broken.  Delo calls this guardedness out as our "greatest poverty."  

And then she went on to say this:  

Recognizing our relatedness creates space within us that we wouldn’t otherwise find, and opens a deeper capacity to love: Love is stronger than death and the heart that no longer fears death is truly free.

When we no longer fear death---the death of dreams, the death of hope, the death of all that we once held on to feel safe and secure---we learn what it means to truly love and to live.  

The vulnerability of loving others, as Jesus taught us to love, is an act of extreme vulnerability.  We open ourselves up for pain, betrayal, and rejection.  But it is within the vulnerability of loving that we discover who we really are. 

Shakespeare once wrote, "If thou canst not recall the slightest folly that Love ere did make thee run to, thou hast not loved."  

Vulnerability and the surrender that precedes it is the key to loving like Jesus.  

And there will be times when we will feel the sting of not having our love returned.  We might also have to swallow our pride and our desire to strike back when we are struck.  

Following Jesus into the vulnerability and humility of loving fully is an incredibly hard thing to do. Still, if we learn how to do it with a heart-forward way of living, we will find the abundant life Jesus promised his followers. 

If we want to see the world around us made right, we have to become the loving agents of change that we desire.  We have to become the answers to our own prayers when it comes to peace, unity, and connection.  

Then, we, too, will be transformed as we inch closer to becoming the people God longs for us to be.  

May it be so, and may the grace and peace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with us now and always. Amen.  

[camiercoles]

im doing the mid year book freakout tag

nobody tagged me but fuck it we roll

best book you've read so far in 2023?

its either A Feast For Crows by George R.R. Martin (duh) or Sula by Toni Morrisson. AFFC was just phenomenal, its one of those books i lost myself into and when i had to resurface i felt actual sadness because it was over, and i cant wait to reread it. Sula, however, is just perfect, i laughed and i cried, i felt so connected to the story and the writing just everyone go read Sula. its one of the best books to have ever been written.

i also reread My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante and that is also the best book of all time.

best sequel you've read so far in 2023?

um AFFC!! or A Storm of Swords by George R.R. Martin. either one if those are phenomenal sequels. tbh i haven't read any other series this year so its either asoiaf or nothing, and storm and feast are my favourites.

new release you haven't read but want to?

nothing?? idk i havent read a new book in forever. maybe Yellowface by R.F Kuang or the new percy jackson book but i have no idea.

most anticipated release for the second half of the year?

unless its a surprise TWOW drop which isn't happening i have absolutely no clue.

biggest disappointment?

i'm sorry to all the fantasy fans out there, but i just finished Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson and i dont care for it. i really thought i would be more interested in the story but it was so meh for me i couldn't bring myself to care about anything or any characters. i did like the magic system.

i also reread The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follet, which is a book i ADORED when i was like 14, ans im sad to say it folks but it was foul.

biggest surprise?

again ik this book is old but Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut FLOORED ME. i still think about that book constantly its so phenomenally written and ive owned it for years and never got to it because i thought it would be boring but it was completely excellent.

favourite new author (debut or new to you)?

Susan Sontag, David Foster Wallace and Toni Morrison. first time i read any of them was this year and what a waste of time to not have read them sooner.

newest fictional crush?

its jaime. ig he's from last year but yeah its jaime.

newest favourite character?

uhhhh jaime. jaime lannister. i am not better than this.

a book that made you cry?

My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante. It's a reread but jesus christ that ending always gets to me, especially knowing what comes after.

a book that made you happy?

i cant seem to escape ASOS and AFFC, but genuinely my reading experience of asoiaf was unparalleled.

most beautiful book you've bought this year?

i went to the Libreria Lello (aka the world's most beautiful bookstore) and i got the most BEAUTIFL edition of Las intermitencias de la muerte by José Saramago.

what book(s) do you need to read before the end of the year?

i want to read Richard III by Shakespeare, A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens, En diciembre llegaban las brisas by Marvel Moreno and Beloved by Toni Morrisson. hopefully i'll get through them all

anyways do this if you want you are officially tagged bye

sorry i dont read new books if you have any recs im mega down

[carbontheunraptured]

Question of the Day: What is your favorite Bible verse?

I’m--excuse me? Um, one of the horny ones, I guess. Or that one that got cut out of any of them after the Shakespeare one, about the angel in the pond or whatever. Why am I even--

Last night I got a text from Alexi. All it said was “1318.” I don’t know what that fucking means. Bridget, did she send anything else?

I don’t understand. Whose messages do you want me to check?

Alexi. Alexi Gambler.

I’m sorry, you don’t have a contact named Alexi Gambler.

Fuck. Fuck fuck fuck.

Calm down, 1431. Jesus Christ Alexi got raptured. Bridget, fuck, Bridget, call Emerald.

Calling Emerald.

“Hey, what’s up, 1430?”

Alexi got rapt--goddammit you don’t know who Alexi Gambler is, do you?

“Nope. Sorry, bud.”

She was in our Philosophy of Religion 104 class last semester, Emerald.

“I figured you’d say that, just like those other two?”

Rhys and Walter, yeah. That’s now three people you don’t remember. It’s a pattern, Emerald, the raptures are real.

“...”

Emerald, you there? Bridget, did the conne--

“I’m here, man, I just... 1429, have you brought this up to your therapist?”

Jesus, Em, I’m not imagining this.

“I still think you should bring it up.”

She has enough to help me process with that’s actually irrational.

“Alien abductions on people from our Philosophy class is a lot more irrational than your actual issues, dude.”

I don’t think it’s aliens, it’s probably Tier-0 Psychics.

“You think a Tier-0 Psychic is targeting our Philosophy class.”

It’s the only thing that explains the mass memory wipes and the data changes. If even the Ministry doesn’t have records on Rhys or Walter, then--fuck, or Alexi--it’s gotta be some Psychic bullshit.

Incoming call.

Is it spam?

Not a known spam address.

“Getting another call?”

Yeah but we’ll talk about this later, okay?

“I’m sure. Later, 1428, take care of yourself.”

Call ended.

Pick up call, Bridget.

“Mr. 1427 Carbon, this is an official notice from the Ministry of Records. You are to cease all communication with Mrs. Avery Garrote immediately. Failure to comply with this order, filed under Section 45.1 of the Civil Disagreements Act, will result in action from local private security officers. Please state that you have received this notice.”

Oh you’ve got to be kidding me.

“Please state that you have received this notice.”

Just, hold on, I need--oh you’re a goddamn robot, aren’t you.

“Please state that you have r

Yeah, yeah, I received it.

“Thank you. Goodbye.”

Call ended.

Jesus.

Oh fuck, you’re still recording, Bridget?

You are still recording today’s journal entry, 1426.

Wow. This’ll be a fun one to play back.

What was the question of the day?

What is your favorite Bible verse?

Ridiculous. Most people I know weren’t even raised Christian, what the hell do they say for this?

What’s the one that goes “Jesus Wept?”

John 11:35. Would you like me to read it to you?

No, thank you, Bridget. John 11:35 is my favorite Bible verse. End journal.