#tenet of adulthood

[poems-i-like]

So just a running list of poems I like

A Center - Ha Jin

A Ritual to Read to Each Other - William E. Stafford (big favorite, really feel this is a great central 'tenet of adulthood' poem)

An old story - tracy k smith (Another tenet of adulthood poem)

Artichoke - Craig Arnold

At the gym - Mark Doty (strong favorite poet - absolutely love mark doty)

Bird Understand-er - Craig Arnold (wonderful; I lovvvve Craig Arnold)

Candles - Carl Dennis (old favorite)

Country song - Kim Carlin

Dover Beach - Matthew Arnold (i wish i enjoyed his other poems and writings bc i want to but i havent)

Failing and Flying - Jack Gilbert

Grocery Shopping with my mother - Kevin powell (wow!!)

"Hope" is the thing with feathers - Emily Dickinson

Inside Yayoi Kusama’s “You Who Are Getting Obliterated in the Dancing Swarm of Fireflies - Laura Villareal (worry, nice)

James L. White (my favorite poem; it's not embarrassing; once you read it, it'll be yours too)

No Worry - Cole Swenson

of history and hope - miller williams

The biography of a cloud - billy collins (and basically everything billy collins has ever wrote)

Threadsuns - Paul Celan (hope beyond things that happened)

To be of use - Marge Piercy

To my dear and loving husband - anne bradstreet

won't you celebrate with me - Lucille Clifton

us - tory dent

"You are the hummingbird that comes" - Craig Arnold (that last stanza tho)

[dungeon-strugglers]

✨New item!✨ Chain Devil’s Embrace  Armor (chain mail or chain shirt), very rare (requires attunement by a lawful creature)  This mass of chains slithers with sinister sentience, threatening to constrict anyone in reach. Each chain ends in a rusty hook or wicked blade, perfect for snaring and lacerating victims. Donning the chains as a suit of armor is an unpleasantly confining experience, but the living metal adjusts to provide ample protection and mobility to its wearer. You can choose to don it as a suit of chain mail or a chain shirt. You have a +1 bonus to AC while wearing this armor.

Infernal Oath. In order to attune to this armor, you must declare an oath that will bind you together. The oath can be any goal, set of rules, or moral tenet that you choose, however it must be clearly defined and actionable. If the oath is of sufficient clarity and importance, it appears in written form and must be signed in blood before it burns away. 

Grasping Chains. The armor has 7 charges, and it regains 1d4 + 3 expended charges daily at dawn. As an action while wearing it you can expend 1 charge to shoot out hook-tipped chains to ensnare a creature that you can see within 10 feet of you. Make an attack roll against the target with a +8 bonus. On a hit, the target takes 2d6 slashing damage and, if it is Huge or smaller, it is grappled (escape DC 16). Until this grapple ends, the target is restrained, takes 1d6 piercing damage at the start of each of its turns, and you can’t use Grasping Chains. 

Devilish Form. While wearing the armor, as a bonus action you can invoke its infernal essence for 1 minute. For the duration, you gain the following effects:

Your skin turns blood red, your eyes glow like coals, and chains writhe across your body. 

Grasping Chains’ range increases to 60 feet. It deals an extra 2d8 fire damage when it hits a target.

You are immune to fire damage.

As a reaction when a creature starts its turn within 30 feet of you and you can see one another, you can create the illusion that you look like one of the creature's departed loved ones or bitter enemies. It must succeed on a DC 16 Wisdom saving throw or be frightened until the end of its turn. Creatures that can see through illusions are immune to this effect.

Once you’ve used Devilish Form, it cannot be used again until the next dawn.

Sentience. The Chain Devil’s Embrace is a sentient, lawful evil suit of armor with an Intelligence of 11, a Wisdom of 12, and a Charisma of 14. It has hearing and darkvision vision out to a range of 120 feet. The armor communicates telepathically to the creature attuned to it and can speak, read, and understand Infernal and Common.

A sadistic chain devil named Tyrastr lives within the Chain Devil’s Embrace. The armor yearns to inflict pain and tyranny on others. It doesn’t care what the beliefs of its wearer are, so long as they are enforced meticulously and transgressors are punished without mercy.

Curse. While wearing this armor, Tyrastr demands strict adherence to your oath. If you act contradictory to your oath or do not seize an opportunity to mercilessly pursue it, the chains constrict around you and you take 1d8 piercing damage. The damage increases by 1d8 with each subsequent transgression. If this damage reduces you to 0 hit points, you immediately die and your soul is sent to hell, where it is imprisoned by a chain devil warden.

Until your attunement to this armor ends, you have disadvantage on ability checks, attack rolls, and saving throws while wearing any other armor. A soldier kneels before you, defeated. Blood and sweat mats the hair to his face. Up close, you see he is a year or more from adulthood. The boy’s trembling rattles his armor. “The cur prostrates itself before you, make it suffer!” Tyrastr’s vile, metallic voice pierces through your mind, dripping with sadistic glee. “This one was there, watching your home burn!” Despite your commitment to destroy the Malefic Order for razing your temple, your rage falters. Killing this boy would be wrong. You turn your back and listen to his fleeing footsteps.  “Spineless worm! How will you avenge your brothers if you cannot do what is necessary!?” As these words reverberate through your skull, your chain armor constricts. Links of jagged iron bite into your flesh, reopening half-healed cuts. Blood mingles with rust. The pain is exquisite. - 🖌🎨 Like our work? Consider supporting us on Patreon and gain access to the hi-resolution art for over 200 magic items, printable item cards and card packs, beautiful creature art and stat blocks, and setting pdfs with narrative hooks and unique lore!🧙‍♂️ Thank you so much for your support! 💖

📜 Credit. Art and design by us: the Dungeon Strugglers. Please credit us if you repost elsewhere.

[theworldvsyoshiko]

If you just wandered in here for some reason, I've been rambling about this for a while. The short version, though: I forgot to swap people around while I was setting up my initial colonists, so I accidentally started the game with a randomly-generated 13-year-old with almost no skills. She almost immediately picked up an ancient beer from the ground and chugged it, so needless to say, she immediately endeared herself to me.

Since this whole thing started happened by accident, I never documented the basic situation here, so might as well start with that.

Meet Yoshiko "Happy" Russell. She started as a solo mechanitor, which means that she installed a chip in her brain that allows her to control robots mechanoids, got discriminated against as a result, and decided to flee to the edge of known space to live by herself.

As if that wasn't bad enough, this is the backstory the game gave her:

Thanks to this, the game often displays her name as 'Happy, Pushover.'

She isn't good at anything except research. The only other thing she's competent at is shooting. She's not a horrible artist, but she's not good, either. I think she's only managed a single work with a quality above Poor.

She's also now 17 years old, because Rimworld accelerates aging for anyone under 20 to get them to adulthood faster. Going from 13 - 18 takes 2 actual years.

Also, if you are familiar with how Rimworld handles ages, you will notice that she's 3433 chronological years old (i.e. she was in cryosleep for millennia), which has to be one of the highest that I've seen. It's also confusing, because it's now the year 5501, which means that she was born in 2068. According to the fiction primer, humanity started spreading out from Earth around 2100. So this kid was, like, the first person off the planet. I'm gonna say that relativity bullshit is to blame.

She follows the Creticonian Creed, which came from the game's 'randomly generate a lightweight ideoligion and develop it through play' option. I added a couple of precepts to it before starting, and the result can basically be summarized as "it is a moral imperative to automate as much work as possible so I can spend more time on Space Reddit." This is a philosophy that makes her constantly a little bit happier because she has automated turrets outside her front door. The randomly-generated title for the leader is 'Great Great Automancer,' and they are entitled to wear a beret. Which is all to say that it sounds exactly like something that a 13-year-old who's too smart for her own good would come up with. I swear that apart from the tenets, I didn't touch any of this.

[maxiemumdamage]

I think part of why I am super fixated on Thistle’s age as part of his tragedy is because of the autism.

Thistle was a child when all that went down in Melini which led to the creation of the dungeon and his descent into madness. He was a child and Delgal was an adult when Delgal, terrified by mortality, demanded Thistle make the kingdom live forever and then blamed Thistle for giving the kingdom exactly what it’s king asked for.

Thistle was a child. But he was a child constantly being treated like an adult because his so-called adoptive family didn’t understand that he matured at a different speed than them. Because they adopted and lowkey enslaved a kid from another race and didn’t bother learning about any of the things that made Thistle different from them.

And maybe it was just my experience, but I think a lot of autistic people remember being told how mature they were when they were little kids. Only to have people demand to know why you didn’t understand something they viewed as a basic tenet of adulthood or social life once you’re supposed to be all grown up.

(Obviously there’s also a racial bias at play — it’s not an accident that Thistle is one of relatively few dark-skinned characters in the show while the Melini royals are white. But I don’t feel as though I can speak authoritatively on that, especially since the autism is something I’m more familiar with.)

Thistle was a child when Delgal demanded immortality and a the Golden Lion offered it. And because he didn’t age or mature, he functionally stayed a child for the thousand years the dungeon existed. But he’s treated like an adult who holds the sole blame and culpability for his actions, despite how many people who were of far greater privilege and maturity pushed him to that point.

[anddreadful]

I never want to seem like i’m holier-than-thou-ing or dunking on whoever the most recent sad fans of cancelled TV shows are, or on people genuinely mourning that their favorite big name author turned out to be a creep, or whatever, because this comes from a place of love and sympathy, but truly one of the most important tenets of creative adulthood is to prioritize your investment in the art you and your friends make over anything else.

I’m not saying you’re not allowed to care about a star wars/ dragon thrones/ YA book tv show, but mainstream corporate media is to be enjoyed at a remove and it should not be made a pillar of your identity or an innate part of your own artistic expression. the power you invest in fandom belongs to YOU, not to the object of your fixation, and you can choose where you put it. the only way to get off the carousel of capitalistic disappointment with this shit is to love and create your own self-sustaining practices within a network of real, present people, and decide that that’s what matters.

[ladyzirkonia]

Mandalorian tenets or the six actions.

Early Mandalorian culture, originating with the ancient Taung species, was believed to have begun as a religious warrior society, War was practiced as a form of ritual worship to their multiple gods and because of this, many of the Mandalorians' earliest conflicts were seen as holy wars and their warriors known as the Mandalorian Crusaders.

After the Great Sith war where most of the Taung had perished , the Mandalorians began accepting beings of other races and species into their culture and transforming what it meant to be a Mandalorian. Those who considered themselves Mandalorian were bound by a single, unifying culture rather than any one race, and they believed that an individual was defined by their actions rather than the circumstances of birth.

Resol'nare

Young Mandalorian children were taught a rhyme to help them learn the tenets of the Resol'nare (basic: six actions) These six tenets defined what it meant to be a Mandalorian, and any who wished to be considered as such was expected to follow them.

Ba'jur, beskar'gam, (Education and armor)

Ara'nov, aliit, (Self-defense, our tribe)

Mando'a bal Mand'alor — (Our language, our leader)

An vencuyan mhi. (All help us survive.)

This code is self-perpetuating and was directly responsible for ensuring the survival of the Mandalorian culture and society.

Wearing the armor (beskar'gam or ''iron skin'')

Once Mandalorians reach adulthood, they assemble a suit of armor that suits their needs and skills. It is both a tool and a symbol of their cultural identity. Aside from its defensive capabilities, armor served another function: in a group formed from so many different species, often times it was only the armor that displayed an outward sign of the culture that bound these individuals together. The paint scheme of a Mandalorian's armor occasionally represented a soldier's state of mind, or their personal mission.

As many soldiers preferred the inconspicuousness afforded by camouflage, Mandalorians believed in the saying:

"It's one thing to see us coming, it's another to do something about it."

Speaking the language (Mando'a)

While most Mandalorians know and speak Basic and other languages, all are raised speaking Mando'a, the language of the Taungs. When among themselves, they speak Mando'a almost exclusively. The language itself is very fluid and simple, reflecting the culture of which it is a part, and like the culture, it has changed very little over the centuries.

Mando'a was often thought of as easy to learn, a trait highly desirable in a culture that regularly adopted adults from numerous races and species. But there were difference speaker of Basic had to adjust, including Mando'a's expression of tense, and its gender-neutrality.

It was not unheard for Mandalorians to speak other languages such as Huttese and Basic alongside Mandalorian as it was necessary to communicate with others when working as a mercenary or bounty hunter.

Defending oneself and the family

While the Mandalorians are best known as a warrior culture, they are also strongly family oriented. Each member of a family is expected to protect the others, garaunteeing their survival and through this, ensuring the survival of the clan and culture.

Adoption was extremely common in Mandalorian culture, to the point where even adults could be adopted. Because of the Mandalorians' constant connection to war, widows and orphans became an inescapable fact of life.

Contribute to clans welfare

Each individual and family is expected to contribute to the welfare and prosperity of their clan, which in turn helps provide for the family and individual as needed. This act is far from the socialist prop it first seems, as it is a neccessity for a society that spends a great deal of its time at war to provide for such neccessities as food, shelter and manufactured goods when a large number of a clan's adults are on other worlds fighting.

Raise children as Mandalorians

It is a Mandalorian's responsibility to raise children in the traditions of their culture. However this is not simply an imperative to breed, as it might seem on the surface. Mandalorians often adopt their children, caring very little for blood lineage and bowing to the neccessities created by their lifestyles as nomadic warriors. This act is a mandate to perpetuate the culture, as are the majority of the Six Acts, by passing it down to both offspring and adopted war orphans.

Rally to the cause of the Mand’alor

While the social structure of the Mandalorians is very simple, revolving around family and clan, each clan and family answering to itself, in times of war all families and clans are expected to answer a call to war by the Mand'alor, the leader of the Mandalorian people.

The old and the new way.

In order to retain their heritage in the face of outside influence, Mandalorians placed a high value on rigorously carrying out the Resol'nare's tenets in a daily manner. However, interpretation of the Resol'nare differed, and at least one group of Mandalorians, the New Mandalorians, potentially followed an alternate interpretation of the Resol'nare by doing away with personally-owned sets of armor and refusing to aid the Mand'alor.

The New Mandalorians was the pacifist movement who placed great importance on the virtues of pacifism, neutrality, and nonviolence rather than martial prowess and military strength as the Old Mandalorians did. They were led by a Duchess of Mandalore up until its dissolution following the coup in 19 BBY.

Similar to Death Watch, the Old Mandalorians were exiled from Mandalore, but unlike their Death Watch counterparts, did not seek vengeance on the New Mandalorians. Instead, the Old Mandalorians resettled in other parts of the galaxy and worked for the highest bidder, maintaining their Mandalorian warrior heritage as bounty hunters, mercenaries and other professions.

"Here's why you can't exterminate us, aruetii. We're not huddled in one place—we span the galaxy. We need no lords or leaders—so you can't destroy our command. We can live without technology—so we can fight with our bare hands. We have no species or bloodline—so we can rebuild our ranks with others who want to join us. We're more than just a people or an army, aruetii. We're a culture. We're an idea. And you can't kill ideas—but we can certainly kill you."

― Mandalore the Destroyer

[qs63]

Roy and Riza vs defeated idealism.

Roy and Riza's journey in Fullmetal Alchemist is the struggle of the naive idealism of youth against the cynical realism of adulthood. At the core of their characters there is a tenet: that Alchemy — or rather power — should be used for the benefit of the people. Like many things in FMA there is an irony in this. This belief that's so crucial to their characters is something they inherited from someone who, in a way, represents the antithesis of this idea.

Berthold Hawkeye.

The Manga goes out of its way to tell us this is something Behold believed in and passed on to them. First when Roy uses it to justify why he joined the military, and then when Riza admits that she believed in her father's words.

The thing is that there is a dissonance between Berthold's teachings and his character's actions. Berthold is a recluse living away from the people his hoarded knowledge is supposed to help. Roy and Riza know this, and they call him out on it.

They both fervently believe in Berthold's teaching, and they don't understand why he's so adamantly against putting it to practice. When they join the military they don't do so to spite him, they do so because they believe in what he preaches, so much so that they want to prove his cynicism wrong.

The problem is that Berthold is right.

He's sooo freaking right.

Their government is corrupt. All that talk about protecting their people is pure propaganda. His cynicism is the pain of someone who was burned too much by the world's cruelty. Berthold is an idealist that has given up, much like Hohenheim before Trisha. He is someone that once wished to help people, and probably came to the same painful realization that Roy and Riza eventually had in Ishval. The path to hell can be paved with good intentions, and sometimes you're completely powerless to do anything about it.

Now, what makes Riza and Roy such great characters, is the fact that instead of falling into despair and secluding themselves like Berthold did, they decide to fight back and continue clawing at the world with their own — no longer so naive — idealism. They have seen where defeat leads to, and they refuse to walk that path.

My favorite example of Roy's acceptance of both Berthold's teaching, as well as his rejection of Berthold's character, is his conversation with Hughes in Ishval.

This conversation is such a beautiful call back to Berthold telling Roy that alchemists die when they cease to think. This is Roy doubling down, acknowledging that yes he was naive — the world is a much more complicated and painful place than he realized — but still he refuses to give up on the face of reality like Berthold did. Where Berthold accepted his fate, as a man who was already dead inside, Roy and Riza continue to struggle to survive.

Berthold might have taught Roy and Riza that power should be used for good, but his biggest lesson to them was perhaps serving as an example of what happens when you allow your dreams and hope to die.

Ps. This thematic of children following on their parent/mentor footsteps and surpassing them is constant on FMA. Winry being a mechanic like her grandma and deciding to be like her parents by forgiving Scar. Ed and Al becoming alchemist like Hohenheim, but also embracing their familiar bonds and continue to help people despite their trauma. Ling Yao becoming emperor and dismantling the infighting his father had promoted. Scar embracing his brother's alchemy and dream. It is then fitting that Roy and Riza also inherited something from Berthold and then surpassed him.

[religion-is-a-mental-illness]

By; Andrew Doyle

Published: Feb 28, 2024

Many years ago I gave a talk at the London Metropolitan Archives in which I outlined my reasons for rejecting the then fashionable theory of social constructionism in relation to human sexuality. In the coffee break that followed, I was approached by a lesbian activist, who claimed to have chosen her orientation as a means to oppose the patriarchy. She demanded to know why I would not accept that sexuality had no biological basis, even though I had spent the best part of an hour answering this very question. ‘I’m sorry,’ I said, ‘but I’ve already explained why I don’t agree with you’. ‘But why won’t you agree?’ she shouted in response. ‘Why?’

Primary school teachers are familiar with such frustrated pleas. The anger of children is so often connected with incomprehension, a sense of injustice, or both. When it persists into adulthood it represents a failure of socialisation. We frequently hear talk of our degraded political discourse – and there is some truth to that – but really we are dealing with mass infantilism. Its impact is evident wherever one cares to look: online, in the media, even in Parliament. Argumentation is so often reduced to a matter of tribal loyalty; whether one is right or wrong becomes secondary to the satisfaction of one’s ego through the submission of an opponent. This is not, as some imagine, simply a consequence of the ubiquity of social media, but rather a general failure over a number of years to instil critical thinking at every level of our educational institutions.

To be a freethinker has little to do with mastery of rhetoric and everything to do with introspection. It is all very well engaging in a debate in order to refine our persuasive skills, but it is a futile exercise unless we can entertain the possibility that we might be wrong. In Richard Dawkins’s book, The God Delusion (2006), he relates an anecdote about his time as an undergraduate at Oxford. A visiting academic from America gave a talk on the Golgi apparatus, a microscopic organelle found in plant and animal cells, and in doing so provided incontrovertible evidence of its existence. An elderly member of the Zoology Department, who had asserted for many years that the Golgi apparatus was a myth, was present at the lecture. Dawkins relates how, as the speaker drew to a close, ‘The old man strode to the front of the hall, shook the American by the hand and said – with passion – “My dear fellow, I wish to thank you. I have been wrong these fifteen years.” We clapped our hands red’.

This is the ideal that so few embody, particularly when it comes to the unexamined tenets of political ideology. We often see examples of media commentators or politicians being discredited in interviews or discussions, but how often do we see them concede their errors, even when they are exposed beyond doubt? There is a very good reason why the sociologist and philosopher Herbert Spencer opened his First Principles (1862) by asserting that there exists ‘a soul of truth in things erroneous’; but such concessions can only be made by those who are able to prioritise being right over being seen to be right. Too many are seemingly determined to turn difficult arguments into zero-sum games in which to give any ground whatsoever is to automatically surrender it to an opponent.

The discipline of critical thinking invites us to consider the origins of our knowledge and convictions. A man may speak with the certainty of an Old Testament prophet, but has he reached his conclusions for himself? Or is he a mere resurrectionist, plundering his bookshelves for the leather-bound corpses of other people’s ideas? Hazlitt expounded at length on how sophistry might be mistaken for critical faculties, noting that the man who sees only one half of a subject may still be able to express it fluently. ‘You might as well ask the paralytic to leap from his chair and throw away his crutch,’ he wrote, ‘as expect the learned reader to throw down his book and think for himself. He clings to it for his intellectual support; and his dread of being left to himself is like the horror of a vacuum’.

The natural human instinct for confirmation bias presents a further problem, one especially prominent among ideologues. Anything can be taken to bolster one’s position so long as it is perceived through the lens of prejudgment. We can see this most notably in the proponents of Critical Social Justice, who start from the premise that unequal outcomes – disparities in average earnings between men and women, for instance – are evidence of structural inequalities in society. They are beginning with the conclusion and working backwards, mistaking their own arguments for proof.

Worse still, such an approach often correlates with a distinctly moralistic standpoint. Many of the most abusive individuals on social media cannot recognise their behaviour for what it is because they have cast themselves in the role of the virtuous. If we are morally good, the logic goes, it must be assumed that our detractors are motivated by evil and we are therefore relieved of the obligation to treat them as human beings. What they lack in empathy they make up in their capacity for invective.

Again, we must be alert to the danger of cheapening argumentation and analysis to the mere satisfaction of ego. One of the reasons why disagreements on social media tend towards the bellicose is that the forum is public. Where there is an audience, there is always the risk that critical thinking will be subordinated to the performative desire for victory or the humiliation of a rival. In these circumstances, complexities that require a nuanced approach are refashioned into misleading binaries, and opponents are mischaracterised out of all recognition so that people effectively end up arguing with spectres of their imagination. The Socratic method, by contrast, urges us to see disputation as essentially cooperative. This is the ideal that should be embedded into our national curricula. Children need to be taught that there are few instances in which serious discussions can be simplified to a matter of right or wrong, and fewer still in which one person’s rightness should be taken as proof of another’s wrongness. In the lexicon of Critical Thinking, this is called the fallacy of ‘affirming a disjunct’; that is to say, ‘either you are right or I am right, which means that if you are wrong I must be right’. One cannot think critically in such reductionist terms.

To attempt seriously to understand an alternative worldview involves, as Bertrand Russell put it, ‘some effort of thought, and most people would die sooner than think’. In the study of psychology this is termed the ‘cognitive miser’ model, which acknowledges that most human brains will favour the easiest solution to any given problem. These mental shortcuts – known as heuristics – are hardwired into us, which is why being told what to think is more pleasurable than thinking for ourselves. I remember an English lesson in which I had initiated a discussion with my students about the representation of Satan in Milton’s Paradise Lost, a topic that routinely comes up in exams. I wanted to know what they thought, and why. One student was sufficiently bold to ask: ‘Can’t you just tell us what we need to write to get the highest marks?’

This was not the fault of the student; there has been a trend in recent years, most likely influenced by the pressures of league tables, for schools to engage in ‘spoon-feeding’. Schemes of work and assessment criteria are made readily available to the pupils so that they can systematically hit the necessary targets in order to elevate their grades. The notion of education for education’s sake no longer carries any weight. I have even seen talented pupils marked down by moderators for an excess of individuality in their answers. In such circumstances, even a subject like English Literature can be reduced to a kind of memory test in which essays are regurgitated by rote.

It is hardly surprising, then, that pupils who opt for Critical Thinking courses at GCSE or A-level often perceive it to be a light option, a means to enhance the curriculum vitae without too much exertion. Courses are generally divided into Problem Solving and Critical Thinking, the former concerned with processing and interpreting data, and the latter covering the fundamentals of analysis and argumentation. Pupils learn about common fallacies such as the ad hominem (personal attack), tu quoque (counter-attack) and post hoc, ergo propter hoc (mistaking correlation for causality), along with others derived from Aristotle’s Sophistical Refutations. The Latin may be off-putting, but in truth these are simple ideas which are readily digestible. If one were to discount arguments in which these fallacies were committed, virtually all online disputes would disappear.

That said, the existence of Critical Thinking as an academic subject in its own right might not be the best way to achieve this. As the psychologist Daniel T. Willingham has argued, cognitive abilities are redundant without secure contextual knowledge. Critical thinking is already embedded into any pedagogical practice that focuses on how to think rather than what to think. The increased influence of the new puritans in education presents a problem in this regard, given that they are particularly hostile to divergent viewpoints. Any institution which becomes ideologically driven is unlikely to successfully foster critical thinking, and this is particularly the case when teachers are at times expected to proselytise in accordance with fashionable identity politics. The depoliticisation of schools is just the first step. Critical thinking requires humility; this involves not just the ability to admit that one might be wrong, but also to recognise that an uninformed opinion is worthless, however stridently expressed. Interpretative skills are key, but only when developed on a secure foundation of subject-specific knowledge. This is the basis for Camille Paglia’s view that art history should be built into the national curriculum from primary school level. In her book, Glittering Images (2012), Paglia explains that children require ‘a historical framework of objective knowledge about art’, rather than merely treating art as ‘therapeutic praxis’ to ‘unleash children’s hidden creativity’. Potato prints and zigzag scissors have their place, but we mustn’t forget about the textbooks.

When I was a part-time English teacher at a private secondary school for girls in London, one of my favourite exercises for the younger pupils was to ask them to study a photograph of a well-known work of art for five minutes without speaking, after which time they would share their observations with the rest of the class. So, for instance, I would give them each a copy of Paul Delaroche’s ‘Les Enfants d’Edouard’ (1831), which depicts the two nephews of Richard III in their chamber in the Tower of London just prior to their murder. My pupils knew nothing of the historical context, but after minutes of silent consideration were able to pick out details – the ominous shadows under the door, the dog alerted to the assassins’ footfall, how the older boy stares out at us with a sense of resignation – and offer some personal reflections on their cumulative impact. To create, one must first learn how to interpret.

The kind of humility fostered in the appreciation of great art could act as a corrective to the rise of narcissism and decline of empathy that psychologists have observed over the past thirty years. According to the National Institutes of Health, millennials are three times more likely to suffer from narcissistic personality disorder than those of the baby boomer generation. Writers such as Peter Whittle, Robert Putnam and Shaylyn Romney Garrett have traced the rise of hyper-individualism in Western culture. One particular study revealed that in 1950 only 12 per cent of respondents agreed with the statement ‘I am a very important person’. By 1990, this figure had risen to 80 per cent and the trajectory shows no signs of stopping. One of the ways in which this trend manifests itself is the now common tendency for arguments to deteriorate into accusations of dishonesty. After all, it takes an extreme form of egotism to assume that the only possible explanation for an alternative point of view is that one’s opponent must be lying. In order to think critically, we cannot be in the business of simply assessing conclusions on the basis of whether or not they accord with our own.

An education underpinned by critical thinking is the very bedrock of civilisation, the means by which chaos is tamed into order. Tribalism, mudslinging, the inability to critique one’s own position: these are the telltale markers of the boorish and the hidebound. A society is ill-served by a generation of adults who have not been educated beyond the solipsistic impulses of childhood. At a time when so many are lamenting the degradation of public discourse, a conversation about how best to incorporate critical thinking into our schools is long overdue. Our civilisation might just depend on it.

This is an excerpt from The New Puritans: How the Religion of Social Justice Captured the Western World. You can buy the book here. It’s also available as an audiobook.

[blurban-form]

Bluey’s School (Glasshouse School) (2/?)

References in this post are primarily from this link: https://academics.hamilton.edu/government/dparis/govt375/spring97/Teacher_Training/tt4.html

Waldorf Schools

Any episode that includes Bluey’s school… right away you can tell that it is an atypical school. It is: it’s a Waldorf school. The teaching style, curriculum, etc. are all distinct from standard approaches.

Here’s a deep dive on this based on some online research…

Rudolf Steiner, the founder of the first Waldorf school in Germany in 1919, believed that all children should be given "individualized" attention (rather than just those with special needs.)

This style of education emphasizes a focus on the 'individual' rather than the 'group', with each child being valued for their individual accomplishments: every child is deserving of the same attention typically given to gifted and learning-disabled students in conventional educational streams.

Classes within these schools are structured in a unique system of "blocks" that focus on particular areas of study for a period of three to four weeks rather than the same subjects for the whole school year or semester.

As children grow older, more concrete and technical areas of subjects are introduced. Through this method, not only are the developing child's needs met, but so are their interests. As a result, students are kept actively engaged.

Features of this style of education

Key elements of the Waldorf educational approach include:

Teachers try to fully engage the individual student at each step by gearing the curriculum to their age and needs.

Teachers focus on the child's learning processes and achievements in all areas, not just the academic. In this way, the children can be developed as complete human beings.

Waldorf classrooms don't include computers, televisions, etc. Note how in “Typewriter”, Bluey thinks she needs a typewriter for a story but her teacher takes the focus off of typing a story and onto Bluey and her friends actually having an adventure.

The Waldorf curriculum integrates arts and music into all areas of study. Daily activities include drawing, painting, singing, instrument playing…

Even the aesthetic atmosphere of the classroom is different to a standard school: The Tampa Tribune described a Waldorf school setting: "Imagine a classroom with old wooden tables, a backyard garden and children learning to knit and crochet. Where art and music is intertwined with every subject, students write their own textbooks and the toys are all handmade". Which is definitely the look/feel in Bluey’s school…

Additionally, a tenet of this style of education is that a focus on art and nature in education can lead to a greater appreciation for the beauty of life later on.

Waldorf schools encourage children to keep working on their imagination skills beyond kindergarten, using these skills to learn how to co-operate, share and interact. This concept of letting children progress into adulthood at their own level is a unique cornerstone of the Waldorf education method.

This concept of letting children progress into adulthood at their own level is a unique cornerstone of the Waldorf education method. This last piece is very key -- we seldom see anything being taught to the children; they’re free to do their own thing, make up activities, interact with one another, problem-solve, etc. and Calypso is there to gently guide them towards solutions occasionally.

So Why is This in “Bluey”?

The show “Bluey” is somewhat based on the show’s creator, Joe Brumm’s life experiences as a parent. Joe Brumm chose to have his daughter educated this way after she started the first grade. This is explained by Joe Brumm in an interview with the website The Father Hood:

"Bluey was still in embryonic form when Brumm’s eldest daughter started school. Her experience changed the course of the show.

'Play time was suddenly taken away from her, it was just yanked and seeing the difference in her was horrendous,' he says. 'There was no playing, there was no drawing, it was just straight into all this academic stuff. And the light in her eyes just died.'

Brumm researched alternatives for schooling and researched the value of play for child development. It is said that this is what led him to select Waldorf-style education for his daughter.

'Bluey is just one long extrapolation of that,' Brumm says. 'It’s to encourage people to look at play not just as kids mucking around, but as a really critical stage in their development that, I think, we overlook at their peril.'

Quotes from Joe Brumm from this link:

Closing comment & a caution

Personally, I think it’s interesting to see a different approach of educating children depicted in a TV show. It’s not “oddball”, it’s just a part of these dog-children’s lives.

I feel like the public is exposed to a lot of examples of children’s education on television and it’s generally portrayed in a negative light: e.g. The Simpsons, Bob’s Burgers… and even on shows like “Arthur” the kids were often complaining about school, or having something unpleasant/stressful take place while at school.

My only concern for Bluey and her classmates (and maybe it’s a long-term issue, nothing to worry about in the short term) is this: a potential downside to a Waldorf-style education would potentially be the sharp adjustment a student will encounter transitioning from this nurturing environment to one where that isn’t the case. It could well be unsettling.

…phew, ok, maybe one or two more posts about the school to come.

(Maybe, because of the source material, some of this post may sound a little like a giant sales pitch… it’s not meant to be. I think it’s interesting because it’s different; something else to learn about, etc.)

[cellphishthekaiju]

OC Ramblings: Ja'l'on & Kalach Hallowleaf - Firstborn of Omega Lae'zel and Alpha Shadowheart

Yes, this is ABO/Omegaverse nonsense and OC brainrot cause I'm neck deep in the Shad'zel brainrot. I have a WHOLE series of smut fics about Omega Lae'zel and Alpha Werewolf Shadowheart.

Anyway, onto the characters themselves

(clears throat)

Because Selune has a sense of humor and Shadowheart is her Chosen (at least in this canon), every time her and Lae'zel breed, they end up with twins. Their firstborn were no exception.

Ja'l'on, Alpha male and twin brother to Kalach. He inherits the lycanthropy of his sire though due to his mixed blood, Ja'l'on's werewolf form is not as 'elegant' as Shadowheart's werewolf form (his form is more akin to the Underworld Lycans). As all those who inherit Shadowheart's werewolf 'blessing', he has silver hair.

He is very close to his sister and holds both his mothers in high regard, especially Lae'zel. In his younger years, he strove to emulate his githyanki mother as well as uphold the tenets of the Moon Maiden. As he reached adulthood, he focused himself on becoming a paladin of Selune but has yet to swear his oaths.

Kalach, Beta female and twin sister to Ja'l'on. She is named for the late 14th Century hero that battled the the King of Shadows and was known for the shard of Gith's Silver Sword embedded in their flesh. (Some mistakenly believe she is named after Karlach, the 2nd half of the Blades of Avernus and Hero of Baldur's Gate... deeply missed friend of Shadowheart and Lae'zel)

In appearance, Kalach takes more after Shadowheart than Lae'zel yet did not inherit the lycanthropy 'blessing' like her brother, so her hair remains black with a reddish sheen that looks much like Lae'zel's hair.

She is far less 'disciplined' than her brother, adopting a more 'devil-may-care' attitude with a desire to explore Faerun and carve her own fate from the planes. Though she honors Selune, she has no desire to commit to the priesthood. She would like nothing more than to go on adventures with her brother at her side; making their mark on the planes like their mother's did during the Absolute Crisis.

Once they reached adulthood, these siblings find themselves bristling under the pressure of being restricted to living in Moonhaven. Shadowheart and Lae'zel both fear their mortal enemies; Shar and Vlaakith CVII respectively, would quickly bring harm or worse to their children, having attempted to do so ever since they were born and all subsequent children they've had since.

The twins also play a role in my Lae'stra X Omegaverse crossover, which you can read here, in all it's smutty insanity.

(Kalach is smitten with Hestra, to say the least xD)

I hope you enjoyed another installment of my OC ramblings. If you liked, I love talking with folks.

[amazing-spiderling]

For the "random get-to-know-me ask game" camellia ⇢ what were you like when you were younger? do you think you’ve changed a lot?

<3

To answer this backwards, I think I've changed in a lot of superficial ways. That is to say, I think there are a lot of my core beliefs and tenets that still exist, and I appreciate a lot of the same things and dislike a lot of the same things I did as when I was younger, but now that i'm mumblemumble years old, I have the freedom to enjoy them and express myself without fear or embarrassment. It's liberating!

As a child, I have distinct memories of being a bit of an outsider, but it didn't really bother me. I recall being pretty young, maybe 6 or so- and hearing (in books or cartoons etc) that we should always be ourselves and not worry about what other people think, and it's okay to be weird, and just sort of accepted that at face value and never looked back. So it didn't really bother me if I wasn't friends with the cool, pretty, popular kids in class because I absolutely believed that if someone didn't like you then their opinion shouldn't matter to you.

I do remember having little tolerance for people I thought were not being genuine, I remember being at summer camp rolling my eyes at other kids there who were "acting" like they were so cool and weird and different, but knowing that they couldn't tolerate anyone there that was "too far" outside the norm, and the idea that you could only go "so far" in "weirdness" before getting bullied or ostracized only further cemented my ideas on the matter.

I think this has served me well into adulthood. I'm still into a lot of the same hobbies, some in a broad sense (anime) other's in a more specific one (I was digging around a small neighborhood comic shop and found a discounted copy of the first comic my friend ever gave to me to read and immediately had to buy it because the laser focused joy was so strong). It helped me weather skepticism from my family, coworkers, etc and to find "my people". I can't say I have always been (or am even now) a flawless judge of character, but at the very least I have a good idea if another person and I are going to "click" from early on- and I think it saves a lot of time.

This doesn't mean that I spend most of my time judging other people, mind you- it just means that for most of my life, I've been able to take a look at a situation and see what parts (and parties) really matter and move on.

[shihalyfie]

Hello! During the Kaiser arc we get to see several instances of the original chosen digimon in their adult stages while alone in the digital world, protecting zones. I wonder if it was supposed to be a mechanic that as long as they didn't lose enough energy they could maintain their adult forms indefinitely, or maybe that since their partners were closer to adulthood they too could maintain the form longer, or maybe even evolve by themselves...? What are your thoughts on it?

This is a good question, and I don't really have a good answer for it! I used to just pass it off as an oversight, but nowadays I'm not sure because that would have to be such a huge oversight it would be unusual, as it violates what seems to be a core evolutionary tenet. (Although I suppose it's possible that the relevant scenes were supposed to have their partners in play, and then something got cut for time?) Bar any more useful explanation, I'd say that what you just said doesn't seem unreasonable.

[vancalox]

hiiiiiiiiiii sorry it took me literally 3 months to do this but here she is !!! my tav, vierynrae drisune — viera to her closest friends and vierie to her doomed-by-the-narrative boyfriends. disclaimer please immediately disregard her hair bc i still havent found a hairstyle OR fit i like for her, but since she would realistically change her look every 6 to 10 hours im happy just waving some selections of note @ u all <3

truly unfathomable lore dump under the cut (tw for physical assault and miscarriage)

she/her

209 years young <3

astarion romance with a generous sprinkle of dream visitor sexual tension for reasons i'll get into (tldr the emperor takes the form of her dead fiance bc they both know its the only form that could ever hope to get through to her 😍)

"seldarine" drow! formerly a lolth sworn menzoberranzan girly, now a well established and famed diabolist of neverwinter (we'll get into it lol).

nowadays shes lolth's no. 1 hater but — having regrettably served her pretty contentedly for 100+ years — she feels too alienated from the seldarine pantheon to truly consider herself a follower. she does toss a prayer eilistraees' way for good karma's sake every now and then, though !

fiend pact (of the chain) warlock ! outside of the power her patron offers her, she's relatively useless in a fight (ie no multiclassing for her lol). the majority of her skills are in leadership, social maneuvering and underhanded political subterfuge. forging her pact was a very deliberate and very necessary move from her perspective to like. add some bite to her bark going forward.

im saying that her level one feat (if the mod ever drops lol <3) is magic initiate: bard and while she isn't canonically a multiclass, she could very easily become one if her pact fell through.

she's canonically a noble background, though she could easily be mistaken for a sage. truthfully all of her interest in the arcane stem from political ambition, noble is the correct answer (and a background she tries to keep under wraps)

lawful evil alignment, bordering very close - and eventually transitioning - to lawful neutral. evil is a sort of unfortunate necessity from her pov right up until the start of bg3, but her character is more aligned to the Lawful part as opposed to the Evil part. she follows a strict code of professionalism, unscrupulous loyalty, and also sometimes "just business, sorry kid" :/ but outside of those circumstances she's as charming/kind/reasonable as they come lol

ok. whew. heres the full unabridged off the walls loredump. prioritizing her menzoberranzan history over her diabolist career bc otherwise i'd need a whole third month for this lol.

viera drisune (later taking the elven adult name vierynrae) was the 13th of 21 total children borne to mistress viciiva drisune, matriarch of the 17th house of menzoberranzan

only vierynrae herself and 2 other sisters actually survived to see viera's elven 'adulthood'. one sister was xaeszara drisune- the firstborn and heiress. xaeszara saw herself as an aspiring proxy of lolth, forsaking politics as she became utterly consumed with fanaticism and religious fervor. she perceived acts of heresy against her goddess in the everyday routines and familiar faces of her kin, and often took to culling her siblings and cousins in sporadic ritual offerings to the spider queen :)

arac'nene drisune, the 16th child and vierynrae's younger sister, also survived - specifically because she was just as deranged as the eldest. she didn't possess xaeszara's zealotry, but still relished in lolth's simpler tenets of chaos and slaughter. the two essentially allied together to pick off the other siblings and minor family members, arac'nene acting as xaeszara's attack dog against any she deemed undevoted to lolth. which was all of them, naturally.

vierynrae only survived because she clued in to the alliance early, and knew the only way to survive was to win the favor of their matriarch and mother, viciiva, by making herself an invaluable asset in all matters of house affairs. and she did! what she lacked in combat prowess she made up for in charisma and intelligence, and quickly earned the trust (and protection) of viciiva after overseeing several successful raids/assassinations of rival houses and improving their overall position in drow hierarchy. the other two siblings couldn't touch her without dooming their house's winning streak or worse, earning the mother matriarch's wrath.

for almost 70 years viera enjoyed the relative safety of her mother's protection, while being groomed by her into a natural leader. vierynrae's actions helped house drisune ascend the ranks of nobility until they were eventually named 10th of the great houses.

in all those years she dutifully followed the tenets of lolth, the only faith she'd ever known, until one day while skulking about in the caverns just outside of the city, she met kiryn'kel nathril , a handsome, bewilderingly sweet man whom she would soon come to learn was not only a seldarine surface drow, but also ironically a cleric of eilistraee, who would regularly venture deep into the underdark to save its denizens from the tyranny of lolth.

against all odds (and in spite of several dozen death threats and attempts viera would make against his life) they fell in love, and began an affair in secret that would last for over 15 years. during this time kiryn taught her about the surface; about sunlight and freckles and kindness and what an honest, earnest hug felt like. he was patient, and successfully de-radicalized her, soon even convincing her to begin aiding him in his efforts to undermine lolth and free any who might stand a better chance on the surface

try as he might, though, he was never quite able to convince her to leave menzoberranzan and marry him up in his home in neverwinter. she had too many ambitions in her own city and still held on to the drow superiority she'd been indoctrinated in to. what's more, she still held a stubborn, optimistic hope that she could miraculously change her home from the inside (while conveniently consolidating all her power and authority over the other houses, too, of course)

this didn't happen, obviously. vierynrae's family's suspicions were growing due to the subtle change in her attitude over the years, all culminating with her abruptly learning that she was pregnant with kiryn's child. she knew her child was a son, and that her house already held the two total male heirs allowed (ie: the two surviving men xaeszara hadn't murdered), and so she finally accepted kiryn's proposal and began to make bittersweet plans to flee the only home she'd ever known.

the plans were short lived, and the pair were inevitably caught by house drisune mere hours before they had agreed to leave. to avoid the shame - and consequences - of the truth getting out amongst the other houses, the matriarch viciiva allowed vierynrae to live, but only after cutting off her ring finger, confiscating its band, and forcing her to watch as kiryn'kel was publically and sadistically executed.

but this wasn't enough for xaeszara, who noticed during the execution that viera's hand hovered a little too long - a little too protectively - over her stomach. in her grief, vierynrae barely noticed her two siblings' whispers, nor when her mother was invited into its fray. the gravity of her situation only dawned on her when her mother bid her halt during the long walk back home, and asked her one grim question: "is it a male?"

her silence was the answer, and viciiva nodded, permitting xaeszara to push vierynrae down a flight of stairs carved into the stone. arac'nene was waiting at the bottom, laughing, to kick her nearly to death - more than enough to guarantee the child would never be born.

minutes blurred into hours, and vierynrae -grieving, raging, but mostly numb - knew her days in house drisune were numbered. she never went home, instead limping her way out of the city gates and on towards the secluded place she had first met kiryn all those years ago.

from there, she began bargaining, first to the gods - who would not answer a lolth-sworn - and then to the anyone in the nine hells who would listen. she screamed at the cavern walls that she was willing to bargain, and after three days, the fiend who would soon become her patron emerged from the dark. she offered up his soul to him right there in exchange for the power to raze the city of menzoberranzan and everyone in it, but the devil only laughed. "do you truly think your little soul is of equal value to that of the city of spiders?" he asked. "how many souls call menzoberranzan home, i wonder? thirty thousand - fifty? not to mention the wrath of lolth this tantrum of yours will inevitably bring about . . . why, that price alone is worth as many souls as you have hair on your head."

and with that, the terms of a pact began to form. a drop of infernal power for every act of service - and for every soul sent to the styx - tallied by the silver hair on her scalp. each deed's value would be measured in strands, turning black as the underdark itself to mark the progress of such an insurmountable price. once every hair had turned, she would know at last that the pact was complete, and she would be powerful enough to return to the underdark and attempt a final stand. until then, she would serve her patron in any and all things.

her first kill was her mother, matriarch viciiva. her patron was true to his word; as 17 strands of silver hair turn blacked, she felt an equivalent surge of power - just enough to make the weeks long trek out of the underdark and up into the sunlit lands, alone.

i hit the block text character limit oh god 🤪

and so her new life began. she navigated a hostile surface world with only her patron's whispers to guide her, eventually settling in neverwinter, in spite of a population vastly hostile to her kind. over the years, her uncanny ability to sniff out a desperate soul - and then cordially offer then aid - made her a recogniseable and accepted figure in the city, eventually putting her in the position to make a legitimate business out of it.

business flourished, and as her renown grew, so did her power, forever measured by her rapidly darkening hair. by the start of baldur's gate 3 she is formiddable — a diabolist and the right hand of her patron, feared and respected, secretly amassing every resource, ally and advantage she has at her disposal through low whispers and coded letters. all of it to pay the price of marching — one day, perhaps centuries from now — on menzoberranzan, and having the power to take it.

[navree]

What do you think about people calling Alicent a r eligió zealot? Personally, I find myself quote uncomfortable when people describe her as such and I don't really see it anyway? I think zealot is too extreme to be thrown around so freely

Hey anon, I actually touched on this in the second half of this response, so I won't go into too much detail, but long story short I agree. Zealotry, especially of the religious kind, is a very specific thing, with a specific definition and specific parameters that Alicent just does not fit. She's maybe a bit fanatical, but not extremely so, and a better description would be "devout", and she is not uncompromising about it at all, which is a core tenet of religious zealotry. Alicent is religious, yes, and clearly subsumes herself into that religion deeply as she moves more into adulthood, but that doesn't make her a zealot.

[theukpractice1]

Exploring the Benefits of Psychodynamic Psychotherapy for Emotional Wellbeing

Psychodynamic psychotherapy is a powerful therapeutic approach that has helped countless individuals achieve greater emotional wellbeing and self-awareness. Rooted in the principles of psychoanalysis, this form of therapy delves into the unconscious mind, exploring past experiences and unresolved conflicts to uncover the roots of present-day emotional struggles. By fostering insight and understanding, psychodynamic psychotherapy provides a pathway to healing and personal growth.

One of the central tenets of psychodynamic psychotherapy is the idea that early life experiences shape an individual’s thoughts, emotions, and behaviours. Often, patterns established in childhood influence how people relate to themselves and others in adulthood. By bringing these patterns into conscious awareness, therapy helps individuals understand their impact and work towards healthier ways of being.

The therapeutic relationship is a cornerstone of psychodynamic psychotherapy. This relationship creates a safe, supportive environment where individuals can explore their emotions openly and without judgment. The therapist serves as a compassionate guide, helping clients make connections between their past and present experiences. This collaborative process fosters trust and encourages deep, meaningful self-exploration.

One of the unique aspects of psychodynamic psychotherapy is its focus on the unconscious mind. Unconscious thoughts and feelings often influence behaviour in ways that individuals may not fully recognise. Through techniques such as free association and dream analysis, therapy aims to bring these hidden aspects of the psyche to light. This increased awareness empowers individuals to make more intentional choices in their lives.

Psychodynamic psychotherapy is particularly effective in addressing longstanding emotional issues and patterns. For example, individuals who repeatedly find themselves in unfulfilling relationships or struggle with persistent feelings of guilt or inadequacy may benefit from exploring the deeper origins of these challenges. Understanding the underlying dynamics allows for meaningful change and growth.

Another significant benefit of psychodynamic psychotherapy is its emphasis on emotional expression. Many people suppress or avoid their emotions, leading to unresolved feelings that can manifest as anxiety, depression, or physical symptoms. Therapy provides a space to safely express and process these emotions, fostering emotional release and relief.

This therapeutic approach is also well-suited for individuals seeking to improve their self-awareness and self-esteem. By exploring the complexities of their inner world, clients gain a deeper understanding of their strengths, vulnerabilities, and unique qualities. This self-knowledge builds confidence and fosters a stronger sense of self.

Psychodynamic psychotherapy takes a holistic view of mental health, recognising the interplay between emotional, social, and relational factors. It acknowledges that individuals do not exist in isolation but are shaped by their interactions with others and their broader environment. This perspective ensures that therapy addresses the whole person, rather than just isolated symptoms.

One of the strengths of psychodynamic psychotherapy is its adaptability. While it is often associated with long-term therapy, it can also be tailored to shorter, more focused interventions. This flexibility makes it accessible to a wide range of individuals, whether they are seeking intensive exploration or support for a specific issue.

The benefits of psychodynamic psychotherapy extend beyond the therapy room. The insights gained during sessions often lead to improved relationships, enhanced communication, and greater emotional resilience. By understanding and addressing the root causes of their difficulties, individuals are better equipped to navigate life’s challenges with clarity and strength.

This form of therapy is particularly valuable for addressing complex and deep-seated emotional struggles. Issues such as unresolved grief, trauma, and identity concerns often require a nuanced approach that goes beyond surface-level solutions. Psychodynamic psychotherapy provides the tools and space to address these challenges at their core.

While the process can be challenging at times, the outcomes of psychodynamic psychotherapy are often profound and lasting. Clients frequently report a sense of liberation from old patterns, increased emotional balance, and a deeper connection to their true selves. The transformative nature of this therapy lies in its ability to create meaningful and enduring change.

Psychodynamic psychotherapy is also unique in its exploration of the therapeutic relationship itself. The interactions between client and therapist can mirror other relationships in the client’s life, providing valuable opportunities for insight and growth. This aspect of the therapy is both illuminating and empowering, as it enables individuals to make changes in real time.

Another key benefit of psychodynamic psychotherapy is its focus on fostering independence and self-reliance. While the therapist provides guidance and support, the ultimate goal is for clients to develop the tools and understanding needed to navigate their own emotional landscapes. This empowerment is a significant step towards lasting emotional wellbeing.

The insights gained through psychodynamic psychotherapy often continue to resonate long after therapy has ended. Clients frequently find that the self-awareness and emotional skills they develop during sessions serve them throughout their lives. This enduring impact underscores the value of investing in this form of therapy.

Psychodynamic psychotherapy is not only about addressing difficulties but also about enhancing one’s capacity for joy, connection, and fulfilment. By understanding and resolving internal conflicts, individuals create space for personal growth and positive experiences. This balance between healing and growth makes psychodynamic psychotherapy a truly holistic approach.

For those seeking a deeper understanding of themselves and a path to greater emotional wellbeing, psychodynamic psychotherapy offers a compelling and transformative journey. Its emphasis on insight, self-awareness, and emotional expression creates the foundation for meaningful change, helping individuals lead richer, more authentic lives.

About Us :

The UK Practice is a leading mental health clinic dedicated to providing compassionate, evidence-based therapy and psychological support. With a team of highly qualified professionals, the practice offers a range of tailored services, including Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), counselling, and specialised therapies to meet diverse mental health needs. Based in London, The UK Practice is committed to accessible and personalised care, helping individuals navigate challenges such as anxiety, depression, social phobia, and more. Each client receives attentive, goal-oriented support designed to foster resilience and improve well-being. Guided by a client-centred approach, The UK Practice strives to make a lasting positive impact on mental health across the UK. For more information visit website - https://theukpractice.com/.

[mevbotcrypto]

David Hoffmeister: A Modern Voice for Spiritual Awakening

In an era marked by rapid technological advancements and increasing disconnection from our inner selves, David Hoffmeister emerges as a significant figure in the realm of spiritual awakening. With a profound understanding of spiritual principles and a compassionate approach to teaching, Hoffmeister has dedicated his life to guiding individuals on their paths to inner peace, enlightenment, and a deeper connection with the Divine. His work primarily centers around A Course in Miracles (ACIM), a spiritual text that provides a framework for transforming perceptions and embracing love over fear.

1. The Journey of David Hoffmeister

David Hoffmeister's journey into spirituality began in his early adulthood when he felt an overwhelming desire to understand the nature of reality and the purpose of life. This quest led him to encounter A Course in Miracles, which profoundly influenced his worldview. As he delved into the teachings, he began to experience significant shifts in consciousness, realizing that the principles of ACIM could help others find similar transformations.

Embracing a Life of Service:

Hoffmeister's commitment to sharing these teachings is not merely academic; it is rooted in a deep desire to serve humanity. He travels globally, leading workshops, retreats, and talks that emphasize the practical application of ACIM principles in daily life. His engaging style and authentic presence resonate with audiences, making complex spiritual concepts accessible to all.

2. A Course in Miracles: The Foundation of His Teachings

A Course in Miracles is a unique spiritual text that teaches that the path to inner peace and enlightenment lies in the practice of forgiveness and the relinquishment of the ego. The Course’s central tenet is that love is the only reality, and fear is an illusion.

Core Concepts of ACIM:

Forgiveness: Essential for healing the mind and releasing the burdens of the past.

Illusion vs. Reality: Recognizing the difference between the ego's deceptive nature and the truth of love.

Miracles: Understanding that miracles are natural expressions of love, achievable through the right mindset.

David Hoffmeister emphasizes these teachings in his work, encouraging individuals to question their beliefs, let go of judgments, and embrace love as a guiding force.

3. Transformational Teachings and Insights

Hoffmeister’s insights are practical and applicable to everyday life. He teaches that true awakening occurs when individuals actively engage with the principles of ACIM, applying them to their relationships, decisions, and perceptions.

Practical Approaches:

Mindfulness: Practicing awareness in each moment to recognize when the ego is at play.

Self-Inquiry: Encouraging individuals to ask, "What would love do?" in challenging situations.

Community: Building supportive spiritual communities where individuals can share their experiences and encourage one another.

Through these methods, Hoffmeister helps individuals recognize their inherent divinity and empowers them to live authentically and joyfully.

4. A Global Impact: Workshops and Retreats

David Hoffmeister conducts workshops and retreats around the world, attracting individuals from diverse backgrounds who are seeking deeper spiritual understanding. These events provide participants with the opportunity to immerse themselves in ACIM teachings, engage in transformative exercises, and connect with like-minded individuals.

Creating Safe Spaces:

Hoffmeister’s gatherings are characterized by a warm and welcoming atmosphere, allowing participants to express their struggles, insights, and breakthroughs. His ability to create safe spaces for exploration fosters deep connections and encourages personal growth.

5. Embracing Technology for Spiritual Growth

In addition to in-person events, Hoffmeister has embraced technology as a tool for spiritual awakening. He offers online courses, webinars, and an extensive library of videos that make his teachings accessible to a global audience. This approach has proven particularly effective in reaching individuals who may not have the opportunity to attend physical events.

Spreading the Message:

Through platforms like YouTube and social media, Hoffmeister shares teachings that address contemporary issues and challenges faced by individuals today. His modern approach to spirituality resonates with younger generations, making profound spiritual concepts relatable and applicable to their lives.

6. The Essence of Love and Forgiveness

At the core of David Hoffmeister’s teachings is the idea that love and forgiveness are transformative forces that can change lives. By practicing forgiveness, individuals can release the burdens of guilt, shame, and resentment, paving the way for peace and joy.

Cultivating Compassion:

Hoffmeister encourages individuals to cultivate compassion for themselves and others, recognizing that we are all on a journey of growth and learning. By embracing love as the guiding principle, individuals can shift their perspectives and experience profound shifts in consciousness.

Conclusion: A Modern Guide to Spiritual Awakening

David Hoffmeister represents a modern voice in the spiritual landscape, offering guidance, compassion, and clarity to those seeking deeper connections with themselves and the Divine. His teachings based on A Course in Miracles provide a roadmap for spiritual awakening, emphasizing love, forgiveness, and the power of community.

As individuals engage with Hoffmeister’s work, they are invited to embark on their journeys of transformation, unlocking the potential for profound peace and joy in their lives. In a world that often feels chaotic and disconnected, David Hoffmeister shines as a beacon of hope, illuminating the path toward a deeper understanding of love and a more fulfilling life.