#so he's broken down into the most useful component part of himself to the greater organism

[dwellordream]

“…In modern English, we often use oath and vow interchangeably, but they are not (usually) the same thing. Divine beings figure in both kinds of promises, but in different ways. In a vow, the god or gods in question are the recipients of the promise: you vow something to God (or a god). By contrast, an oath is made typically to a person and the role of the divine being in the whole affair is a bit more complex.

…In a vow, the participant promises something – either in the present or the future – to a god, typically in exchange for something. This is why we talk of an oath of fealty or homage (promises made to a human), but a monk’s vows. When a monk promises obedience, chastity and poverty, he is offering these things to God in exchange for grace, rather than to any mortal person. Those vows are not to the community (though it may be present), but to God (e.g. Benedict in his Rule notes that the vow “is done in the presence of God and his saints to impress on the novice that if he ever acts otherwise, he will surely be condemned by the one he mocks.” (RB 58.18)). Note that a physical thing given in a vow is called a votive (from that Latin root).

(More digressions: Why do we say ‘marriage vows‘ in English? Isn’t this a promise to another human being? I suspect this usage – functionally a ‘frozen’ phrase – derives from the assumption that the vows are, in fact, not a promise to your better half, but to God to maintain. After all, the Latin Church held – and the Catholic Church still holds – that a marriage cannot be dissolved by the consent of both parties (unlike oaths, from which a person may be released with the consent of the recipient). The act of divine ratification makes God a party to the marriage, and thus the promise is to him. Thus a vow, and not an oath.)

…Which brings us to the question how does an oath work? In most of modern life, we have drained much of the meaning out of the few oaths that we still take, in part because we tend to be very secular and so don’t regularly consider the religious aspects of the oaths – even for people who are themselves religious. Consider it this way: when someone lies in court on a TV show, we think, “ooh, he’s going to get in trouble with the law for perjury.” We do not generally think, “Ah yes, this man’s soul will burn in hell for all eternity, for he has (literally!) damned himself.” But that is the theological implication of a broken oath!

So when thinking about oaths, we want to think about them the way people in the past did: as things that work – that is they do something. In particular, we should understand these oaths as effective – by which I mean that the oath itself actually does something more than just the words alone. They trigger some actual, functional supernatural mechanisms. In essence, we want to treat these oaths as real in order to understand them.

So what is an oath? To borrow Richard Janko’s (The Iliad: A Commentary (1992), in turn quoted by Sommerstein) formulation, “to take an oath is in effect to invoke powers greater than oneself to uphold the truth of a declaration, by putting a curse upon oneself if it is false.” Following Sommerstein, an oath has three key components:

First: A declaration, which may be either something about the present or past or a promise for the future.

Second: The specific powers greater than oneself who are invoked as witnesses and who will enforce the penalty if the oath is false. In Christian oaths, this is typically God, although it can also include saints. For the Greeks, Zeus Horkios (Zeus the Oath-Keeper) is the most common witness for oaths. This is almost never omitted, even when it is obvious.

Third: A curse, by the swearers, called down on themselves, should they be false. This third part is often omitted or left implied, where the cultural context makes it clear what the curse ought to be. Particularly, in Christian contexts, the curse is theologically obvious (damnation, delivered at judgment) and so is often omitted.

While some of these components (especially the last) may be implied in the form of an oath, all three are necessary for the oath to be effective – that is, for the oath to work.

A fantastic example of the basic formula comes from Anglo-Saxon Chronicles (656 – that’s a section, not a date), where the promise in question is the construction of a new monastery, which runs thusly (Anne Savage’s translation):

These are the witnesses that were there, who signed on Christ’s cross with their fingers and agreed with their tongues…”I, king Wulfhere, with these king’s eorls, war-leaders and thanes, witness of my gift, before archbishop Deusdedit, confirm with Christ’s cross”…they laid God’s curse, and the curse of all the saints and all God’s people on anyone who undid anything of what was done, so be it, say we all. Amen.”

So we have the promise (building a monastery and respecting the donation of land to it), the specific power invoked as witness, both by name and through the connection to a specific object (the cross – I’ve omitted the oaths of all of Wulfhere’s subordinates, but each and every one of them assented ‘with Christ’s cross,’ which they are touching) and then the curse to be laid on anyone who should break the oath.

…With those components laid out, it may be fairly easy to see how the oath works, but let’s spell it out nonetheless. You swear an oath because your own word isn’t good enough, either because no one trusts you, or because the matter is so serious that the extra assurance is required.

That assurance comes from the presumption that the oath will be enforced by the divine third party. The god is called – literally – to witness the oath and to lay down the appropriate curses if the oath is violated. Knowing that horrible divine punishment awaits forswearing, the oath-taker, it is assumed, is less likely to make the oath. Interestingly, in the literature of classical antiquity, it was also fairly common for the gods to prevent the swearing of false oaths – characters would find themselves incapable of pronouncing the words or swearing the oath properly.

And that brings us to a second, crucial point – these are legalistic proceedings, in the sense that getting the details right matters a great detail. The god is going to enforce the oath based on its exact wording (what you said, not what you meant to say!), so the exact wording must be correct. It was very, very common to add that oaths were sworn ‘without guile or deceit’ or some such formulation, precisely to head off this potential trick (this is also, interestingly, true of ancient votives – a Roman or a Greek really could try to bargain with a god, “I’ll give X if you give Y, but only if I get by Z date, in ABC form.” – but that’s vows, and we’re talking oaths).

…Not all oaths are made in full, with the entire formal structure, of course. Short forms are made. In Greek, it was common to transform a statement into an oath by adding something like τὸν Δία (by Zeus!). Those sorts of phrases could serve to make a compact oath – e.g. μὰ τὸν Δία! (yes, [I swear] by Zeus!) as an answer to the question is essentially swearing to the answer – grammatically speaking, the verb of swearing is necessary, but left implied. We do the same thing, (“I’ll get up this hill, by God!”). And, I should note, exactly like in English, these forms became standard exclamations, as in Latin comedy, this is often hercule! (by Hercules!), edepol! (by Pollux!) or ecastor! (By Castor! – oddly only used by women). One wonders in these cases if Plautus chooses semi-divine heroes rather than full on gods to lessen the intensity of the exclamation (‘shoot!’ rather than ‘shit!’ as it were). Aristophanes, writing in Greek, has no such compunction, and uses ‘by Zeus!’ quite a bit, often quite frivolously.

Nevertheless, serious oaths are generally made in full, often in quite specific and formal language. Remember that an oath is essentially a contract, cosigned by a god – when you are dealing with that kind of power, you absolutely want to be sure you have dotted all of the ‘i’s and crossed all of the ‘t’s. Most pre-modern religions are very concerned with what we sometimes call ‘orthopraxy’ (‘right practice’ – compare orthodoxy, ‘right doctrine’). Intent doesn’t matter nearly as much as getting the exact form or the ritual precisely correct (for comparison, ancient paganisms tend to care almost exclusively about orthopraxy, whereas medieval Christianity balances concern between orthodoxy and orthopraxy (but with orthodoxy being the more important)).”

- Bret Devereaux, “Oaths! How do they Work?”

[pahrak-the-sinnoh-slizer]

Right of Law, Section XXV

(Xia’s fate is decided, as Velika breaks free of his bonds and renews his assault.)

Swooping down onto the battlefield, Antroz landed a short distance from where the Sand Lord and Velika stood.  “Sand Lord! Thank you for coming to Xia’s aid.”

“Save your gratitude until we have seized victory, Makuta,” the Sand Lord said.

Not far away, a group of Vorox were battling a combined drone.  Antroz teleported behind the machine and ran it through, melting its insides with her Plasma powers.  Quickly counting how many drones were left, she said, “It seems we’re nearly there...and you two are holding Velika off?”

“As best we can,” Bitil said.  “This latest vessel of his...it’s no small task to damage it.  We’ve been able to contain him, but it’s not a permanent--”

He and the Sand Lord both grunted.  Antroz dispatched another drone, asking, “What is it?  What’s wrong?”

“Blast,” Bitil said.  “How was he able to--gah!”

The sand began to shift.  Antroz focused her stasis field powers in that direction, hoping it would tilt the scales in their favor, but all she could do was slow the form she felt rising towards the surface.

“It’s no good,” the Sand Lord said.  “Both of you, release your hold.”

“What?!” Bitil said.  “How is that--”

“I have a plan, but your stasis fields are in the way!  Hurry!”

Hesitantly, the two Makuta complied.  The Sand Lord made some vague gesture, but before either could ask, Velika’s form began to emerge, sand spilling off of him and the platform of Shadow energy he was using to lift himself.  Stopping only once he hovered above their heads, Velika said, “Your efforts are for naught.  Accept your fate, and you may yet die with some iota of dignity.”

“And what do you know of dignity?” Bitil said.  “You won’t even show your face in combat, you coward.”

Velika’s chest opened, pouring out another torrent of energy.  Bitil and the others scattered to evade it.  Hands crackling with Shadow, Velika said, “Watch your tongue, child.  Every insult you aim at me buys greater torment for your Rahkshi.”

Bitil growled, barely able to quiet his urge to retaliate.  Velika fired a volley of Shadow bolts, keeping his foes on the defensive, though Antroz managed to regroup with the Sand Lord amidst this chaos.  “You said you had a plan?”

“And I am carrying it out,” the Sand Lord said.  “I need only time.  The more I can focus, the less time I will need.”

“So Bitil and I will have to draw his attention, then.  May I at least ask what this plan is?”

“Ask if you wish, but I shan’t answer.  In situations such as these, a plan shared is a plan doomed to fail.”

Antroz reluctantly agreed.  Teleporting to Bitil’s side, she briefly explained the situation to him, and then the two of them set their sights on Velika.  Antroz teleported next to the Great Being and swung her blade, leaving only a mild scuff on his armor.  Velika swiped at her, only just missing, and Bitil used the chance to get in close and activate his Kanohi.  Calling on the raw strength of a Tahtorak, he grabbed Velika and pulled him overhead before slamming him face-first into the ground.  Velika tried to shoot him as he stepped back, but Antroz was able to capture the bolt in a small stasis field until her ally was clear.

“Seems we neglected to program you Makuta to know when to give up!” Velika said. At a swing of his arm, powerful shadows tore a trench into the sand, Antroz and Bitil saved from the attack by their Dodge powers.  “But then, I know we programmed you to be loyal, and you still managed to fail there!”

“The failure is not ours, Velika,” Antroz said.  “The Great Beings have shown they do not deserve loyalty! Bemoan your fate if you wish, but know that you have earned it!”

Velika lashed out.  Antroz turned invulnerable to block him, and held him still while Bitil counterattacked, the edges of his armor glowing white-hot as he channeled the Rock Lion. Unscathed, Velika sent them both flying with a burst of Shadow; as he moved to chase them, however, he heard a crunching sound come from his elbow, and paused to examine it.  Antroz blinked into existence above him, amplifying gravity as she swung down and managing to push Velika a few inches into the sand before he punched her back.  Bitil tried to repel their foe with a Power Scream, but Velika simply walked straight through into the devastating river of sound.

“So arrogant,” Velika said as the plates on his chest began to move.  “Why did we make you Makuta so blasphemously arrogant?”

Bitil chuckled.  “Something we inherited, I suppose.”

He took flight as Velika fired.  When the laser ended, a small spark leapt from the barrel, and its covering moved back into place very slowly.  Not understanding, nor willing to give Velika a chance to figure it out, Antroz molded a sphere of sonic waves around him, rattling his body like a twig in a typhoon. She had to abandon her attack to dodge a Shadow bolt, but Bitil leapt in immediately, calling vines up from the sand to restrain Velika.  It took the Great Being seconds to break free.  He rushed forward, but after two steps he stumbled.  The Makuta moved to capitalize on this, but were held at bay by a dome of shadows around their enemy.

“What nonsense is this?” Velika said.  He glanced over his body and then looked up, spotting the Sand Lord standing in the distance.  The realization of what was happening hit him instantly.  “...How dare you…”

Antroz and Bitil circled Velika in opposite directions.  Bitil glanced aside, seeing that the Vorox had subdued all but a handful of the drones, and then spotted movement near Xia’s wall. Hewkii and Neton came into view. “What are they doing here?”

Velika seized his chance.  He lunged, fist cloaked in Shadow, and punched a hole through Bitil’s shoulder, before swinging him around and throwing him into Antroz as she charged. A flurry of Shadow bolts was then turned upon the Sand Lord, her body slowly losing its cohesion under the assault.

“I know what you’re doing,” Velika said.  “You managed to get some sand inside my armor, didn’t you?  But how difficult is it for even you to discreetly manipulate but a few fine particles?  I imagine it takes all of your focus!”

Antroz tackled Velika, cutting his attack short.  Velika prepared to retaliate, but found his entire body locking up, whirs and clunks spewing from its components in abundance.

“I’ve no further need for discretion,” the Sand Lord said.  “I’ve figured out the gist of how this body works, and have navigated sand to all of its most vital components.  In a few seconds, those mechanisms will be broken down entirely.”

Velika snarled, managing to turn himself towards Xia.  “Wretched creature...know that when I find you...your punishment shall be excruciating!”

Energy shone within his chest.  The covering was unable to move, but he fired anyway.  The beam tore open its casing and lanced across the sand, bearing down on the opening in the city’s wall where Hewkii and Neton stood watching. Bitil shrieked.  The Toa and Rahkshi saw the attack coming and just barely flung themselves to safety...for the most part.  Neton wailed as he collapsed on the ground, one leg seared clean off.  Bitil rushed to his side, while Antroz watched as the Sand Lord finished breaking Velika’s body, waiting a few moments to be sure the empty shell wouldn’t rise again or explode.  Once satisfied, she saw to the remaining drones and went to help Neton.  As she left, she noticed that, despite her victory, the Sand Lord had an oddly somber air about her.

***

Zaekura looked up as Bitil entered the room.  She stood, but said nothing.

“Neton is alright,” he said.  “The pain has subsided, and he is resting easy.”

Zaekura let out a long breath.  “Good.”

“Unfortunately, even Surja can’t regrow his leg.  We’ll outfit him with a prosthetic once he’s ready, but it could take him a while to master use of it.”

“Want me to try making one?  I mean, I haven’t tried before, but…”

Bitil shook his head.  “Thank you, Lady Zaekura, but that won’t be necessary.  There are already several highly skilled prosthetic crafters here in Xia--I’ll see what each of them has to offer.”

The door opened again, this time letting in Krika and the Sand Lord.  The latter paused for a moment before approaching Bitil, saying, “Makuta Bitil...I want to apologize.  If I had managed to stop Velika sooner, then I could have stopped him from harming your son.”

Bitil looked her in the eye.  “You did all you could, didn’t you?”

“Yes, of course.”

“Then you’ve nothing to apologize for.  Moreover, Neton is perfectly fine.  I thank you for your concern, but please, do not feel responsible for his wounds. This was done by Velika...and if we did not have your help, I do not know that we would have prevailed against him.” Bitil smiled.  “Be proud, Sand Lord.  Only a few have managed to strike at the Great Beings as you now have.”

She took a moment to absorb this, then chuckled.  “...Indeed.  Thank you, Makuta.”

Krika made his way over to Zaekura, handing her the dagger she had crafted. “Works like a charm.  A good thing, too, now that the enemy has two Element Lords of their own.”

The Sand Lord turned, eyes immediately fixing on the blade.  “...How long have you planned to make such a thing?”

“Huh?  Oh!” Zaekura gently set the dagger down. “It wasn’t exactly a plan, really. I’ve been learning what I can from the lab at Bitil’s outpost, just trying to understand how elemental powers work. I was thinking about the possibility of disabling our enemies’ powers, but I hadn’t even gotten to the drawing board yet--I didn’t think I had made enough progress for it to be worth mentioning. Sorry, I probably should have been more upfront once I realized it was possible.”

The Sand Lord nodded.  “I understand.  There has been much to deal with of late.”

“Vastus and Tarix will require great consideration going forward,” Krika said. “Nora was only barely in time to save Ackar and the others, and Tarix took control of the situation to recover everyone we could have captured.  We need to be ready to defend Xia at a moment’s notice.”

Zaekura reached for the box of equipment she had stored earlier, saying, “No doubt.  Good thing our friend Nuparu gave us something that should make that a bit easier.”

“Good news from the Le-Koronans, I hope?” Bitil asked.

“They need time to discuss things, but we did get a parting gift.”  Zaekura pulled out a crudely-constructed radio to show the others.  “This uses technology similar to Kanoka Blades: it encrypts transmissions using a special circuit made from a Disk of Incomprehension, and then the receiver unscrambles it using a paired circuit made out of a Disk of Translation.  Now that we’re actually expanding our territory, a safe way to communicate like this is going to be a big help.”

“Certainly,” Krika said.  “That being said, it is possible that the Great Beings could still find a way to break the encryption.  We should devise a code for our communiques as an added layer of security, and change it routinely.”

“Good point.  Give me some time to work with it and make a few more, then we’ll work out a code.”

The door opened again, allowing Antroz entrance.  “Pardon me.  I was speaking with Toa Hewkii about the reconstruction.  He’s optimistic as ever...if a bit distracted.”

Bitil nodded.  “Is he worried about Neton?  They seemed to be getting along quite well.”

“That’s part of it.  He was also saying something about a kolhii tournament taking place in Civitas Magna? But we don’t exactly have time to indulge our curiosity over such things.”

“Hang on,” Krika said.  “A kolhii tournament at a time like this?  Interesting...and indeed, very distracting.  I’ll bet the Great Beings are using it to keep public focus off of the war.”

“Alright...but what does it matter?”

“Well, Antroz...if kolhii teams from all over are gathering, then would it not be entirely ordinary for the Xian team to participate?”

Zaekura crossed her arms.  “Oh, I get it.  We make this backfire on them by putting ourselves in the spotlight they provide. But, wait: there’s no way they’re going to let a team from Xia participate now that we’ve secured control here.”

“Correct,” Krika said.  “But that doesn’t stop our players from joining other teams, if they so desire...and our alliance with Mahri Nui has yet to be made known.”

Zaekura grinned.  “Oh! Now I really get it.  We do need to pay Pridak a visit anyway.”

“Hold on,” Antroz said.  “Any player in such a position would be in great danger.  The Great Beings would only care that they’re from Xia, and would act accordingly.”

Zaekura’s smile faded.  “Hm. That is a problem.”

“Something to think about,” Krika said.  “I’ll at least gather some more information while you examine the radio.”

She nodded slowly.  Glancing around the room, she said, “We’re in a bit of a weird spot right now, but we’re holding our own.  Sure got a lot farther than I thought we would.  We’ve got plenty of ways to keep this momentum going...let’s make the most of them.”

***

“How could you be defeated in such a careless manner?”

“Excuse me?  It was your armor that failed to protect my body!”

Seldoa rolled her eyes.  Tools floated in a ring around her body, leaving her side occasionally to fulfill a task before instantly returning.  “Oh, yes, the armor was the problem.  Ignore the fact that the one wearing it couldn’t even get inside the city despite having enough firepower to vaporize half a block.”

Velika dashed a beaker against the floor.  “This is your problem, Seldoa!  You think only in the broadest of strokes and never of the finer details!”

From his seat on a nearby lab table, Angonce said, “The way I see it, you’re both to blame.”

“You were not asked to contribute, Angonce!” Velika said.

“Do you honestly have nothing better to do?” Seldoa said.  “We have much work to replace, new plans to make, so it would be most helpful if you would remove the burden of your company from our shoulders.”

Angonce shrugged, hopping down from his perch.  “Okay, okay, I can see when I’m not wanted.  I’ll leave the two of you to stew in your failures for a bit, and then we can see if maybe you’re feeling any more social.”

Velika and Seldoa ignored him, immediately resuming their argument. Angonce exited the lab and started down the hall.  A few twists and turns later, Gorast joined him.

“You seem troubled, Gorast,” Angonce said.  “Something you want to tell me?”

“It’s nothing important, sir,” Gorast said.  After a pause, she continued, “I’m just disappointed in my siblings.”

“Hah!  Aren’t we all?  I’m glad we still have you, Gorast: you at least prove that the Makuta aren’t an inherently failed design.”

Gorast grinned at this.

“I had such high hopes for the others.  It’s tragic, really.  All this over one little Glatorian?  And now they’re blowing it so far out of proportion--is the society we’ve built really all that bad? We gave them everything they could have ever wanted: power, employment, the adoration of the masses.  We even permanently solved their needs thanks to this gaseous evolution!  Yet still, Antroz and the others are unsatisfied.”

“Antroz...I hope I get the chance to shred her down to atoms myself.”

“Well, if my brilliant colleagues don’t beat you to it.  Or the Odinans.  But anyway.”

Angonce stepped through a doorway leading to a narrow control room, one wall transparent to show the cell on the other side.  Sitting there was a being the size of a Toa, his armor and unusual mask a strange mix of red and black.  He looked up with a start, but upon seeing Angonce, he moved seamlessly from shock to irritation.

“Oh great.  Come to talk me to death?”

“No, I’m still working on that particular device,” Angonce said.  “I was just talking about failure and thought it might be fun to pay you a visit, ah…”  He checked a monitor.  “Vultraz.”

Rolling his eyes, Vultraz said, “Yeah, I get it, I failed.  How long are you going to taunt me, your pettiness?”

“Oh no, I didn’t so much mean you and your personal failings.  I mean you come from a failure of a universe.” Angonce shook his head.  “That absurd robot plan our counterparts went with...of course it would fail.  Everything they made went haywire, failsafes and all!  It’s embarrassing!  And what good are Matoran as labor if they’re built so small?”

Vultraz smirked.  “Sure, sure. Feel better about yourself now?”

“Hm?”

“I know a little about what’s been going on.  Whenever one of you ‘visits’ me, it’s the only thing you talk about.” He eyed Gorast.  “Your Makuta are going rogue, just like in my universe.”

Gorast bristled.  “We’re nothing like those freaks of nature.”

“Easy, Gorast, easy,” Angonce said.

“Face it: you Great Beings don’t have any clue what you’re doing in any universe.”  Vultraz got to his feet, walking closer.  “Your plans always fall apart.  It just took a little longer in this one.  Maybe you should’ve quit while you were ahead.”

Angonce put a hand on his hip.  “I’ll admit, we have noticed a trend in the other universes.  But at least now, we have their mistakes to learn from.”

“Yeah?  And how’s that working out so far?”

“My, aren’t you smug for someone locked in a cage.”

“I might as well enjoy the suffering of my captors.  What do I have to lose?”

The door opened.  Instantly, Vultraz’s eyes shot wide.  Angonce turned to see a broad-shouldered Great Being with thick gloves and a scorched apron, carrying a large hammer in one hand.  Flipping up the welding mask he wore, he revealed a square jaw and a terrible burn scar across one side of his face, and he regarded Angonce with a look of calm suspicion.  “What’re you doing here?”

Angonce grinned as he watched Vultraz shuffle back.  “Oh, I was just leaving.  Come to conduct another experiment on our guest of honor?  I wonder how much more he can take.”

“I won’t kill him.  Not that Heremus would mind if I did.  If you’re leaving, then leave.”

Vultraz was pressed up against the rear wall of his cell now.  Stepping around his colleague and back into the hall, Angonce said, “Don’t have to tell me twice.  Best of luck in your work, Ekimu.”

[weecherylita]

Continuing my analysis of Redcloak; this piece is focused on in-character signs that he could actually get some positive character growth (maybe even a redemptive arc? Who knows).

THIS POST INCLUDES MAJOR SPOILERS FOR START OF DARKNESS…

In my previous post, I pointed out that the heart of Redcloak’s character is a battle between his two primary motivations; the first (and the one he likes to tell himself is his main motivation) is trying to improve the lives of the goblin people. The second (and his actual main motivation) is his desire to hide from his own guilt for leading them on a dangerous path which has brought them a great deal of death and suffering. He has sacrificed so much for the sake of the Dark One’s Plan, he thinks the only option is to keep going – otherwise all of those deaths will have been for nothing, and the toll on his conscience will be extreme. Xykon, being a vital component of said Plan, is someone who Redcloak has used as a shield to hide behind – his servitude towards Xykon offers him “an excuse for [his] inexcusable behaviour” as Xykon puts it, and allows him to kid himself that he has no real choice.

So, what are the signs that he might be able to break out of this and change for the better? (Note I’m not arguing he definitely will change, just that it wouldn’t actually be totally out of the blue if he did.)

The hobgoblins and Gobbotopia

In his dealings with hobgoblins in particular, we have seen the part of him that genuinely cares for his people really start to come more strongly to the fore. Firstly in his major about-turn during the Battle of Azure City, where he came to realise the error of his previous racist attitude towards hobgoblins, and this produced a significant change in his behaviour. So here at least we have precedent for Redcloak examining past actions, owning up to his mistakes, and growing for the better (albeit, on a much smaller scale than what would be required to rethink his devotion to the Plan).

As this plot line develops we continue to see further evidence of Redcloak growing in his sense of responsibility and genuine concern for the lives of other goblins, and this includes two prominent examples where he does prioritise their well-being above the Dark One’s Plan.

Firstly, we have the personal battle between Redcloak and the High Priest of the Twelve Gods – a duel he could have avoided, but specifically enters into because “dueling will save the lives of any hobgoblins your spells would have killed.” And this is a risk not just to his own life, but potentially to the Plan as well, since there was a chance of the Crimson Mantle being destroyed/confiscated by Azurites in the event of Redcloak losing that duel (the best case scenario would’ve been for the cloak to get picked up by another, almost certainly less powerful goblin cleric).

Secondly, he clearly puts off continuing the Dark One’s mission in order to concentrate on the development of the emerging goblin city state, Gobbotopia. This shows a genuine desire to pursue an alternative and less risky method of securing the well-being of his people, to the point that it distracts him from the Plan. It doesn’t last, of course. A combination of Xykon’s rage and a semi-direct message from the Dark One himself serve to refocus his attention on the Plan once more. This brings about a regression of sorts, in that we once again see him prepared to tactically sacrifice the lives of other goblins for the sake of its success. For now, it appears that he believes that by delegating to Jirix, he can pursue both the Plan and the development of Gobbotopia concurrently. He is surely aware that pursuing the Plan could threaten Gobbotopia itself, but perhaps unwilling to dwell too much on the ramifications of that. Nevertheless, Gobbotopia still exists as a tangible achievement in Redcloak’s eyes, and may well come into play again in forcing a confrontation between his two primary motivations – Gobbotopia or the Plan; the well-being of living goblins, or his desire to hide from his own guilt. 

Right-Eye and Xykon

Redcloak’s efforts to hide from his guilt are becoming more strained. We get the most explicit glimpse of this when we see him talking to - himself? - in the mirror, saying: “It’ll all be worth it. You’ll see.” Except of course, he’s not just talking to himself, but also Right-Eye (Redcloak having lost his own right eye, it would seem as though he was staring at a right-eyed goblin when facing himself in the mirror).

In fact, this brings me back to that interesting statement from Xykon at the end of Start of Darkness: “as long as you’re loyal to me, I’ll let you pretend that this [Redcloak murdering Right-Eye] never happened.” Thing is though, Xykon’s gone back on his word. By forbidding Redcloak to regenerate his lost eye, and encouraging Tsukiko to call him “Wrong-Eye”, Redcloak has been getting regular reminders about his brother – and what he did to him. It’s no wonder that Redcloak has started to seem a little unsettled. And the memory of Right-Eye doesn’t just represent Redcloak’s guilt either – it’s also about choice. As Xykon pointed out, Right-Eye is proof that actually, Redcloak does have a choice – a choice about whether to rebel against Xykon, or the Dark One, or to just admit that he’s done wrong by his people and there are alternatives to following this crazily dangerous plan. Xykon characterises Redcloak as “too chicken-shit” to ever make that choice, but I do wonder. For a start, Xykon’s verbal beat-down to Redcloak at the end of Start of Darkness (when Redcloak was at his very lowest) was so utterly vicious I almost felt like it’s inevitable that one day, Redcloak will pick himself back up and prove him wrong. (Law of drama I guess? Elan would approve.)

Which leads onto another point – another way we’ve seen Redcloak develop over the course of the comic is to see him becoming more confident and more dissatisfied with Xykon. If we compare the first time Redcloak submitted to calling Xykon “Lord Xykon”, way back at the end of Start of Darkness, with the last time we heard him say it, recently in the western desert, we can see that his attitude has significantly changed. The first time is almost heart-breaking; his will is completely broken at that point. That final time, where he is practically dripping with disdain and barely contained rage, honestly gives me chills.

There is no evidence as of yet of this progression leading to any positive growth; thus far, his newfound confidence has led Redcloak to boast that he secretly has Xykon dancing to his tune, which is a dubious assertion that still hinges on his desire to fool Xykon into carrying out the Plan. Nevertheless, I think it’s interesting the way Xykon originally characterised servitude to him as a way for Redcloak to avoid his own sense of personal responsibility for his actions (”You’ll obey me forever now, because I give you an excuse for your inexcusable behaviour”). In Redcloak’s mind, preserving the relationship with Xykon is still a necessary evil for the sake of the Plan, and the Plan is beyond question (and thus he avoids the need to face up to his own wrong-doing in pursuing that goal). The more strained his relationship with Xykon becomes, the higher the chance of the whole thing unraveling. A few small cracks are starting to appear, but whether they will lead to any positive development or not remains to be seen...

Violence and non-goblins

And the final point relates to Redcloak’s attitude and violent behaviour towards non-goblin species. The Redcloak of the most recent strips is just as prepared to kill for the sake of the Plan as ever, and he does so brutally and with grim efficiency. Nevertheless, I think it’s interesting that he used to enjoy killing creatures he hated - humans and paladins in particular - yet he no longer appears to do so (or not as much, at least). He tells Jirix that murdering a paladin was “less satisfying than I remember”. He also doesn’t appear to take much pleasure in Tsukiko’s death (in contrast to his apparent glee when he set the chlorine elemental on her when they first met). And, most recently of all, he appears notably dissatisfied about killing the monsters of Kraagor’s tomb, asking “What did their deaths mean?”. Which seems an unusual question for a goblin who is long used to justifying every horrible deed he commits as being a necessary sacrifice for the greater well-being of his people. Now it could well be that Redcloak’s evolution into hardened killer who destroys out of grim necessity rather than enjoyment isn’t going to lead to any positive changes. Still, that most recent example in particular indicates a degree of weariness with needless bloodshed that might be relevant later. And we also have the very interesting example of Redcloak choosing to spare the prisoners of Azure City - people who he promised to destroy, yet eventually chose not to. I don’t believe this was out of a sense of compassion, but rather from the fact that when it came down to it, he just didn’t have the stomach for senseless destruction. And with the fate of the whole world at stake, that may yet prove significant. 

Of course, none of this is proof that Redcloak will eventually reject the Plan, let alone switch to placing his trust in the Order/the gods in general. Nevertheless, the above points make me believe it is possible that Redcloak could start to go through that path of personal growth – particularly if something dramatic happens that forces him to acknowledge that the Plan isn’t viable. As firmly deluded as he seems right now, a few small cracks have started to appear.

[hardlyfatal]

gary’s writing workshop: lesson 3:

Plot Structuring, Part 1

What is a story? Stories are accounts of transformations: situations, people, attitudes, establishments. If something isn’t changing, what is there to write about? Nothing.

Our job, as writers, is to describe the change and repercussions so that they’re effectively and entertainingly communicated to our readers with as much readability as possible. There are three components to managing it, which I’ll be going over here..

In this lesson, I’m going to ask you to change how you perceive and write stories.1

1. Plot Points & Purpose

Instead of looking at scenes from the outside – instead of looking at them from the POV of the reader, and considering their entertainment value – I want you to look at them from the inside. Or, rather, from below. From what basis, to what purpose, do they spring?

Scenes do not exist just to be entertaining. The wow factor is great, but it’s the icing on this particular cake. You can dress up a scene with elaborate setting, intense dialogue, brisk pacing, and boatloads of UST… but if they don’t move the plot along, they’re like a broken pencil: pointless.

Thus the new way to look at stories, at individual scenes, is to scrutinize them for purpose. The only purpose or reason any scene should make it into a story is because it moves the plot to its next point. These are in fact called plot points, and every scene requires one.

It’s a pretty existential way of looking at the matter, but it’s necessary, in order to create a satisfying tale that flows logically from one place to the next, that feels continuous and makes sense. Making sense is a very important, and often overlooked, aspect of storytelling.

Let’s use my story, Shoot the Moon, as an example. Going into it, I knew my overarching story premise: I wanted them to meet, hate each other, but slowly grow to learn about, become attracted to, eventually love each other, and then part. Not knowing that they actually lived in the same city, they meet again and reestablish their relationship. Finally, they find the motivation to overcome their personal demons to be together.

If you tease apart those plot points, you’ll see there are three acts:

They meet, hate each other, but slowly grow to learn about, become attracted to, and eventually love each other.

They part, not knowing that they lived in the same city, then meet again.

They overcome their misapprehensions about each other, and personal demons, to be together.

So how do I get them from A (beginning of each arc) to B (end of each arc)? The chapters in each arc have to have purpose; they have to have a point. Thus each scene was created to serve the purpose needed. A few examples:

I wanted Jaime to see how loving and gentle Brienne could be in contrast to her appearance and behavior to that point, so I created the scene where she shows the twins the bird eggs.

I wanted Brienne that, for all Jaime’s dickishness, he carried pain and perhaps deserved a bit of understanding and patience, so I created the scene where she confronts him and he reveals how he’s been parenting the twins by himself since his wife died.

I wanted to show Brienne’s persisting lack of self-esteem and reinforce Jaime’s attraction to her, so I created the scene where Arianne opened the door in just a robe, exposing most of her goodies, and Jaime hardly noticing because he was paying attention to Brienne instead.

As long as your story is driven by plot points– that make sense – that’s it. You’re probably suspicious of how simple it is, but it really is just that uncomplicated.

Despite that simplicity, I see a lot of people including gratuitous scenes, the purpose of which is to stroke the reader’s kink for whatever (hurt/comfort, fluff, smut, drama, etc.) instead of to push the plot forward. Either nothing much occurs in the scene, or it’s merely a reiteration of plot development and exposition that has already occurred before.

In the case of the latter, you need to have self-discipline and choose one or the other. There is no need to repeat yourself in romantic fiction – it just bogs things down and kills the pacing. Redundancy is wasted time and effort. If you’ve made a point, the point is made and does not need repeating. Have you noticed yet that I’ve said the same thing four times in this paragraph, just worded differently? Yeah.

In the case of the former, it just needs to go. If it’s dead weight, it’s dead weight. Be like Marie Kondo: thank it and let it go.

That’s not to say that hurt/comfort, fluff, smut, and drama can’t be included. They absolutely can and should be; they just need to have a point, and you only need to make that point once.

The point of a hurt/comfort scene could be one of them learning to trust the other, or discovering they have the capacity to be gentle and caring with another person, or that being vulnerable – with the right person, i.e. the other half of the couple – is not only safe but freeing.

The point of fluff could be one of them revealing they feel secure enough to let their inhibitions down and show spontaneous affection, or to show their joy in being able to openly express their love instead of having to keep it hidden and fearful.

The point of smut could be one of them developing the confidence to be a more active or even dominant lover, or show their surprise to be given pleasure for their sake instead of used for their partner’s satisfaction before their own, i.e. that they matter as well and that they doesn’t have to sacrifice their own pleasure in order to make the other person happy.

The point of a dramatic scene could be an expression of any of these – trust, capacity for gentleness, security in the other’s affections, confidence, realization of self-worth, revelations of secrets – possibly with some sort of action-y component. Is there a dramatic revelation that will somehow directly impact the romance between the couple?

To illustrate what I mean, I chose to deconstruct a scene from the show specifically because it is so spare of dialogue (relatively speaking), to show you how effective scenes can be even when there’s not a lot of verbal exposition, at least about the true reason for the scene.

This scene has nothing to do with her loyalties to the Starks or Catelyn Stark, though it may seem that way at first. It exists to give Jaime an opportunity to get to know Brienne better in ways that speak to her core personality and character.

Example:

TV!Brienne takes on three Stark men – who had killed a group of prostitutes after servicing Lannister soldiers – while Jaime watches. Youtube link, if you’d like to watch it to see exactly what happens..

Reason it was included:

To give the audience not only more evidence of her fighting prowess but also insight to her thoughts/feelings (her pity for the prostitutes in particular and of women’s plight in being under the control of men in general, and that she’s empathetic to the point of being vengeful on behalf of others who have suffered).

To make the audience understand that Jaime is now aware that Brienne is a formidable fighter; is not an empty braggart/can back up her claims of ‘knocking men into the dust’; is passionate enough about her convictions to fight and kill for them; is brave enough to face, and skilled enough to defeat, three men at once; is more committed to her loyalty to other women than she is to the Stark cause.

What was accomplished:

Jaime sees her as more than just her unusual appearance or another random person who loathes him like everyone else or a Stark lackey. She becomes a real person to him in this scene.

2. Making the Reader Give a Damn

You have to retain the reader’s interest from one chapter to the next. If you lose them along the way, you’ve lost any reason to keep going with the story. I know we all tell ourselves “I’m just having fun!” and “I’m doing this for myself!” but I think we all agree, though maybe just secretly, that it’s kind of bullshit: stories are made to be read by someone, somewhere.

If a tree falls in the forest and there’s no one there to hear it, does it make a sound? If no one reads our stories, was it worth the effort of writing them? If we’re boring the pants off our readers, why bother? Maybe it’s because you love to know you’re making others happy, maybe it’s because you love the appreciation you receive, whatever. IDK your life. But for the most part, there’s some external validation going on, and if others are quitting your story in the middle, or foregoing your stories entirely because past things you’d written had been unreadable, you’re just shouting into a void.

The main issues where readership hangs in the balance are pacing and description (setting, blocking, inner voice/narration). We’ll go over all of these to a greater degree in later lessons. For now, I’ll just say… if these are compromised, you’re going to be giving a skimpier, shallower, boring-er version instead of the lushly-detailed story it could have been.

3. Making Sense

Getting them sucked in with your word-picture and the flow of plot points is only two-thirds of the job: you also need to make sense. And before you start yapping about suspension of disbelief, yes, that’s a thing, but it only goes so far. There are certain premises than can stretch credulity and still work, but others that go too far and just ruin it.

This is one of our Battles of the Balance: you have to find how far you can go until it just doesn’t work and starts to feel stupid. It negatively impacts readability because it’s so outlandish that it tugs the reader from their reading trance and makes them wonder WTF you’re trying to do because what you just wrote is highly improbable. It kills the story’s readability. It’s important to stay grounded and retain an open mind about your balance in this regard. You need to be able to analyze what you’re doing and seeing if it is going over the top rather than blindly trusting your first impulses and, worse, ignoring feedback that indicates that you need to tone it down.

This is why the work of A Certain Someone fails: she contends that human people are able to produce bodily secretions to a volume that is not physically possible. She loses us because she forewent logic for the payoff she was reaching for (presumably arousal?). Instead of us getting all into the smut and romance, grinning dirtily, instead we frown and grimace because we’re imagining rivulets and puddles and sodden carpets and crusty mattresses, etc. And her ego prevents her from understanding that she is imbalanced in this way, with the result that she keeps churning out fic after revolting fic that many potential readers avoid.

It’s also why Mary Sues and Gary Stus spur such a knee-jerk loathing in so many people. It’s fine to give your characters fine, admirable qualities, but if you heap them on, or don’t counter them with just-as-significant flaws, it will no longer make sense because it’s illogical that anyone would be so fantastic and lacking in defects.

Chekhov’s Gun3 vs. Deus Ex Machina

Chekhov’s Gun2 and Deus Ex Machina are two sides of the same coin: the need for continuity. If it happens earlier, there needs to be resolution later. If it happens later, there needs to be mention (aka ”foreshadowing”) earlier.

Chekhov’s Gun is a literary principle stating that elements in a story have to be relevant. The presence of superfluous details constitute ‘false promises’ on the part of the author, because they’re offering a concept to the reader that will never have any point.

This doesn’t mean you should never mention non-essential things that have no bearing on the plot for fear of creating Chekhov’s guns willy-nilly; you need to create ambiance with description of setting, etc. It just means don’t make a point of mentioning something beyond its level of importance to the story. Brienne’s nose is mentioned as being crooked to emphasize her ugliness as well as symbolize her atypically unfeminine lifestyle since the huge majority of Westerosi women don’t get their noses broken, due to their less active lifestyles. Jaime’s nose is mentioned… never, because it doesn’t matter.

Disclaimer: I am terrible at the Chekhov’s Gun thing, because I have a shitty memory and will put in a detail that I fully intend to do something with… only to completely forget it exists and never mention it again. This is bad. Do not do as I do on this one. I mention it because it’s a continuing issue I struggle with and continue to work on. My poor betas...

Deux Ex Machina is a plot device whereby a problem, conundrum, obstacle, or mystery is solved when an unlikely resolution presents itself without any hints or foreshadowing earlier in the plot, often in such a convenient way that it feels contrived and anti-climactic.

Example that I just cooked up: The big fight in King’s Landing, Jaime and Brienne fight a pitched battle to reach the throne room where Cersei is seated upon her pile of swords. Together, they manage to defeat Gregor Clegane and just as they’re about to confront the queen, Arya pops up3 from behind the throne to tug on Cersei’s left earlobe. Turns out, Cersei is actually an android and had been malfunctioning for a long time, hence her erratic behavior. Bran had a vision about where her off-switch was, and used magical mind-speak to tell his sister how to cut Cersei’s power. Et voilà!

Example that actually happened in the show: Dragons fly at the speed of light and can whisk people around a continent comparable in size to the United States in an hour or two. Similarly, ships can navigate long distances at a fraction of the time supported by actual reality, and horses can rocket down the Kingsroad like Maseratis, if the speed with which Brienne and Pod made it from Winterfell to the dragon pit is any indication4.

Homework

If you are currently working on a story: create an outline of its plot in terms of each scene’s purpose. Identify any gaps in the progression of plot points, and come up with ways to bridge those gaps.

If you are not currently working on a story: do this with one of the stories you have already published. Think up what you could have done differently, or what you could have inserted, to connect the loose ends.

If you are not currently writing anything, and have never published anything: Take one of my stories, nothing too short because it won’t have enough transitions to make the effort meaningful, and nothing too long because LOL this is supposed to be fun, and do as instructed above. I suggest Signs of Life, Vision of Love, or Full Fathom Five because of their middling lengths. Identify gaps, and suggest fixes for them.

Remember to look for connections and flow from scene to scene, NOT chapter to chapter.

Footnotes

1 – Unless you already do this, in which case… well done! Carry on! 

2 – This refers to Anton Chekhov, Russian author, not any Star Trek character.

3 – I SWEAR TO GOD I wrote this months ago, before the last season. Wish I hadn’t been prescient about it... *weeps*

4 – Like, I know about the compression of time through editing but COME ON.

© 2019 to me

[anamericannightmareinpa]

War’s End {Michael Clifford}

War is hell. But if you're going through hell- through war -the only way out is through. They knew what had to happen to end the war, they had their plan. Rush them when they least expect it to drive them back to the compound where the last of them will take shelter. Then blow their sanctuary and all its inhabitants to kingdom come.

There would be casualties on both sides, and it was clear that whoever went in to plant the bombs would be running the risk of not making it out of there before the explosion. Plenty would be willing to sacrifice themselves for the greater good, to make it a safe place to raise children and to simply live a life free of fear. It shouldn't have been a surprise who volunteered, but she couldn't believe that he was willing to do this while she sat at home praying he made it back alive. "This is a fucking suicide mission, Michael!" "For anyone else, maybe. Not for the four of us. Me, Cal, Ash, and Luke are the best group to do this right and still make it out." She could feel hot tears of anger, fear, and frustration begin to wet her cheeks as she stepped up to him, jabbing a finger into his chest hard enough to bruise.  "You don't get to be a goddamn idiot and put yourself in this kind of danger when you have a family to worry about!" "We all have families and we all ARE family, which is why we need to do this and protect you! I'd rather have you safe without me than in danger with me. I'm not doing anything the boys aren't doing, so it's not me trying to skip out!" "The boys are fucking stupid too!" she shouted, her voice rising towards hysterical. "Do you think Luke's daughter is going to understand when her mother has to tell her that daddy and her uncles aren't coming back? Don't you think Calum's wife deserves to have the father of her child with her when she gives birth and as their kid grows up? Shouldn't Ash get a chance to know what it's like to live together with the love of his life?" "Why don't you have faith in us?!" he snapped. "We have all of you to fight for and we're going to end this once and for all! We're coming back!" "But what if you don't?!" she screamed, shoving his shoulder. It was quiet for a long moment, her tears coming faster than before and his green eyes watching with a spark of guilt. "We have to come back," he finally whispered.  She could only stare as he reached a gentle hand to rest on her hip, stepping forward to pull himself closer to where she was rooted to the floorboards. "I have to come back," he said, voice stronger. He bumped his nose against hers, then pressed his lips to her forehead. "I have my reasons for coming back alive, and the most important one is right here in my arms." Overwhelmed, she tucked her head into his chest, her tears making her skin stick to his shirt. Fisting her hand in the fabric, she let out a quiet sob. He held her tighter. "I'm coming back to you." ------------------------------------------------------ War is hell. But so is goodbye. Her tears hadn't even dried when she watched Michael walk out of the campsite with Calum by his side and Luke & Ashton leading the way, all of them strapped with the homemade bomb components. She stood amongst the partners of the others, their collective tears enough to end a drought. Her shirt was damp on the shoulder from where Calum's wife had wept against her, Luke's wife much the same with Ashton's partner still clinging to her too. Luke's daughter was pressed against her mother's leg, chubby cheeks flushed from what could be the last time she saw her daddy and uncles. "They're going to end this," she said, conviction heavy in her tone to assure both herself and the women and child around her. "They will," Luke's wife agreed. "But they need to come home." "Please, God, let them make it!" Ashton's partner wailed, tears appearing once more. Calum's wife sucked in a breath and laid one hand on her round stomach. "They have to get home." "They'll be back. All of them," she said firmly. ------------------------------------------------------ War is hell. But so is waiting. They could see the attack from their camp and watched in satisfaction as the remaining forces were driven back to their compound. Once the gates were closed, the illusion of safety projected, their people began to retreat in preparation for the final act. Watching the signal be given was bring out different emotions for her. She was elated for this war to end. She was terrified for the boys' safety. She was hopeful for the future. In the seconds before the blast, it was near silent as she and the others watched their friends and family scramble from the compound. From the camp's distance it was impossible to make out who was who, and she wasn't sure if she should be thankful for that fact or not. When the explosion finally came, it was massive. The boys had placed the bombs well, not a single wall of the compound left standing once the thicker smoke and dust had cleared. The heat could still be felt on her cheeks and the dusty wind swirled around her feet as she watched light grey and white smoke billow from the remains of their now departed enemies and the fortress that would entomb them. "It's over," she heard whispered from behind. She turned, catching sight of Calum's wife and the thin tears tracking down her cheeks.  "It is," she agreed as Luke's wife and child came forward with Ashton's partner.  "We should go meet them," Ashton's partner said, hands clasped tightly at their chest. "The others are going down to the front." Luke's wife looked apprehensive but stayed silent, cradling the toddler to her chest. The five of them journeyed down to the front lines amongst the rest of those who had stayed behind. Anxiety bubbled within each of them, the fear that the four men they cared for the most wouldn't be there once the dust settled. When none of them were immediately visible, her nerves skyrocketed.  "Where are they?" she asked as she came upon one of the men who'd taken part in the strike. "Roy, where are the boys?" The blonde eyed her for a moment, expression unreadable. "They-" "Oh my God!" Calum's wife cried. She turned away from Roy to the sight of Ashton and Calum approaching, both of them bloody but alive.  Calum's entire left side was drenched in crimson, his arm hanging limp at his side amongst tattered pieces of his shirt. Supporting him from his right was Ashton who had a large gash above his temple that extended down to his jaw, blood flowing steadily out of it. Both of their faces also had trails of sweat trickling down through dirt and soot from the explosion. "Thank God you're alive!" Ashton's partner sobbed, running forward to wrap their arms around his waist. "'Course I'm alive," he said with a chuckle, his voice hoarse. "Just got ya, can't be leaving ya." Calum's pained expression smoothed over as he moved towards his wife, his right hand pushing her hair back and then brushing the tears from beneath her eyes. "Don't cry," he said softly. "I'm okay, I promise. Nothing the medic and a few weeks of rest won't fix." She closed her eyes and took in a shaky breath. "I was so worried we'd lose you." "Shh," he hushed, pulling her into his chest, "I'm here with you and our little one forever." As the couples reunited, she turned away from them, the moments so intimate and raw that she felt she shouldn't look. Instead, she looked to Luke's wife who sported a tight-lipped expression as she held her daughter close. When their eyes met, she saw her own thoughts reflected back at her: Ashton and Calum were wounded but alive, right there with them. They had made it. But the absence of the others wasn't unnoticed. "Guys," she called after allowing the couples their reunions. "Where are Luke and Michael?" Calum looked to Ashton, the older man's brows furrowing. "I don't know," he admitted. "We got separated as we were coming out of the compound. They found us and we fought back which was working until the guns came into the mix. We had to take cover because both Cal and Luke got hit. Cal got it in the shoulder but I don't know about Luke." Luke's wife sucked in a breath, one hand cradling her daughter's head where thick blonde locks curled tight just like her father's. "We went out on the left," Calum picked up from Ashton. "I guess they went to the right, but I thought... I thought they'd be here by now." Panic roared in her chest and blood rushed in her ears. She couldn't breathe, but she didn't want to. Her nightmare had become reality. Michael had chosen to complete the mission, and he had, but at the ultimate price.  The war was over, but so was his life. He'd promised to come back to her. He'd stood in the campsite holding her and saying that he'd be back because he had her to fight for. He'd said he'd make it back. She felt tears welling behind her closed eyes and her stomach lurched. She was going to be sick, but she tried to fight it, clenching her jaw and fisting her hands at her sides.

“You two need your wounds taken care of.”

Her eyes opened and she saw Luke’s wife staring into the distance where the smoke still continued to rise, her expression blank as her daughter slept peacefully in her arms.

“I can go back around, they may have needed to take cover when the explosion hit,” Ashton said, letting go of his partner and stepping backwards from the group. “I can take the medic with me in ca-“

“No, you two need your wounds dressed,” Luke’s wife repeated. “They need treated to prevent an infection.”

“I can-“

“Shut up!” she snapped, lucky the sleeping child didn’t wake. “Get the damn medic!”

Everyone stared at her as her body trembled, grip on the small girl tightening slightly and tears gathering on her lashes. Everyone stared as she tried to keep her composure.

She admired Luke’s wife for thinking of the others in the situation.

Then, for the second time that day, silence descended on the moment.

She could only feel the ache in her chest at the thought of those they had lost. Her future and her family felt broken, the idea that they could ever be whole again without Michael absolutely out of the question. Their safety was ensured, yes, because of his sacrifice but an overwhelming large part of her would have rather the war rage on for millennia than to have it end without him beside her.

And Luke’s wife, it wasn’t fair to her either. To be left a widow raising her child in a post-war life where everything would be an adjustment.

“I need the fucking medic!”

Time froze in an instant when she heard the distant voice.

“He’s fucking bleeding- I NEED THE MEDIC!”

She turned around.

“I don’t know if the bullet’s still in the wound, we needed to get out of the blast zone.”

Bloody nose, split lip, and gashes along his arms, Michael had Luke’s arm slung around his neck as he shouldered most of the taller blonde’s weight. Luke’s lower right side was covered in blood and his expression pained but alert as the medic reached him. Two other members of their party helped Luke towards where the injured were being treated, and Michael looked around eagerly once his friend was taken care of.

When he spotted the group, he blew out a breath and jogged over, both Ashton and Calum clapping him on the back with quiet murmurs of relief at his return. Then, he went to Luke’s wife.

“He was hit in his side and he’s in a lot of pain, but he should be okay. It’s probably going to be a tough recovery, but he’s going to be okay,” he rushed out.

Luke’s wife finally allowed the tears to fall as she took his hand in her free one. “Thank you for getting him back to us.”

He shook his head with a smile. “We both had our reasons to come back. Go to him—he needs his girls.”

With a watery laugh, she set out towards her husband.

Finally, Michael looked to her and lifted a hand to run through his hair.

“I’m sorry I worried you,” he said nervously. “But I had to make sure Luke made it back too.”

With a shake of her head she grabbed him by the front of his shirt and tugged him forward, her head resting on his chest as her tears flowed freely.

“You kept your promise,” she whispered.

He nodded. “I had to come back to you.”

Michael cupped her cheeks and lifted her head to look into her eyes for a brief moment before pressing his lips against hers, hoping that she understood just how much he loved her and how ready he was for their future.

War is hell. But when it is over, there can be good.

[madamlaydebug]

SEVEN RAYS AND SEVEN SPHERES

"The 7 rays are the prismatic break down of White Light. Each has its own vibratory characteristics. Light (the 7 Rays) and Sound (the 7 notes of the musical scale) are synergistic, and this is cymatics at work on a Universal scale. With the Music of the Spheres, each note (with it's range of sub-harmonics) 'sings' the Sphere into Being. Each has its respective Masculine Color Ray and Feminine Harmonic, and together they form the set of Natural Laws for that dimensional Sphere, and therefore each has specific characteristic influence in our everyday lives. Each person has 7 Bodies (the upper ones very subtle). Each of the 7 Bodies is emanating from one of the 7 Chakras and occupying its respective dimensional space or Sphere. In this way, Humans are multi-dimensional, occupying all of the 7 Spheres/Rays/Dimensions/Harmonic Universes at once. The only thing interfering with full conscious awareness of this are emotional blocks held in one or more of the Chakras which obstructs the Kundalini flow and severs the connection to the other Selves. These blocks translate as shadowed areas within the Auric Field around the Physical Body." -- Scott Maurer

"The Great Wheel of the Zodiac is the seven-skinned Egg of the universe. These skins are the seven great planes of manifestation commencing with Adi on the Spiritual level and descending to the physical plane. The fields interpenetrate, thus demonstrating the truth of the Eternal Presence in man. The consciousness of man interpenetrates all planes because it is derived from the Monadic level of the Adic plane."

-- Dr. John Kirk Robertson, MAAT Texts

"In the Mysteries the seven Logi, Elohim or Creative Lords, are shown as streams of force issuing from the mouth of the Eternal One. This signifies the spectrum being extracted from the white light of the Supreme Deity. The seven Creators, or Fabricators, of the inferior spheres were called by the rabbis the Elohim. By the Egyptians they were referred to as the Builders sometimes as the Governors and are depicted with great knives in their hands with which they carved the universe from its primordial substance. Worship of the planets is based upon their acceptation as the cosmic embodiments of the seven creative attributes of God. The Lords of the planets were described as dwelling within the body of the sun, for the true nature of the sun, being analogous to the white light, contains the seeds of all the tone and colour potencies which it manifests."

-- Manly P. Hall. 1901-1990. Secret teachings of all ages.

"The seven rays is an occult concept that has appeared in several religions and esoteric philosophies, since at least the 6th century BCE, of the Aryan peoples in both Western culture and in India. In the west, it can be seen in early western mystery traditions such as Gnosticism and the Roman Mithraic Mysteries; and in texts and iconic art of the Catholic Church as early as the Byzantine era. In India, the concept has been part of Hindu religious philosophy and scripture since at least the Vishnu Purana, dating from the post-Vedic era. -- Wikipedia

The Seven Bodies of Man--a brief exploration

http://theosophywales.com/seven_bodies_of_man__a_brie.htm

“Just as there are 7 Divisions on the Physical Plane and the Rainbow has 7 Colors, the Energy known as Sound has 7 notes in Music and the same note recurs on the eighth key, only it has a higher or lower Pitch according to which side of the Scale is reckoned. Each complete Scale of Notes is called “Saptaka” or Septave, meaning the Scale of Seven. Actual measurement shows that going from the low to the high, each eighth note has a vibration rate of double the number; thus, each Octave from low to high has double the vibration frequency in the high as in its neighboring low and to find the Octave Frequencies means a question of simple arithmetic." -- Dinshah Ghadiali, Spectro-Chrome Metry Encyclopaedia

"Not unlike our physical sun (the source of all visible light that can be broken up into its seven component colors), the Solar Logos of our system too is a source of seven great cosmic Rays of spiritual light that can help accelerate our spiritual growth. These Rays build up the causal body of man, and to each of them there are various spiritual and physical qualities assigned. In this case we can say that the term "Ray" is used in a sense of one special type of force or energetic quality. These seven great streams of energy represent each and every vibration in nature, space and form, and they permeate all objects, all beings and all events in manifestation. They interpenetrate each other and combine themselves in order to produce more complex systems which we refer to as "reality". The seven Rays surpass the possible description by words, or even by thoughts or feelings. They are too essential and all-encompassing to be limited within our own narrow inner space of perception of the great spectrum of reality." -- Gail Miller

"The seven streams of energy, it is said, are the very vibrations within matter, space and form which define and infuse all objects, all beings, and all events in manifestation. They combine and interweave to create all the complex systems known as reality. They strike a chord in our consciousness and are, quite literally, closer to us than breath. The Seven Stars (Rishis) of the Great Bear (Ursa Major) are the originating Sources of the Seven Rays of our Solar System. These Seven Rishis (Spirits) of the Great Bear express Themselves through the medium of the Seven Planetary Logoi in the Solar System as the Atmic Wills of the Monadic Ray, Who are Their Representatives and to Whom They stand in relation of the prototype. In a manner inconceivable to us the First Logos, the Solar Logoic Spirit, brings in the influence of other Constellations from the Monadic Great Bear via the Little Bear (Ursa Minor), Pleiades and Sirius. The Seven Stars of the Great Bear are involved in an intricate relation with Ursa Minor and the Pleiades, (as with Monad and Atma-Buddhi). This major triplicity of Constellations has a peculiar relation to that Great Being to Whom I have at times referred as the One About Whom Naught May Be Said. All that can be hinted at is that these three Galaxies of Stars are the three aspects of the Ineffable Cause of the Seven Solar Systems, via Sirius, of which ours is one. Each of these Seven Rays, coming from the Great Bear, are transmitted into our Solar System through the medium of three Zodiacal Constellations and their Ruling Planets. The Seven Planetary Spirits (Logoi, Cosmic Atma) manifest through the medium of the Seven Sacred Planets to cooperate in the Soul aspect of the Heavenly Man (Cosmic Buddhic), and also the Personality aspect (Cosmic Mental) of Humanity. The Little Bear, like its Universal Prototype, the Great Bear of which it is a lesser reflection and a corollary, is not a Constellation itself, but an Asterism, which is a distinctive group of Stars. The Seven Stars of the Great Bear are the Seven Head Centers of the One About Whom Naught May Be Said, the Great Being that is greater than our Logos and of the Pleiades, the Seven Stars that are His Spinal Chakras. When the Grand Heavenly Man (or Logos) first assumed the form of the Crown (Kether) and identified Himself with Sephira, He caused Seven Splendid Lights to emanate from the Crown. These are the Progenitors, the Givers of Life to All. They are Seven and then Ten, corresponding to the Seven and Ten Sephiroth, when manifest in Physical System. Cosmically, they are the Seven Rishis of the Great Bear; systemically they are the Seven Planetary Logoi; and from the standpoint of our planet, they are the Seven Kumaras. --The Seven Ray Institute.

"Thinking of God as a Sun, there are surrounding and enfolding this Central Focus of Intelligence Seven Mighty Spheres of Consciousness, each one separated from the other by its own periphery line which forms the natural boundary of that particular sphere. These Seven Spheres are called the Aura of God, each inhabited by Great God Intelligences, all intent on doing the Father's Will to expand His Kingdom. The development and unfoldment of His Kingdom is accomplished by the release of pulsating waves of His Own Divine Consciousness, within which are the spiritual patterns of all form and manifestation, from the smallest blade of grass to the most brilliant star in space. As these God ideas pass from Sphere to Sphere, they are absorbed by the Beings and Intelligences within each one. They then move outward to the next Sphere, and the next, ever journeying onward toward manifestation into the world of form. A constant modification of the God Light, a constant clothing of the God Consciousness is achieved in each Sphere so that God's Ideas become embodied in the substance of each Sphere in orderly sequence and, eventually, reach the Seventh Sphere, or Etheric Realm, where they await precipitation into the physical world of form."

-- Tellis Papastavro, The Gnosis and the Law

"No form can be given to anything, either by nature or by man, whose ideal type does not already exist on the subjective plane. More than this; that no such form or shape can possibly enter man's consciousness, or evolve in his imagination, which does not exist in prototype, at least as an approximation." -- H.P.Blavatsky.

"In the newborn Spirit Spark, from the Heart of God, the Causal Body is pure white. Many of the Individualized White Fire Beings and "I Am" Presences, using their freedom of will, never leave the First Sphere. They are the Holy Innocents whose aura is like White Flame and They embody the Divine Ideas of the Universal which they project downward, but Themselves choosing not to know even the glory of the Second Realm. These individuals forfeit the right to become, in some future era, Sun and Creator, preferring to live in Holy Innocence in that happy estate. The braver Spirits venture forth from the First Sphere and build the Blue Flame of Faith into Their Causal Body in the Second Sphere. Some Spirits go forth into the Third Sphere and learn the activity of the Holy Spirit and breathe into Their thought-forms Light, and these thought-forms become living Entities. Many live within this Pink Sphere of blazing Light and go no further, embodied representatives of the Holy Spirit Intelligences that people this Sphere. Some, however, go further, into Realm of the Bridge Builders, the Realm of Serapis Bey--the Fourth Sphere--where They can be summoned then into form; here they identify themselves with all the various kinds of endeavors that serve mankind. The more adventurous Spirits proceed into the Fifth Sphere and add the Green Band of Light to their Causal Bodies. Some continue on to the Sixth Realm and They add the Ruby Color to Their Causal Bodies. Some continue on into the Seventh Sphere of the Ascended Master Saint Germain and experiment with Divine Alchemy and the Powers of the Violet Fire of Mercy and Compassion, and direct the Angels of Mercy into the world of form. Only Those Who have proceeded through the Seven Spheres and have consciously created a Causal Body with Seven Bands of Color within it can apply for embodiment on Earth. Then if They are accepted, They become a candidate for one of the Seven Root Races and one of its Sub-Races."

-- Tellis Papastavro, The Gnosis and The Law

SOUND AND LIGHT 7X7

“And God said, Let there be Light and there was Light. And God saw the Light, that it was good: and God divided the Light from the darkness.” God spoke to make Light; thus, Sound preceded Light. On the Oscillatory Frequency principle, this is very correct, because, Sound is an Energy acting on a lower Scale. The fact of Light appearing on the Forty-Ninth Octave, explains its Divine origin and relation; God is represented symbolically by the Circle and only 7 Circles can produce the Cosmos; the Number 49 is made by 7 X 7 and stands for each Circle having been traversed 7 times in Cosmogenesis, before Light came into being, with its Seven Spectral Colors. This beauteous Energy was preceded by Sound with its Seven Musical Notes, the Number 7 keeping pace with the Scales of Evolution."

-- http://www.cocreatorsworld.com/…/the-forty-nine-octaves-of���/

[boombitxh]

Scandal Thoughts 💭 7X12

I wasn’t sure I really had anything to say about last episode, but I’ve gotten so many nice messages asking me if I was gonna write that I am truly flattered! THANK YOU!

I have a few thoughts about last episode, hoping to make them short. I liked the lightness and the pacing, I think it was desperately needed after treading through so much darkness for so long. At the same time, it took me several viewings to get a concise opinion on the episode.

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about the concept of change, wondering if we truly change? Do we adapt instead? Does changing require you to be someone other than yourself? I’ve been tinkering with these ideas regarding Olivia for a few weeks now, and what this crossover episode tells me is that my answer is both yes & no about change.

I think that intrinsically nature and nurture make us who we are, and as we live we ebb and flow from this “established center” what have you, but REAL change is something active. Something that requires constant internal work by the person aiming to change, and it is difficult to say the least. This is the kind of change that I equate with an addict- to beat their addiction they must actively overcome their destructive desires time and time again. This is why the phrase one day at a time is often used.

Olivia herself is an addict, and she appeared as if she had changed, however I found that for the most part what changed were her circumstances. I found traces of her paradigms all over the episode, with the deeply embedded ones being very present.

The clothing choices were indicative of this new ground we are covering. The muted wardrobe made her almost melt into the background (unseen) matching Fitz’s words: “they just don’t see it” “you just don’t see it”. The stilettos indicate the shaky ground she finds herself on, sort of a transition. The intentional projection of herself when she approaches Fitz, clad in a white coat, versus the black blouse underneath, the internal darkness she experienced/is still experiencing.

While the episode was lighter, and I very much enjoyed that, and not to mention it’s serious subject matter, I felt that it might’ve masked a few things that are still the same about Olivia. The pieces of Olivia that we now find to be different, like for example the use of the truth, is not particularly new to Olivia. It was a concept she used to live by seeing as to how she requested that her clients never lie to her. It was a facet of her that was perhaps lost due to the power trip she was on, but not something that reflects change. This is what I mean about ebbing and flowing from our centers versus true change in our personalities.

This facet of Olivia is new to the audience given her streak of darkness, but it’s not new to her former nature. The things that I found to be the same were behaviors and I have broken them down as follows:

-She knows she is not particularly welcome at the institute, but she goes forward full steam ahead because she needs the support to gain what she wants. She needs the backing of the institute to take on this case. This is another iteration of knowing better but pushing through to a component that is self-serving. Of course, there are two things at work here, her desire for the personal win for her identity rooted in good, and the idea of this type of work truly helping others is valuable. They co-exist within her so in the greater sense it is selfless but at the same time feeds a personal purpose of hers.

-When she approaches Fitz the first thing she says is: HI. This is emotionally loaded as we know it is their own personal greeting of choice for one another, however it comes off as manipulative. I think that manipulative has negative connotations, but what I am implying here is that it is not said with malicious intent, it is said to invoke the emotional familiarity so that he doesn’t rebuff her right away and so he takes on the case with her.

His reaction puts an end to this immediately with Fitz presenting himself as transactional, a theme often explored via his character as mentioned by Mellie’s 3 stages of Fitz and as evidenced by Cy’s idea that some men aren’t meant to be happy but great. Since Fitz puts an end to the familiarity right away Olivia has to try another route, and she delivers Fitz another version of her “man I voted for” speech by appealing to his disgust for the criminal justice system and his desire to change it. This works but it also shows that Olivia knows him well enough to get her way despite him.

-The emotional constipation remains the same in Olivia. She isn’t able to face Quinn as she walks away crying after encountering her in the parking lot. She puts on her tough façade instead. Reconciling of emotions is challenging for her, which is why I say it is constant hard work to truly change.

-She tells Fitz she isn’t there for forgiveness, but is this because she is under the impression he won’t forgive her, and she doesn’t want to face that? Or is it because it is her MO to never apologize? This is once again emotional constipation and typical behavior of hers.

-When she is with Annalise in Philly she tells her that her family is a distraction. This is the same binary type of crap she has been living with for such a long time. Love versus power is deeply embedded in her brain, a concept she will have to continuously fight against if she is to truly change. I think that this is the most basic and strongest one that if contended with would help her better her life. The belief still exists for the time being.

-She drank wine this episode (connection to her father) & she ate popcorn (connection to her mother), which makes sense given the nature of the episode and its later implications about family.

-I found it ominous that the frame of her and her father was present directly in relation to her when she’s hosting Annalise at her house. We’ve seen the repercussions of that frame being present before.

Overall the episode was pretty fabulous and set a different pace which was a breath of fresh air, but the cynic in me couldn’t help but panic over the amount of ground we have left to cover with only 6 episodes left. AND the fact that this upcoming episode takes place amongst characters that aren’t immediately associated with Olivia judging from the preview. I don’t want to be disappointed and I want Olivia to come to a point where she is greater than her issues in a humanistic and credible way, otherwise what would have been the point of taking her to such extremes?!

As usual let me know your thoughts, if you caught similar things, what you liked or disliked or even if you disagree with my thoughts :)

[hauntedfalcon]

The Pieces

1363 words of OT4 fluff, also on AO3. I take prompts! 

“Is that her?”

Finn looks up from the vitals readout to find Rose awake. He follows her gaze, and can’t hold back his smile. “Yeah.”

Rose’s answering smile is weak, but genuine. “She’s really pretty.”

He shrugs. “She’s okay.” Rose reaches out from under her blanket and shoves his shoulder, and Finn grins.

“So what’s my damage?”

Finn stifles an entire series of possible responses. “Your ribs are toast and you cracked both tibias. Bone stabilizer’s doing its job. Just give it a few more hours and you should be able to walk and take a normal breath.”

Rose presses his hand. “Thank you.”

“Don’t mention it.”

She chases his gaze down. “I’m going to mention it a lot. Not everybody gets to say Finn saved their life.”

Finn’s face burns. “I owed you one.”

��Actually I owed you one from when I stunned you, so I was making up for that.”

He holds up both hands in surrender. “Okay, all right. You owe me one.”

Rose nods, satisfied, and already drifting off again. “Damn right.”

Finn sits back against the side of her bunk, watching the rebels in the cabin. Morale is surprisingly high; there is a round of dejarik in progress and an actual sabacc game in another corner, and Connix has found a small liquor stash and initiated the rationing process. It feels more like an evening in the barracks than the aftermath of a devastating battle.

He hasn’t asked where they’re all going. Does it matter? They can chase Leia’s distress signal to all its destinations, confront the people who didn’t come to them, maybe guilt them into support, but is there any more point to that than to starting fresh somewhere else?

He pinches the spot between his eyes. This is not the hour to obsess. For right now, for long enough to rest, they are going to be okay. He wills his tension to ease, matches the pace of his breathing to Rose’s, and rests.

- - -

“Could I have a look at that?”

The woman takes her eyes off the broken device in her hands, and regards Rose seriously. A heartbeat later, without a word, she hands over the two pieces. Rose adjusts her hold on the blanket over her shoulders and takes them, then sits with effort in the empty space beside Rey. She can feel Finn watching her, watching both of them.

She uncouples the grip. “Power cell is blown,” she reports, which is nothing the other woman doesn’t know. “But the kyber crystal is intact and stable, and we can cook up new focusing gems. Some pipe for the chassis; this ship’s got to have some systems we can bypass. It won’t be good as new, but--”

“I’m not sure I want to rebuild it,” says Rey.

And part of Rose recoils at the thought of good components going to waste, but another part, maybe the greater part, understands. She hands back the pieces. “I’m Rose.”

“I know,” says Rey--Finn must have told her everything while Rose was out--and she smiles.

A gorgeous, blinding smile. Wow.

Oh no.

- - -

The third time Poe falls asleep in one of the Falcon’s second row cockpit chairs, Leia takes pity. “There’s extra crash foam in a floor compartment in the cargo hold.”

Poe blinks at her, then at the ship’s controls and the shattered spectrum of hyperspace, in search of anything at all he could be doing that’s useful. He finds only a Wookiee who is willing to physically escort him to the cargo hold, and the knowing gaze of a woman who is determined, here at the start of the end, to do right by every living person on this ship.

So is Poe, and that will mean looking after himself as well. He nods and goes.

In the main cabin most of the rebels doze in uncomfortable positions. Finn leans against the bulkhead by the medical bunk, arms crossed against a pervading chill despite all the bodies nearby, eyes open and focused on nothing. Poe nudges him. Come with me? he mouths, and tilts his head toward the ladder down.

Finn pushes away from the wall without hesitation.

The crash foam is meant to pad shipping containers with fragile goods, not human bodies, and it smells of stale glitterstim. It is the best thing Poe has experienced in… however long it’s been since Finn arrived on D’Qar. He groans, stretching out, and looks up at Finn. “How you been, buddy?”

Finn stares at him, and then laughs silently, and gets on the pad. “It’s been a weird day.”

“Yeah,” Poe says, offering his arm as a pillow, which Finn accepts. “Yeah.” He isn’t sure he can switch off, not really, from the endless mental cataloguing of what they have, rearranging their collection of one ship and fourteen officers into a configuration that will only ever be a sum of parts, and never the whole, because what they have is all of that but also brains, the best strategic minds in the galaxy, and if they can just get out from under the unfathomable losses and unspeakable fatigue, they can think their way to a solution in no time. But first, somehow, they all have to sleep.

“Can I join you?”

He didn’t even hear footsteps on the ladder. Of course he didn’t. She probably floated down.

Finn turns over, looks back at Poe, pretends to think it over. “It’s very cold,” Rey says.

They scoot. Poe’s hand is under Finn’s cheek now, hardly any use as a pillow but he can’t complain, and Rey gets into the space between them, and it’s been maybe three hours since they formally introduced themselves but all Poe feels, and all that is in Rey’s eyes, is absolute trust.

That’s the other thing they have now, and Poe holds onto it as he starts to unmoor from the waking world. Trust like that is exactly what they’ll need in the fight that’s coming.

“Oh.”

Poe opens his eyes. “You left the pieces up in the cabin,” says Rose, holding something in her fist. “I thought, uh, well. I can’t drill kyber, not without blowing us all up probably, but I had some wire and I found some light tether line in a supply cabinet.” She fidgets and, haltingly, opens her hand.

Rey sits up.

“If you don’t like it,” Rose goes on, “you can use it in your next lightsaber instead. Or get rid of it or some--”

“I love it,” Rey says, and Rose’s shoulders drop instantly. She hands Rey the crystal, wrapped with a hastily stripped patch wire, and slips the loop of tether line over her head. Poe lifts his head enough to see the shard of crystal sitting just below her collarbone. It suits her. “Come here?” Rey offers.

Rose stiffens again, a little. “You just want my blanket.”

“That’s true,” says Finn, and Poe makes agreeing noises, and Rose clutches the thermal foil a little tighter, but Rey just keeps smiling disarmingly up at her until she comes over.

“My ribs still hurt,” she warns.

“Won’t squeeze you,” says Poe, shutting his eyes again. Soon Rey’s back is against him and he shifts to rest his face at the nape of her neck. Finn moves farther away and that’s a really sad thing, but his hand comes to rest in Poe’s instead, and Rose sets her cheek against Poe’s forearm and he ends up with about a half-meter corner of thermal foil over his hip, reflecting the warmth of all of them together.

Rose says, “So, how did you guys meet?”

Finn says, “Rose, we’re doing sleeping now,” and there is a brief scuffle and the feel of Finn’s breathy laugh against Poe’s hand.

Working against sleep, Poe says, “Did we leave anyone else who loves us upstairs?”

A grappling hook clanks on the ladder. BB-8 warbles as they descend. Rey shakes with laughter.

There’s no room left on the foam, but all the little droid wants is to be close to them, and Poe understands completely. He drifts into a warm and pleasant darkness, holding many people he would like to save.

[pan-xichen]

What The Heckin Heck Is Gonna Happen To Keith: a meta I guess

OKAY SO I, like every other Keith stan, am wondering what the heck they’re gonna do with Keith. Post s4 he is no longer a paladin and is a member of the Blade of Marmora, but due to the events of the finale I’m still unsure as to how long that will last. Will the team find out he almost sacrificed himself for them without them knowing? Also something to note: Voltron has not used its sword (I think I’m sorry if I forgot I haven’t watched the season since the day it came out lmao) since Keith has stopped being a paladin. The fact that the sword is basically Voltron’s signature weapon leads me to believe that Keith very likely will end up as a paladin again (unless they did form it without him I can’t honestly remember for sure), but then he’d no longer be able to work with the Blade of Marmora, and one of the current paladins would have to lose their position for Keith to return to a lion.

The scenarios I could see happening are: 

- Keith somehow becomes the leader of the Blade of Marmora and does not return to being a paladin 

-Keith does return to being a paladin, causing either Allura or Shiro to not be a paladin anymore and him to likely have to leave the Blade

- Keith and Shiro co-pilot the black lion when he is not off on missions for the Blade

- the extra lion in the carving of Voltron in s3 ends up becoming Keith’s new lion, forming a powerful extra but non-essential part of Voltron meaning it won’t hurt the team if he has to go off on Marmora missions from time to time 

- the extra lion calls to Allura and Lance returns to the blue lion, allowing Keith to return to Red and Shiro to remain the black paladin (probably also meaning that Keith can no longer run off with the Blade of Marmora)

- the extra lion wants Shiro as its paladin and Keith returns to being the black paladin (less grumpily now that he knows Shiro still has a lion)

(I’m gonna put the rest of this under a cut because it accidentally became 7000 words long oops)

Out of all of these outcomes I have a feeling that the writers will end up going for something that doesn’t make season 3/4′s development for Keith obsolete while at the same time allowing him to still contribute to the story directly. I personally can see scenarios three and four being the most plausible because they would allow for more aspects of his character to be present (blade and paladin) instead of eliminating one or the other. Although, the first one is definitely plausible in terms of Keith’s character and could even be combined with number four. We see him demonstrate time and again that he is a natural leader, despite not believing himself worthy to be one. I do feel as though eventually he will end up (willingly, this time) in a leadership role again after acknowledging that he is worthy of that position.

Scenario three would however feel like they’re just putting him back in for the sake of having him in and likely not really be meaningful (kinda like having Shiro come back so soon screwed up the story a bit for them because they planned to have him gone for much longer), as much as I like the idea of Keith and Shiro as co-leaders. That doesn’t necessarily mean though that they couldn’t be if they were not both the black paladins. I’ve seen a lot of theory about that extra lion in the Voltron carving at the beginning of season 3 being the white lion, which has been an actual canon thing in the past reincarnations of the series. Most of these theories involve Shiro as the white paladin, which I really do like but it feels like he really is meant to pilot Black (even if this might not actually be Shiro at the moment). His struggle to break her from Zarkon’s control was a great plot point from season 2 and both of them starting to heal from their respective trauma together would make for a nice aspect of Shiro’s character arc.

You do also have that Keith was bonded closely enough with Red to have her actually fly out into the middle of space and rescue him, and almost destroy an entire base to save his life. I love Keith as the red paladin, but if the writers still wanted to have him as an active member of the BOM it wouldn’t make much sense to put him back as the literal right arm of Voltron unless the lion switching is a thing that could happen more than once, (Lance moving back to Blue and Keith to Red but when Keith isn’t around Lance pilots Red and Allura pilots Blue) but that would be weird because they’ve put extra emphasis in the past on how important a paladin’s bond with their lion is, and having them be able to do this swap out thing all the time makes that point kinda meaningless. I think maybe the reason why Keith was able to connect with Red from so far away and have her respond when he was in danger might be the same reason why he could feel the blue lion’s energy months before Lance was even there to awaken her, and how he could pilot the black lion in that moment of desperation to save Shiro in s2 ep1. He’s connected to all of the lions in a strange way-- whether the answer to that is simply “he’s an alien” or there’s something else there, (which is what I suspect) remains to be seen, but I believe that his strong bond with Red may have been due to his connection with all of the lions. It still makes me kinda sad to see him not be her paladin anymore because he totally fits as the ‘guardian spirit of fire’, but as of right now the solution to the dilemma of “where are they gonna put keith without cutting him out of the main cast like they did in s4″ is a bit of a narrative corner the writers have backed themselves into that doesn’t logically involve him going back to being the red paladin without sacrificing the new development of him as a Blade of Marmora.

That being said, as much as I like white paladin Shiro (or whatever colour this hypothetical extra lion could be), having Keith be the white paladin would make more sense in my opinion. Voltron already has all of its essential components with five lions, but perhaps an extra lion would turn into a kind of upgrade for the robot. With the lore of the white lion from previous reboots, it might make sense to have that lion allow Voltron to create its own wormholes or even tear into other realities to pass through them, but maybe it just amplifies the robot’s powers. This would give Keith a place on the team while allowing him to still go off on Marmora missions if he is needed with them and not automatically jeopardize the team’s ability to form Voltron. It would also make for an interesting character development in him, as I imagine him seeing that Voltron can still be formed without him might make him feel less needed, but learning that his lion allows Voltron to do more than it could with only five would lift his spirit and make him feel like he belongs again. Maybe it could even include that the black and white paladins were meant to be co-leaders before something happened to the white lion, allowing both Keith and Shiro to donate their strengths as leaders to each other and cancel out some of their weaknesses (Shiro’s ability to remain level-headed under pressure and more diplomatic tendencies mixed with Keith’s passion and quick, creative thinking both at the head of Voltron would make the team an even more unstoppable force and I will fight anyone on this I could write a whole post dedicated to why Keith and Shiro as co-leaders would be beneficial and maybe even crucial to team Voltron’s success).

Technically I could end this here but I have a hypothetical scenario on how Keith becoming the paladin of the extra lion could go down so here have a pseudo-fic:

Keith’s near-death in season four is only foreshadowing to him actually dying... sort of. In the next season, Keith really does sacrifice himself for the greater good, allowing the team to succeed in their mission and deal a significant blow to the Galra empire. Before the battle during which he dies, they discover that there was a sixth lion initially built, but never used, as when it gained sentience it refused to awaken for any paladin. Perhaps this other lion foresaw the events that kickstarted the war with the Galra in the first place, and wanted no part in it, or maybe even wanted to avoid the pain of losing a paladin it knew was going to die. So it refused to function, maybe even flying away to some remote place in the universe (or even a different reality) to wait until its true paladin would arrive. The paladins find the white lion, but predictably it refuses to awaken for anyone-- that is, anyone who is present. Keith is off on another mission for the Blade when they find the lion.

Keith has been having strange dreams about the lion, not knowing exactly what it is. The lion has been trying to communicate with him, but to no avail. His own personal turmoil and lack of self-worth are clogging his thoughts, making it difficult for the white lion to reach him. The lion is brought to the castleship to prevent the Galra from finding it, and they start trying to do literally anything they can to wake it up, but the lion remains silent. It won’t even communicate with the other lions, as without a paladin and after having been gone for so long, it feels as though it doesn’t have the right to do so. Similarly to Keith, who feels as though he has no place on team Voltron.

In the last few episodes of the season, everyone goes into some epic battle again. Keith sacrifices himself so that Voltron can be victorious in a similar way to his near-sacrifice in season four, except the team knows what he’s doing this time. Shiro freezes up when they realize Keith is gone, before screaming and practically rampaging with his lion, cutting down hundreds of enemy ships at once. The white lion roars in frustration, sensing the death of a paladin it never got to bond with, and decides “nope, fuck you, you’re alive”. It launches itself out of the castle, collecting Keith’s broken body from where it’s floating out in space. The initial explosion didn’t end up killing Keith, but it did damage his suit, meaning he could no longer breathe. The lion shows up and uses its own pure quintessence to revive him. The process turns Keith’s hair white, and his irises a golden yellow, but does not corrupt him in the way that Zarkon was, due to the quintessence being pure. He is essentially reborn, like team Voltron’s very own phoenix. 

The loss of Keith has caused the team to get distracted from their goal in their distress, and they’re fighting a losing battle. The white lion suddenly springs up out of nowhere and joins the fray, confusing everyone as they have no idea who is piloting the lion. They win the battle and all return to safety, practically jumping out of their lions and crowding around the white one to see who this mysterious new paladin is. Shiro is lingering behind everyone but still trying to show interest. Everyone has this irrational hope at the back of their minds that somehow it’s Keith, and he didn’t really die, even though they watched his craft explode. A slender figure clad in white paladin armor steps out of the lion, still wearing their helmet. Everyone is holding their breath as the figure slowly approaches them and moves to remove their helmet. Nobody recognizes him at first now that his hair is white and his eyes are yellow, until Shiro finally looks up from where he’d been somberly looking down and says “Keith?” in the smallest, quietest voice he’s ever had. Keith smiles softly as he’s recognized and everyone runs to group hug him. As the others pull away, leaving Keith and Shiro still holding each other, the scene fades out. 

[caidenjfgv775-blog]

Just how Does the New "Medical Cannabis" Regulation Affect Employers?

"It occurred to be recently while seeing tv that the UNITED STATE Federal government is truly nothing greater than the political version of Jabba The Hutt from the Star Wars motion pictures. As you might remember, Jabba was a formless, slow moving, overweight entity that ruled with an iron fist while devouring sources brought to him. He did not pay for anything, he just took them, and also he was not there to assist any individual but himself. Those he ruled over had no say in exactly how their sources and also wealth were made use of and also had no chance in removing Jabba from his position of power. Kind of seem like our political class presently being in DC.

Jabba entered your mind today as I considered some current events in which the Federal federal government has gotten so big that it is doubling back on itself and also placing itself in some extremely weird situations and conflicts with the reality of the globe around us:

- According to a post in the July 23, 2010 problem of The Week publication, a Boston Federal judge has ruled parts of the Federal Defense of Marriage Act to be unconstitutional. This act prohibits the Federal government from identifying gay marital relationships and providing Federal benefits. The judge ruled that the Federal law forces Massachusetts to victimize it own residents. Currently for the strange component. the Obama administration is currently forced to appeal the judgment, despite the fact that his management and also the Democrats accountable of Congress oppose the Protection of Marital relationship Act and desire it repealed. The Federal government has actually gotten so big that it is using up lawful resources for something that it does not want to exist to begin with.

- This odd situation is similar to the present illegal alien situation. A current Associated press short article reported that the most up to date data relative to unlawful boundary crossers shows that the Federal federal government recently had the highest degree of prosecutions for illegal aliens and the highest possible expulsion degrees of illegals given that they began tracking such data yet at the same time this very same Federal federal government remained in court fighting the brand-new Arizona state legislation that was attempting to stem the circulation of illegal aliens into that state.

- Returning to gay marital relationships, according to a July 15, 2010 Associated Press article, the country of Argentina just recently came to be the very first Latin American nation to legislate gay marital relationship. The article reported that Chile as well as several other South American nations are likely to try and also do the same. Do we believe that our Jabba, parading as the American political class, has any possibility of making that take place in this country when it discovers itself in court resisting gay civil liberties?

- According to a write-up in the August problem of Reason publication, given that 1996 fourteen states as well as the District of Columbia have actually legislated cannabis usage for medical objectives and also several various other states are considering doing the exact same. This remains in straight conflict with Federal legislation which has often caused Federal raids of medical marijuana carriers which are prohibited under Federal regulation however legal under state legislation. This is additionally in conflict with Obama the campaigner who wanted to legalize the medicine when he ran for President now safeguards the disallowing of it at the Federal level. Again, government has gotten so big that we have actually gotten in the odd area pertaining to medical marijuana where it is legal at the same time as being unlawful.

- Mentioning medication disputes, a current Associated Press post reported that the Federal Veterans Affairs organization would enable its people to make use of clinical marijuana if those clients resided in the fourteen states where medical cannabis is lawful. Therefore, one arm of the Federal government (Veterans Matters) is flawlessly fine with clinical cannabis use while various other arms of the Federal federal government (FBI, DEA, Federal statuary) intends to clean it out.

- If you believe the Federal government has a drug trouble currently, wait till the Oakland Common council votes on whether to permit industrial farming of marijuana to be developed in city limits, industrial farms which would certainly create marijuana for clinical use in addition to for usage in items varying from baked items to body oil. Winning candidates that would run these farms would certainly have to pay yearly authorization fees as well as 8 percent of their sales to tax obligations in addition to carry $2 million in responsibility insurance coverage. Comparable initiatives are being pushed in various other cities throughout the state along with a November ballot problem to legalize non-medical use cannabis, according to the short article. Now consider the components of a brief blurb in the July 23, 2010 issue of The Week magazine that reported on a Rand Research that ended from their evaluation that the legalisation of cannabis would certainly decrease the street rate by up to 90%. Thus, the efforts in The golden state might help in reducing the street rate of the medication which subsequently would dramatically reduce the power, wide range and impact of the Mexican medicine cartels which would certainly be a good idea. Nonetheless, despite this great set of results (more profits for the local governments, less of a preconception of marijuana individuals, less police resources invested in breaking cannabis users, the weakening of the Mexican drug cartels) do we think that the Jabba the Hutt monster in DC is active enough to recognize what the advantages are or will it proceed down its course of conflict at the Federal drug enforcement level?

- Consider a Washington Message post from Might, 2007, qualified ""Federal Loans Gas Promote Coal Power Plant Kingdoms."" The post goes over a remaining Anxiety era Federal program that offers affordable car loans to build coal discharged, high contamination nuclear power plant making use of taxpayer cash. According to the short article, ""the [funding] support is a major pressure behind the rush to coal plants, which gush co2 that researchers condemn for global warming."" Therefore, while the Obama administration is pushing a climate control bill in order to combat versus international warming, the exact same government is moneying nuclear power plant that do just the opposite. Makes no feeling.

- A current Associate Press short article reported just how the Feds had actually broken 94 people for ripping off the Medicare program. This was a good development however why was our Jabba so slow-moving in getting these arrests done? Medicare scams has been taking place considering that the day Medicare began a number of years back, why did it take such a shateringly slow time to begin apprehending the cheats? Among those detained had submitted over 3,700 fraudulent cases under her name prior to she was jailed, exactly how slow-moving can you obtain?

We can go on and on. The U.S. government has gotten so huge therefore slow, similar to Jabba the Hutt, that its lots of folds up of skin conceal waste, stupidness as well as the doubling back on itself, i.e. public law and activities in conflict with itself or the wishes of those running the federal government. We can go on and on regarding how slow, ineffective, as well as wasteful our Jabba is, about how our Jabba never ever solves a problem whether it is unconfident boundaries, stopping working public institutions, intensifying healthcare expenses, and so on, just how our Jabba wastes unimaginable billions of dollars on trademarks, useless campaigns, and also fraud-infested programs, or exactly how our Jabba does not know just how to manage the economic situation, resulting in sky high public debt degrees and also a very ancient economic circumstance with reduced development and high unemployment.

Jabba is extremely poor for cbdforsalenearme.com all of us but he is challenging to remove. With the set aside process, the gerrymandering of Legislative areas, do-nothing campaign finance legislations, and other approaches, Jabba has several defenses against defeat in a political election, defenses that even a Jedi light saber can not conveniently pierce. Long-term, it is crucial we begin to enforce term limitations on political leaders so that they never once again get as fat, slow, inefficient, and also inefficient as Jabba The Hutt. Short term, this November is vital because it starts the procedure of electing out the Jabba incumbents and also lastly entering some smooth, reliable, and bold Jedi warriors who will make the hard choices to get the dimension of government controlled and also make that downsized federal government much more effective as well as much less unusual and less clashed."

[redrobin-detective]

How Izuku is Going to Surpass All Might by Changing a Broken Quirk Society

So I had reblogged this post (totally recommend reading it, it's great) and was going off in the tags about the current state of quirk society, the old heroes and the rising student heroes when I decided it was important enough to warrant it's own post.

So Hoshikori really has created a fascinating society that reflects but also comments on our non-superpowered world. Like the OP on the original post said, our perspective of the bnha world is from the top 1%: the heroes/students who are the best of the best to attend/work at Yuuei with the intent of using their powerful quirks to stop crime. But the mangka has done a brilliant job of painting the unrest found in the rest of the world but still seen through the eyes of the top 1%. When we first meet the villains, they're just evil bad guys who have no redeeming characteristics and need to be stopped. But as we watch the villains develop further, we still see that these are bad people, some downright evil, but some of them have very legitimate grievances about their treatment by society.

Hoshikori lays out, without ever quite coming out and saying it, the fact that the current layout of society is unsustainable and oppressing a good portion of the population who aren't allowed to use their natural talents to better themselves in the name of """fairness""" or are outright demonized for their quirk (think Shinsou and his "villainous" quirk). Society has been following this status quo for quite a while now and, from the view of the powerful heroes, everything is fine. I'm sure many people are upset and frustrated but didn't know what to do so kept quiet. And then there was a growing number of people angry at the way they were treated, society's presumed expectations of them twisting them into the villains they maybe didn't really want to be. Do you know why this unequal balance was kept up for so long? To quote Shigaraki, it's all about All Might

Now anyone who has visited my blog knows I adore both All Might and the man behind him beyond measure. He is a kind and gentle man who will go to any lengths to save people. But his is human and fallible and the narrative has not been shy about exposing All Might's flaws. We see him most often through the eyes of the protagonists as an unconquerable hero who's influence basically single-handedly brought down crime levels and is an inspiration to all. But that's only one view, we've caught glimpses of another view: a reckless dictator with so much insurmountable power that he could enforce what he thought was right on everyone else and keep and make people too afraid to oppose him.

All For One called him out on this during their fight. Now the last thing I'm going to do is defend All For One who is absolutely a terrible person who needs to be taken down. But that doesn't mean his point doesn't have some merit to it. Hell, most of the villains in the Alliance are said to be there out of "restlessness" and "frustrated with the way things are" showing it's not just the evil bad guys who are lashing out. It's so fascinating re-reading this whole confrontation with this in mind because, for me at least, I totally wrote off these comments before because of course All Might was in the right, but now... Again, I love All Might but if we step back out of Izuku's (and our own) hero worship of him and look at things from the bottom up... we start to see things differently. The Pro heroes in the series act as if this crime wave is a new thing and don't seem to understand that this unrest was seeded and grew in secrecy for decades and is only now beginning to show it's branches. This shows just how little the people at the top of the food chain really understand those at the bottom.

Now All Might is still a hero and I still believe that he did save the world in a way. We really don't anything of Toshinori's past and we won't really be able to comment on it until we do, but this line from the 7th holder of One For All, seems significant for All Might's character and motivations.

Toshinori believed that society needed a symbol to assure and inspire them to newer and greater heights and sought to become that symbol when he inherited Nana's power. That is an incredible goal and one I think he achieved for the most part but at the same time I don't think he went far enough. All Might decided to fight criminals and be a symbol but he didn't go after the source of a lot of villains which is quirk laws and the innate inequality in society. He did the best he could with what he had available to him at the time given the society he grew up in and he will always be a hero... but that doesn't mean he didn't play a big role in creating the present day situation.

So society has been stuck in a state of unrest and inequality for years because one man, who was gifted with more power than perhaps one person alone should possess, was trying his best to save the world and inadvertently is keeping it from progressing naturally. What happens now? One of the things that really draws me into bnha is it's tendency to comment on, expand or outright flip common tropes in Western comics and manga. Hoshikori has laid out the basics of this superpowered society, shown us the cracks, shown us two different views of how good or bad this society and it's heroes are and I don't think that's something he's going to leave be. The easy solution is the one we usually see in superhero media: there are good guys and bad guys, maybe some of the heroes are morally grey and maybe some of the villains are redeemable, but ultimately people stay in their black and white boxes. The fighters clash, the heroes struggle, the villains almost achieve victory when suddenly the tides turn and the heroes are victorious and everything goes back to normal. But I challenge that bnha is setting the stage to go into another, much more intriguing direction.

Izuku, our main protagonist, knows what it's like to be on the bottom looking up. In a twist of fate, he's given immeasurable power and is able to ascend to the top but he's shown throughout the series that he still carries an understanding of what it's like to be beaten down by a society that emphasizes strong quirks. That is the key to the series I believe, Izuku's ability to understand what it's like at the bottom and use that perspective to effect change. Class 1-A (the other minor protagonists) is made up of some truly astounding and heroic kids but they've all been blessed with strong quirks from birth and they lack that ability to see the perspective of someone less gifted. Plus you have those kids (Bakugou) who exemplify using strong quirks selfishly and for the sake of asserting dominance over weaker quirks. That's how we started anyway. We're hitting 150 chapters soon and the scene has begun to change. Our kids are starting to understand the reality of the Villains' Alliance, Izuku is trying to reconcile the view from the top with his view from the bottom and Bakugou is realizing the implications of his past actions and how it reflects on himself and others.

So what I propose is going to happen is, over the course of the next several years at Yuuei, Izuku is going to truly see just how messed up the state of society is. Our boy, compassionate and determined as hell, is going to look at the way people are being forced to live under oppressive laws and say, no more. It's been shown that Izuku is an inspiration, a central component of 1-A, and where he goes the others tend to follow. Their experiences will shatter their comfortable views from prosperity and see all the things that need fixing. The hardest part, for Izuku especially, is looking at their mentors, who are good, heroic people who honest to god did their best and say, no, the way you were doing things is wrong and it is our responsibility to make things right. I think it'll be hard for the Pros themselves, especially All Might my god, to be faced with the reality that all they did was uphold an unsteady peace in an unequal society without directly addressing the problem. But I think most of them would, instead of being angry or defensive, would look at these students they raised to be better heroes than them and say "you're right, go make the world a better place."

The first chapter of Boku no Hero Academia opened with the line that "not all men are created equal" as a young Izuku tried to stand up to a bullying Bakugou. I believe that to be significant because it shows us right from the start that there is a divide: strong quirks, weak quirks, quirkless, heroes and villains and it's made a mess of society and bred discontent in people who might not have resorted to crime if they had more support from their peers and government. We know that Izuku's story gets told, that he goes on to greatness. We assume now, given the state of things, that he goes on to become another All Might. But I present that he becomes better than All Might, that he inspires his fellow heroes into striking not at criminals, but the restrictions of society that create those criminals ultimately making a more stable, peaceful world. I believe this is the story of how that society is made more equal, the story of how an abused, formally quirkless boy with the kindness and strength of heart to shape the whole world became the greatest hero.

[gregoryyswk352]

An Overdose of Medicinal Cannabis

"It occurred to be recently while seeing television that the U.S. Federal federal government is truly absolutely nothing greater than the political version of Jabba The Hutt from the Star Wars motion pictures. As you might remember, Jabba was a formless, sluggish moving, obese entity that ruled with an iron fist while devouring sources offered him. He did not spend for anything, he simply took them, and also he was not there to help any individual but himself. Those he subjugated had no say in exactly how their sources and wealth were used as well as had no chance in removing Jabba from his position of power. Type of sounds like our political class presently sitting in DC.

Jabba came to mind today as I thought of some recent occurrences in which the Federal federal government has gotten so huge that it is doubling back on itself and also putting itself in some very weird scenarios as well as conflicts with the reality of the globe around us:

- According to a short article in the July 23, 2010 problem of The Week magazine, a Boston Federal judge has ruled parts of the Federal Protection of Marriage Act to be unconstitutional. This act restricts the Federal federal government from acknowledging gay marriages and also granting Federal benefits. The court ruled that the Federal legislation pressures Massachusetts to discriminate against it very own people. Now for the odd component. the Obama management is now required to appeal the judgment, although his management and the Democrats accountable of Congress oppose the Protection of Marriage Act and also want it reversed. The Federal government has obtained so huge that it is using up lawful resources for something that it does not wish to exist to begin with.

- This odd situation is similar to the present illegal alien circumstance. A recent Associated press short article reported that the most up to date stats relative to prohibited boundary crossers shows that the Federal government just recently had the highest degree of prosecutions for illegal aliens and also the highest possible expulsion degrees of illegals because they began monitoring such statistics but at the same time this exact same Federal federal government was in court combating the new Arizona state regulation that was trying to stem the flow of illegal aliens right into that state.

- Returning to gay marriages, according to a July 15, 2010 Associated Press post, the nation of Argentina recently came to be the first Latin American nation to legislate gay marriage. The short article reported that Chile and also numerous other South American countries are most likely to attempt as well as do the same. Do we believe that our Jabba, flaunting as the American political class, has any kind of chance of making that occur in this country when it discovers itself in court resisting gay legal rights?

- According to a short article in the August problem of Factor publication, since 1996 fourteen states as well as the District of Columbia have legislated cannabis usage for clinical functions and also several various other states are thinking about doing the exact same. This is in direct conflict with Federal regulation which has sometimes led to Federal raids of clinical cannabis suppliers which are unlawful under Federal law however lawful under state law. This is also in conflict with Obama the advocate who intended to legalize the drug when he competed Head of state today protects the outlawing of it at the Federal degree. Once more, federal government has actually gotten so large that we have actually entered the unusual zone relating to clinical marijuana where it is legal at the same time as being prohibited.

- Mentioning medication problems, a current Associated Press write-up reported that the Federal Veterans Affairs organization would certainly enable its people to use medical cannabis if those patients stayed in the fourteen states where clinical cannabis is legal. Hence, one arm of the Federal federal government (Veterans cbd oil sierra vista az Matters) is completely great with medical cannabis usage while other arms of the Federal federal government (FBI, DEA, Federal statue) wishes to clean it out.

- If you think the Federal federal government has a medicine issue now, wait until the Oakland City Council votes on whether to permit commercial farming of marijuana to be established in city restrictions, industrial farms which would certainly generate marijuana for medical use in addition to for use in items ranging from baked goods to body oil. Winning candidates who would certainly operate these ranches would have to pay yearly authorization fees and also 8 percent of their sales to tax obligations in addition to bring $2 million in liability insurance policy. Similar initiatives are being pushed in various other cities throughout the state along with a November tally issue to legislate non-medical use cannabis, according to the write-up. Currently think about the components of a brief blurb in the July 23, 2010 concern of The Week publication that reported on a Rand Research study that concluded from their evaluation that the legalisation of marijuana would certainly decrease the street rate by up to 90%. Thus, the initiatives in The golden state might help reduce the street cost of the medicine which subsequently would substantially reduce the power, wide range as well as impact of the Mexican medication cartels which would be a good thing. Nevertheless, in the face of this good collection of results (more profits for the city governments, less of a stigma of marijuana customers, much less police sources invested in breaking marijuana individuals, the weakening of the Mexican medication cartels) do we assume that the Jabba the Hutt beast in DC is nimble enough to recognize what the advantages are or will it continue down its course of problem at the Federal drug enforcement degree?

- Take Into Consideration a Washington Message short article from Might, 2007, entitled ""Federal Loans Fuel Push For Coal Power Plant Kingdoms."" The post discusses a remaining Anxiety era Federal program that provides affordable loans to construct coal terminated, high contamination nuclear power plant utilizing taxpayer cash. According to the write-up, ""the [car loan] assistance is a significant pressure behind the thrill to coal plants, which gush carbon dioxide that researchers blame for international warming."" Therefore, while the Obama management is pushing a climate control bill in order to fight against international warming, the exact same federal government is funding nuclear power plant that do just the opposite. Makes no sense.

- A current Affiliate Press article reported how the Feds had broken 94 individuals for defrauding the Medicare program. This was a great development yet why was our Jabba so sluggish in getting these arrests done? Medicare fraud has been going on because the day Medicare began a number of decades back, why did it take such a painfully slow-moving time to begin apprehending the cheats? One of those jailed had filed over 3,700 illegal insurance claims under her name before she was arrested, exactly how slow-moving can you obtain?

We can go on and on. The UNITED STATE federal government has obtained so huge therefore slow, just like Jabba the Hutt, that its lots of folds of skin hide waste, stupidity as well as the doubling back on itself, i.e. public law as well as activities in conflict with itself or the needs of those running the federal government. We might continue regarding just how sluggish, inefficient, and also wasteful our Jabba is, about just how our Jabba never ever addresses an issue whether it is unconfident borders, failing public institutions, rising health care prices, and so on, exactly how our Jabba wastes unimaginable billions of dollars on trademarks, useless efforts, and also fraud-infested programs, or how our Jabba does not know exactly how to manage the economy, causing skies high national debt degrees and also a really creaky financial scenario with low development and high unemployment.

Jabba is extremely poor for everybody yet he is challenging to remove. With the set aside process, the gerrymandering of Legislative areas, do-nothing campaign finance laws, as well as various other methods, Jabba has several defenses versus loss in a political election, defenses that even a Jedi light saber might not conveniently pierce. Long-term, it is vital we start to enforce term limitations on political leaders to ensure that they never ever once again get as fat, slow, inefficient, and also inadequate as Jabba The Hutt. Short-term, this November is critical because it begins the procedure of voting out the Jabba incumbents as well as ultimately entering some streamlined, reliable, and also daring Jedi warriors who will make the challenging choices to get the dimension of federal government under control and make that scaled down federal government more effective and much less strange and much less contrasted."

[theangryanarchocommunist-blog]

The school system in the UK

There is something wrong with our school system, all the students know, all the teachers know and I think deep down most of us are starting to realise it. We have reached a point where our “education” system by no means educates, in fact it does the opposite. The reluctance this system creates to learning in general for a considerable amount of the populace is truly a tragedy. So if the purpose of this system isn’t to help people to learn – what is it?

Lets start with an analysis of what it is currently. At this particular moment of time the majority of schools in the UK are academies - which in turn are part of a learning trust, there are 2 main types of school – primary and secondary, the progress of a student and there ability to progress to higher levels is determined entirely by exams , there is a rigid hierarchical system – within which students are placed at the bottom (though this is again stratified by age), there is a complex disciplinary system in place and finally there is a atmosphere of all this being a necessity.

There is quite a lot here to unwrap, but lets look at this from a first glance. Do any of these criteria shout to you “good learning environment”? I know they don’t for me!

A more recent issue is that which I mentioned first, that of the academy system. Now don’t get me wrong, this in particular isn’t a ingrained part of a institution which is fundamentally evil. But its still not good. This is because what has essentially happened, is that the state has sold of the schools to private companies. In place of councils trying to keep schools afloat there are now academy chains in principle owned by a private company or corp which is supposedly meant to keep these schools ticking over. Now this is an issue, because private companies tend not to have the best interests of pupils at heart – instead profits are more appealing. As such this move has in no way alleviated the incredibly hardship facing schools – many of which are asking parents to fund things like mental health counselling and school books. There is also of course the issue of corruption, seem as these sponsors often have control over the higher echelons of the academy chain, its not unheard of for schools to be buying commodities only from the sponsoring company at uncompetitive prices.

Next is the 2 tier structure, this is perhaps the least interesting part of the modern school. It simply means that students once they reach their 7th year in education have to switch school. However, it does raise the significant question of year groups. Every student is placed in a year group, which they will remain a part of until they leave. Why is this? Well the proposed argument is that people in the same year should have similar capacity to learn so they are able to be taught the same stuff at the same time. Something which increases efficiency when the capacity of learning in this system is made only possible when a figure of authority is able to decree it. But, as I’m sure you can see, this is very obviously not the best way to do this – surely if it was about putting people into groups of similar ability – this should be based on ability not age! And they can’t argue that this is unfeasible because they are conducting tests every week to check which set the students should be in. So having eliminated the possibility of this being for the benefit of the student, what else could it be? Well, one thing that is important to mention here, is that discipline increases when people are grouped by similar characteristics, why this is the case is likely due to it depersonalising the person in their own eyes. So much like the waiter who when in work is merely a waiter even in their own mind, the year 7 becomes just that. Well now we can see the true aim of this age divide – not education, but discipline.

The exam system, this is a part of this system particularly close to my heart. I cant tell you how many friends I’ve seen start self-harming or becoming depressive from the stress these things place on them. I know people who have lost any social contact for the best part of the year doing nothing but revising, I know people who have starved themselves, It goes on and on. And I can see unequivocally that exams are one of the worst things this system subjects its students too. It spends 15 years stressing how important GCSEs are, every week testing students in exams, and every week they think more and more that all that’s matters is GCSE’s. I would say “only part of them that matters”, because that’s how it seems to them – but in truth its that mindset which just reinforces this shit cycle, the idea that the grades you get relate any way to you is a falsity which we must eradicate. Because at the age where a person is supposed to working out who they are they, are spending all their time being told they are just this grade, just this uniform and just a pupil. And don’t say its only 8 hours a day, because we all know full well that once these students leave school it doesn’t stop there - hours upon hours of homework, all directed at getting better grades is added to their burden, on punishment of being sent to the punishment system ever present in every school. But that is not the only issue, because even once these grades have been realised students are treated based on their grades – many 6th forms lay close to empty because they were too spiteful to let in students with insufficient grades. Furthermore, these exams have no reference upon actual ability they reference only how good someone is at exams. Its like some a comedian that is so “funny” that he merely needs to speak to make someone laugh – his humour so removed from reality that anyone who encounters it thinks the whole spectacle absurd. And this spectacle of exams is 10 fold more absurd. Take philosophy, the premise of which is to make people able to think for themselves. How can free thinking be measured in a exam where students are forced to do exactly the same thing to get good marks, new ideas in fact will get you no marks, unless your regurgitating the shite from the text book – U. Same with maths and science, a mathematician or a scientist are not better at coming up with new concepts from remembering only formulas and how to apply them, not why they are or how to make new ones – completely undermining the point of science and maths. Thus I suggest that once again the purpose is not education – the purpose is to make the student a drone in his own mind. To humiliate him until he thinks himself nothing more, for there are few things more humiliating then being forced to do work that serves no purpose. But this is not the only component of control in exams, they also act as a buffer so that no one who can critically think can ever enter the establishment and challenge it. So that all our knowledge continues to reinforce white supremacy the patriarchy and the powerful.

Next we must approach the hierarchal system in school – this is closely intertwined with the punishment system, hence we will address both concurrently. It is a hierarchy so rigid it would not appear out of place in a feudal society. At the bottom we have the students (which can be further divided based on seniority with the youngest at the bottom), then bog standard teachers, then head of houses, then the senior leadership then the head teacher. This system is made very clear from the get go – with the oldest students in most institutions being given very visual privileges. The hierarchy is perhaps most visibly revealed through the punishment system, whereas the greater the transgression the greater the authority of the person disciplining you is. Now anyone who supports this system is likely to be thinking “but we have to force kids to learn, else the world would be awful!”. That’s just not true, what this system does, is take children who are eager to learn about the world, shoves them in a classroom, expects them to lick the boots of anyone who’s shoved Infront of them forces them to learn random stuff they have no interest in and in doing so makes it so no one wants to learn.  “Every kid starts out as a natural born scientist, and we beat it out of them”. Afterall learning is one of the most enjoyable experiences there is – hence why it takes a system so awful to beat it out. Another glaring issue with hierarchies in particular is the innate cruelty that they inspire. Because hierarchies always fosters dehumanisation, no one respects someone that they have complete control over. And every child encountered in this system teachers have complete control over (we will examine how in a moment), because a fundamental part of being human is free will, and this strips it from those not in power. And as such there are no moral qualms with shoving children in isolation blocks for refusing to take off there coats when its cold, or for talking – or any random act which isn’t complete submission to authority. And the way is forces people to obey is as follows, a system whereas the person in question must submit or be faced with a worse punishment. There is of course the initial threat of being screamed at (which in itself highlights the lack of respect held for students – if I viewed someone as an equal I would not shout at them for not doing what I tell them to do) combined with the being raised from birth to think following authority is the right thing to do – but that is more of a side note, as in essence this system gets everyone to publicly submit. Because if you don’t submit to the current punishment, they make the next one worse. And of course, there are people who refuse this all together, people who refuse to be broken (likely because their parents haven’t conditioned them) but these people will quickly be expelled, and their parents fined for their spirit.

The final component to address is the one I’ve just briefly mentioned, the atmosphere of obeying. There are people who have been so institutionalised into this system whether that be by parents or school or whatever, who if they see disobedience will feel physically disgusted. That is how bad it has got, when teachers require submission from every member of the class before continuing, or conduct group punishments for refusal of submission from one member they are fostering this mindset of hatred towards disobedience (and unfortunately these children lack the critical skills to see it is really the teacher who is inflicting this misfortune not the student, because the entire system is based on being taught rather than learning). Furthermore there is this mind set in many teachers that its ok for them to enforce rules e.g. skirt length (The amount of times I have seen children crying at the front gates because some 40 year old man has objectified them into nothing more than a skirt length and has started them onto this forced submission pathway is far too many times) because our society relies on rules and would be worse without them, is without a doubt one of the most fascistic things in our society at the moment. I have nothing against teachers, they are as oppressed as any other worker and I acknowledge that most hate this system and want it to change. But the excuse by some to alleviate there conscious that it is somehow just to enforce unjust rules because they are rules is incredibly unjust.

So having analysed the main components of the modern school system, what do we find? We find a system that increases discipline at the expensive of learning, as system that increases identity lose at the expensive of learning and a system which increases submission at the expensive of learning. And yet people claim that this is the best system and that there are no thinkable alternatives? That is laughable. Now perhaps we can see clearly why so many people hate school and why mental health is becoming a increasingly great crisis among the youth and perhaps contributes to the growing loneliness in the UK after all miserable people do not make for good friends – especially in a society where solidarity has been all but gone for over 30 years.

What are the effects of this system? Well in its totality it is not dissimilar from the domestication of a pet, the pet confuses us and infuriates us because its not in our image of a pet. So we break it (domestication is merely a nice way of saying destroying its will) we make it so it follows any arbitrary rules we put in place and the result is a animal that does what we want it to do, perhaps it will sit when you command it too, or whatever other random fancy takes you. An adult is not fundamentally dissimilar: its identity, capacity to think for itself, its hopes and dreams are all shattered in the furnace of school. And what comes out is a bitter husk ready to attack anyone for whatever reason, its lost its humanity. There are adults who don’t want to make things easier for children, because they had to suffer the same things. But fortunately for the capitalist these drones make good workers, because they lack the capacity to disobey (for a policeman is now in their heads) the capacity to think of a better world. The product of the modern school system is a fascist. In the sense that a fascism is a state of mind.

It has gotten so bad, that when the planet is burning, and these adults see the pictures of dying people every day. They might if they are particularly brave go and peacefully protest. The most extreme might even sit in a road and let themselves get arrested! It is absurd, the people have been so institutionalised that when they are being sent to the abattoir by the farmer, they are appealing to the farmers better nature! And that’s only half, a significant amount are having ago at them for complaining!

Of course this is not the case with everyone, in fact as any expert in fascism will tell you – it emerges on the back of the middle class. And this fascist manufactorum is no different, the middle classes tend to raise more obedient children, children who thrive in this system and as such progress through it. Fortunately, not everyone is middle class and many people are able to escape without complete conditionment. And even within the system there are people who still refuse to broken up as far as universities! Which is thoroughly impressive – though I suspect this is the exception not the rule. And it is the same with teachers, although many full heartedly partake in this system, there are those who dispute all of this risk there career everyday to treat their pupils as equals.

So what should our schools look like?

We must abolish all discipline in schools and make it a place where people can discover themselves and how to act as a decent human being – without someone constantly watching over their shoulder. We must remove all exams and syllabuses, and let people learn what they want to learn and become what they want to become without the burden of exams, so that learning may be a enjoyable and personal experience. Abolish hierarchies and discipline so that people are able to learn instead of being taught and so that when injustices are committed people actually do things about them, but also so the world has more meaning than a colourless wave of drone like people – instead authentic individuals. Systems like this have already been put into practise in revolutionary countries like the free territories in the Ukraine or the Zapatista in southern Mexico. This change will not come over night and many other parts of society will have to change with it – but we owe it to the children to treat them as people not animals.

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Spirituality and Long-term Recovery

Originally posted on Futures Recovery Healthcare

Spirituality. It seems to be a word that is used more often today than 10, 15, or 20 years ago. This term, that invokes different thoughts and feelings for everyone, has become quite the buzzword today. But what exactly is spirituality? How is it different—or the same as—from religion? And more importantly how is spirituality related to long-lasting recovery, joy, and peace of mind?

Spirituality, as defined by the Merriam Webster dictionary, is ‘something in ecclesiastical law belongs to the church or cleric; the quality or state of being spiritual.’ And spiritual is defined as ‘relating to, consisting of, or affecting the spirit.’ The spirit is also known as one’s soul.

Understanding the Differences between Religion and Spirituality

So what is the difference between religion and spirituality? While there are many religious people who are spiritual and vice versa, these two sometimes incorrectly interchanged words are not the same. Someone can be religious and not spiritual and a person can be deeply spiritual and not religious.

The more common definition of religion is a set or institutionalized system of texts, practices, and beliefs related to God or the supernatural. When people think of religions generally churches, faiths such as Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism, Isalm, etc. come to mind.

Spirituality is about an individual’s relationship with basic human transcendent questions. Transcendent is something that is beyond the material world, for many this is God. Spirituality can be highly personal and not conforming to one set of religions or religious beliefs.

For many in recovery, both early recovery and those with years of sobriety, spirituality is a fundamental part and building block of not only staying sober but of having a life with peace of mind, happiness, and joy.

RECOVERY AND SPIRITUALITY: UNDERSTANDING THE CONNECTION

The spiritual experience or spiritual awakening is not a new concept in recovery. In fact, when Alcoholics Anonymous began in the 1930s, the spiritual principle was a fundamental part of this movement now found in more than 180 nations with an estimated membership upwards of 2 million.

This vital spiritual awakening, is what one of the founding members, Bill W., credited with saving his life and halting his alcoholism. As Bill sat at his kitchen table talking to a friend in recovery, he put aside his former beliefs about God (which included doubt and scorn) and became willing to believe simply in the concept of a power greater than himself or as it’s now more commonly called a Higher Power.

For Bill and so many more, this belief in something greater than themselves opened the door for a spiritual experience and began the road of long-lasting, joyful recovery. This initial concept of a Higher Power and spiritual experience has become a vital part of sobriety and recovery for many seeking a life free from the bonds of alcohol or another substance.

There are many who believe that AA is a God-based program and while for some in AA this is what they lean on, there are many too who have formed their own concept of a Higher Power and are just as successful in recovery and life.

So what is it about this spirituality and recovery that seem to work so well for so many? For many who have alcohol use disorders (AUD) or substance use disorders (SUD), they have been running their lives (and often the lives of their loved ones) solely on their own will, agendas, and often with self-centered motives.

This type of ego-driven life can actually wreak havoc on one’s mental, spiritual, and ultimately physical health. Relying on one’s own will, resources, and plans can be exhausting, stressful, and ultimately unhealthy for the body, mind, and soul. Living life in this way means an individual is always trying to run the show, often resists changes or when things aren’t going as he or she wants, and has a hard time accepting when others don’t do or behave in expected or desired ways.

All of these experiences can often cause anxiety, irritability, restlessness, anger, and depression. All states of mind and being that propel many to not only first pick up a drink or drug but also to continue to rely on substances to ease these uncomfortable feelings and states of mind.

AUD, SUD, and Letting Go

In order for many—most everyone—to begin the road to recovery and sobriety, acceptance of being powerless when it comes to their alcohol or substance addiction is the first step. This first step is the most crucial to recovery according to many experts.

An honest look back on life when using and abusing alcohol and other substances usually is quick to reveal that the power to stop, cut down, and have good consequences happen is out of one’s hands.

One way to check this is to make a list of all the ‘mishaps’ and negative experiences incurred since you began drinking heavily or regularly or using a substance. For some, this list will include broken relationships, legal issues, and health troubles. There are those too who function at very high levels even in the midst of an AUD or SUD. Maintaining high profile occupations, keeping families intact, nice cars in the garage, boast-worthy vacations and accomplishments may all be on the list, however, it’s vital to look at the feelings you have been feeling during these times. For many high functioning individuals, the outside life doesn’t reflect the inside feelings.

Feelings of hopelessness, loneliness (even in the midst of friends), and despair are common for anyone struggling with addiction issues. This, for many, is where spirituality has radically changed their journey. However, for many, this isn’t an easy first step.

Admitting powerlessness over these feelings and alcohol or substances isn’t an easy feat. Often being powerless is misconstrued for being weak. When it comes to recovery, this simply isn’t the case and this is where spirituality comes into play.

When an individual realizes they are truly powerless in these areas they are able to look at relying on a power greater than themselves to give them the power needed to begin to recover from an AUD or  SUD. Letting go of the reliance solely on oneself is the first step. Who or what an individual wants to believe in is personal and they are the only ones who need to know about this and define it for themselves.

Today, many do rely on God, however many others have formed their own concept of a Higher Power and this has been enough to get them started in recovery and sustain them for many years in long-lasting recovery, happiness, and peace of mind. All it takes is the willingness to believe in something greater than one’s self. The rest will fall into place with the right addiction treatment program, honesty, and the courage to begin recovery.

There are aspects of both religions, spirituality, and long-lasting recovery that are the same. Many of these are concepts and practices that can immediately improve one’s life and well being. If you think you may have an AUD or SUD, are living with feelings of loneliness, fear, and helplessness, or just want to improve your life and happiness, consider incorporating some of these spiritual practices into your life today.

Five Spiritual Practices for Long-lasting Recovery, Peace of Mind, and Happiness

Gratitude Being grateful and giving thanks are fundamental parts of all religious and spiritual practices. Having the humility and graciousness to not only see the blessings on one’s life but to also thank the Universe, God, or a Higher Power for these not only promotes happiness, but it also opens the door to receive more to be grateful for on a daily basis. When you are truly able to see the good in your life, your life will begin to look better.

Meditation or Prayer Most every recovery support group, like AA, Refuge Recovery, Celebrate Recovery, and more, promote the use of either meditation, prayer, or both. The regular practice of one or both of these helps to settle and calm the mind, facilitates a greater sense of peace and serenity, and enables one to look for guidance outside of the self and ego. All of these lead to happier, healthier lives.

Connection to a Higher Power Within Both religions and spiritual leaders tell us that the Universe, the Divine Creator, God, or whatever power one believes in is something that is a part of us. Religions such as Christianity often refer to the Holy Spirit being part of us here in the world and spiritual leaders tell us that the Universal Source or Life Source is also within us. Taking time to connect with our ‘higher self’ is vital to overcoming ego-driven agendas which often lead to pain and fear.

Mindfulness Living in the present moment is being mindful or living in mindfulness. From the simple awareness of what your hands and feet are touching and the sounds you hear to becoming aware of what thoughts are running through your mind, the art of mindfulness can quickly diminish anxiety, depression, and fear. There is a quote which states, “If you are depressed you are living in the past, if you are anxious you are living in the future, if you are at peace you are living in the present.’ The ability to stay connected in the present moment reaps tremendous rewards of peace of mind, happiness, and gratitude. This is also reflected in the well-known  AA saying, “One day at a time.”

Giving Back When it comes to recovery as well as any other gifts of life such as wealth, it is said you have to give it away to keep it. Giving back is a key component of both long-term sobriety and living a fulfilling, happy life. When you are able to give of yourself, your talents, and your time to others, it will satisfy you in a way nothing else does. And with this sharing of love and kindness you, in turn, will also be the receiver of more of those same things.

Whether you believe in God, Buddha, the Divine Creator, or a Higher Power of your own these five basic practices can help you in the early stages of recovery and sustain long-lasting recovery and a happy life. And while spirituality can be a powerful part of recovery, taking the first step and asking for help is all that is needed to begin the journey. If you or someone you love is living with an AUD or SUD Futures Recovery Healthcare offers help and hope. Contact us confidentially online or by phone at 561-475-1804. Recovery, serenity, and happiness await you.

  About Futures Recovery Healthcare

Futures Recovery Healthcare is a specialized addiction and co-occurring mental health disorder treatment provider with residential and outpatient programs in Palm Beach County, Florida.

Contact Futures Recovery Healthcare

701 Old Dixie Hwy Tequesta FL 33469 United States

(561) 475-1804

Website: https://futuresrecoveryhealthcare.com/

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Spirituality and Long-term Recovery

Originally posted on Futures Recovery Healthcare

Spirituality. It seems to be a word that is used more often today than 10, 15, or 20 years ago. This term, that invokes different thoughts and feelings for everyone, has become quite the buzzword today. But what exactly is spirituality? How is it different—or the same as—from religion? And more importantly how is spirituality related to long-lasting recovery, joy, and peace of mind?

Spirituality, as defined by the Merriam Webster dictionary, is ‘something in ecclesiastical law belongs to the church or cleric; the quality or state of being spiritual.’ And spiritual is defined as ‘relating to, consisting of, or affecting the spirit.’ The spirit is also known as one’s soul.

Understanding the Differences between Religion and Spirituality

So what is the difference between religion and spirituality? While there are many religious people who are spiritual and vice versa, these two sometimes incorrectly interchanged words are not the same. Someone can be religious and not spiritual and a person can be deeply spiritual and not religious.

The more common definition of religion is a set or institutionalized system of texts, practices, and beliefs related to God or the supernatural. When people think of religions generally churches, faiths such as Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism, Isalm, etc. come to mind.

Spirituality is about an individual’s relationship with basic human transcendent questions. Transcendent is something that is beyond the material world, for many this is God. Spirituality can be highly personal and not conforming to one set of religions or religious beliefs.

For many in recovery, both early recovery and those with years of sobriety, spirituality is a fundamental part and building block of not only staying sober but of having a life with peace of mind, happiness, and joy.

RECOVERY AND SPIRITUALITY: UNDERSTANDING THE CONNECTION

The spiritual experience or spiritual awakening is not a new concept in recovery. In fact, when Alcoholics Anonymous began in the 1930s, the spiritual principle was a fundamental part of this movement now found in more than 180 nations with an estimated membership upwards of 2 million.

This vital spiritual awakening, is what one of the founding members, Bill W., credited with saving his life and halting his alcoholism. As Bill sat at his kitchen table talking to a friend in recovery, he put aside his former beliefs about God (which included doubt and scorn) and became willing to believe simply in the concept of a power greater than himself or as it’s now more commonly called a Higher Power.

For Bill and so many more, this belief in something greater than themselves opened the door for a spiritual experience and began the road of long-lasting, joyful recovery. This initial concept of a Higher Power and spiritual experience has become a vital part of sobriety and recovery for many seeking a life free from the bonds of alcohol or another substance.

There are many who believe that AA is a God-based program and while for some in AA this is what they lean on, there are many too who have formed their own concept of a Higher Power and are just as successful in recovery and life.

So what is it about this spirituality and recovery that seem to work so well for so many? For many who have alcohol use disorders (AUD) or substance use disorders (SUD), they have been running their lives (and often the lives of their loved ones) solely on their own will, agendas, and often with self-centered motives.

This type of ego-driven life can actually wreak havoc on one’s mental, spiritual, and ultimately physical health. Relying on one’s own will, resources, and plans can be exhausting, stressful, and ultimately unhealthy for the body, mind, and soul. Living life in this way means an individual is always trying to run the show, often resists changes or when things aren’t going as he or she wants, and has a hard time accepting when others don’t do or behave in expected or desired ways.

All of these experiences can often cause anxiety, irritability, restlessness, anger, and depression. All states of mind and being that propel many to not only first pick up a drink or drug but also to continue to rely on substances to ease these uncomfortable feelings and states of mind.

AUD, SUD, and Letting Go

In order for many—most everyone—to begin the road to recovery and sobriety, acceptance of being powerless when it comes to their alcohol or substance addiction is the first step. This first step is the most crucial to recovery according to many experts.

An honest look back on life when using and abusing alcohol and other substances usually is quick to reveal that the power to stop, cut down, and have good consequences happen is out of one’s hands.

One way to check this is to make a list of all the ‘mishaps’ and negative experiences incurred since you began drinking heavily or regularly or using a substance. For some, this list will include broken relationships, legal issues, and health troubles. There are those too who function at very high levels even in the midst of an AUD or SUD. Maintaining high profile occupations, keeping families intact, nice cars in the garage, boast-worthy vacations and accomplishments may all be on the list, however, it’s vital to look at the feelings you have been feeling during these times. For many high functioning individuals, the outside life doesn’t reflect the inside feelings.

Feelings of hopelessness, loneliness (even in the midst of friends), and despair are common for anyone struggling with addiction issues. This, for many, is where spirituality has radically changed their journey. However, for many, this isn’t an easy first step.

Admitting powerlessness over these feelings and alcohol or substances isn’t an easy feat. Often being powerless is misconstrued for being weak. When it comes to recovery, this simply isn’t the case and this is where spirituality comes into play.

When an individual realizes they are truly powerless in these areas they are able to look at relying on a power greater than themselves to give them the power needed to begin to recover from an AUD or  SUD. Letting go of the reliance solely on oneself is the first step. Who or what an individual wants to believe in is personal and they are the only ones who need to know about this and define it for themselves.

Today, many do rely on God, however many others have formed their own concept of a Higher Power and this has been enough to get them started in recovery and sustain them for many years in long-lasting recovery, happiness, and peace of mind. All it takes is the willingness to believe in something greater than one’s self. The rest will fall into place with the right addiction treatment program, honesty, and the courage to begin recovery.

There are aspects of both religions, spirituality, and long-lasting recovery that are the same. Many of these are concepts and practices that can immediately improve one’s life and well being. If you think you may have an AUD or SUD, are living with feelings of loneliness, fear, and helplessness, or just want to improve your life and happiness, consider incorporating some of these spiritual practices into your life today.

Five Spiritual Practices for Long-lasting Recovery, Peace of Mind, and Happiness

Gratitude Being grateful and giving thanks are fundamental parts of all religious and spiritual practices. Having the humility and graciousness to not only see the blessings on one’s life but to also thank the Universe, God, or a Higher Power for these not only promotes happiness, but it also opens the door to receive more to be grateful for on a daily basis. When you are truly able to see the good in your life, your life will begin to look better.

Meditation or Prayer Most every recovery support group, like AA, Refuge Recovery, Celebrate Recovery, and more, promote the use of either meditation, prayer, or both. The regular practice of one or both of these helps to settle and calm the mind, facilitates a greater sense of peace and serenity, and enables one to look for guidance outside of the self and ego. All of these lead to happier, healthier lives.

Connection to a Higher Power Within Both religions and spiritual leaders tell us that the Universe, the Divine Creator, God, or whatever power one believes in is something that is a part of us. Religions such as Christianity often refer to the Holy Spirit being part of us here in the world and spiritual leaders tell us that the Universal Source or Life Source is also within us. Taking time to connect with our ‘higher self’ is vital to overcoming ego-driven agendas which often lead to pain and fear.

Mindfulness Living in the present moment is being mindful or living in mindfulness. From the simple awareness of what your hands and feet are touching and the sounds you hear to becoming aware of what thoughts are running through your mind, the art of mindfulness can quickly diminish anxiety, depression, and fear. There is a quote which states, “If you are depressed you are living in the past, if you are anxious you are living in the future, if you are at peace you are living in the present.’ The ability to stay connected in the present moment reaps tremendous rewards of peace of mind, happiness, and gratitude. This is also reflected in the well-known  AA saying, “One day at a time.”

Giving Back When it comes to recovery as well as any other gifts of life such as wealth, it is said you have to give it away to keep it. Giving back is a key component of both long-term sobriety and living a fulfilling, happy life. When you are able to give of yourself, your talents, and your time to others, it will satisfy you in a way nothing else does. And with this sharing of love and kindness you, in turn, will also be the receiver of more of those same things.

Whether you believe in God, Buddha, the Divine Creator, or a Higher Power of your own these five basic practices can help you in the early stages of recovery and sustain long-lasting recovery and a happy life. And while spirituality can be a powerful part of recovery, taking the first step and asking for help is all that is needed to begin the journey. If you or someone you love is living with an AUD or SUD Futures Recovery Healthcare offers help and hope. Contact us confidentially online or by phone at 561-475-1804. Recovery, serenity, and happiness await you.

  About Futures Recovery Healthcare

Futures Recovery Healthcare is a specialized addiction and co-occurring mental health disorder treatment provider with residential and outpatient programs in Palm Beach County, Florida.

Contact Futures Recovery Healthcare

701 Old Dixie Hwy Tequesta FL 33469 United States

(561) 475-1804

Website: https://futuresrecoveryhealthcare.com/

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