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thewickedmerman · 3 years ago

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My Redesigns of The Specialists

Well, since I finished with the Winx Club girls and The Trix, I figured it was time to do my redesigns of The Specialists. However, not all of them are going to be just powerless fighters. I felt it would be more fun to make their team be made up of fighters, fairies, and sorcerers. Plus, they get to have their own transformations too. The fighters get transformations similar to the Power Rangers/superheroes (Because it makes no sense for there to be an emergency and they just rush off to change clothes, which is an INSANELY dangerous time waster), the fairies will have transformations similar to the Winx Club themselves, and the sorcerers will have transformations similar to the ones from Miraculous Ladybug (Honestly, I don't know what to think for the sorcerers). Why? Because it's so much more fun that way.

Sky

Well, I got the most BORING of the boys out of the way, so that's something. For his design I used Eric's body from The Little Mermaid, the face of Derek from The Swan Princess (Or at least from a specific poster), used his second hairstyle from the show because it suits him better and look less like a surfer dude, and I used the uniforms The Specialists get in the later seasons because it's BADASS. Plus, considering that Eraklyon is related to geology, it makes sense to have some armor that looks like stones. I did change the shade of blue to match his signature color, which is sky blue (I mean, it's in his name). He is the prince of Eraklyon and the son of a sorcerer and a fairy, but they still loved him despite that he had no magic. However, that made them even more protective of him since he was a child and there was a threat of him being kidnapped and held for ransom by Yoshinoya. So Sky's best friend/squire, Brandon (Who is a fairy and has magic to protect himself and Sky) was to switch places with Sky for public appearances and in school, so that no one would know who Sky really is. The only ones who knew the truth were the royal family, the castle staff, members of the royal court, and Diaspro & her parents (Who Sky was betrothed to since they were babies). Despite having no powers, Sky refused to be helpless and studied fighting hand-to-hand combat and weaponry. Sky is a boring character but could be good if put in the right hands. Give him flaws, have him held more accountable for his actions, none of the bullshit conflict that happens with him and Bloom from seasons 4-8.

Brandon

For his design, I used the face of Edward from Enchanted, the nose of Rameses from The Prince of Egypt, the eyes of Joseph from Joseph: King of Dreams, and the body of Bolin from The Legend of Korra. I've always questioned what race Brandon was supposed to be coded as because he seemed pretty ambiguous. Was he just white but with a tan? Was he Middle Eastern? Was he Filipino? Was he Hispanic or Latino? I saw someone say he was Middle Eastern and pointed out some areas in the Middle East where they have lighter tan complexions, dark brown hair, and similar features to him. So I thought for some representation, I would go with the Middle Eastern coded option. I made him a little darker than he was in the original show by giving him Flora's skin color from the original show (Since I gave her a darker skin-tone in my redesign of her), sharper eyes, and more Middle Eastern looking nose. I didn't want to use Aladdin's nose because the noses of Aladdin and Jasmine were a little too exaggerated the same way that the noses in Lilo and Stitch were too exaggerated (Polynesians don't have potato noses). I also wanted to show some body diversity by giving him a plus-sized body. NO, Bolin's body isn't fat but it's very much plus-sized. Brandon was a fat little boy growing up because he was just built differently. However, as he got older and started training, he bulked up. He's still plus-sized but is also muscular. You're probably wondering why I decided to make Brandon a fairy. I don't know but it just works. He is the fairy of geodes! I got that idea from Diaspro's fairy form and powers. They come from Eraklyon, so the magic in that world must be related to geology. So he's basically an Earthbender lol. But his powers are rooted on rocks, stones, gems, ect. so it's no wonder his body is so solid like a rock. I also modeled his wings after Diaspro's, which I noticed are solid instead of transparent like other fairy wings. I figured that must be part of the geology themed powers. As for his costume, I based it on one of the background fairies that were seen during the destruction of Bloom's home planet, Sparx. It just looked like it suited him. He and Sky have been friends since they were little and he is Sky's squire. He's the son of one of the palace guards. Since Sky was in danger of being abducted since he was a little kid, Brandon was made to pretend he was the prince for Sky's protection. Brandon's parents were dead against it, but the king demanded it. However, it was ultimately Brandon who decided to do it, even if his parents disapproved of putting their son in danger. You may ask, how would people believe that two white parents had a brown son? No idea! I guess they just said he was naturally tan lol.

Riven

For Riven's design, I gave him the face/head of Proteus from Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas, the body of Shang from Mulan, and the eyes of Gaston from Beauty and the Beast. For his outfit, I didn't want to just give him the same outfit as Sky but with a different color because I wanted more individuality. So I gave him the outfits that were worn by Nex and Thoren (Sky's cousin). They looked less heroic and epic as the outfit I gave Sky, which suits Riven's more roughish nature and how he hasn't had an easy life compared to Sky (More on that later). It also has a bit of a low-key bad boy vibe to it. I still stayed true to his signature color, magenta, while making sure it didn't clash with his magenta hair, and giving him some purple to match his eyes. And I just had to give him an angry look on his face because it's Riven, so of course. Riven is my absolute LEAST favorite of the specialists. Sky may be boring as hell but Riven is ANNOYING as hell. He's poorly written, has terrible development, is always an asshole for no reason, has no backstory to justify the way he is, doesn't really change, and his relationship with Musa is absolutely toxic. In my version, I give him a backstory and better character development. His backstory is that he was born to a father that was a sorcerer and a mother that was a fairy while he was born without the ability to perform magic, which was a MASSIVE disappointment to his parents. They neglected him, emotionally abused him, and on occasion physically. This makes his actions and attitude all the more understandable. He's a show off because of how he never really got attention growing up from his own parents and is trying to make up for it, as well as prove that he is capable of great things and isn't useless just because he doesn't have powers. He's angry and a hothead but has more of a secret gentle side that he sometimes shows, MUCH MORE than the original Riven, which helps make it more understandable why Musa would have a crush on him. His emotional baggage also made it easier for Darcy to manipulate him, even giving him some magic (But takes it away when she dumps him). His backstory also gives him a reason for why he lashes out at his fellow teammates. In my version, Brandon is a fairy and Timmy is a sorcerer, so they can perform magic while he can't. He especially resents Sky because of how he was also born with parents that could perform magic while he couldn't but was still given love and attention despite this. It made him VERY angry and jealous because of how Sky manage to have parents that adore him, despite being born unable to do magic, while Riven had neglectful and abusive parents because of his inability to perform magic.

Timmy

For his face/head I used some old concept design of Milo from Atlantis: The Lost Empire and the smile, eyes, and body of Aladdin. I went with Aladdin's body because of how Timmy wouldn't be as masculine as the others but wouldn't be lanky. Aladdin has some muscles on him but he's not super built. I also gave him freckles because it's just too perfect for him. His outfit was tricky because of how I had to find a way of making him look like a sorcerer but also incorporate it with technology to go with his powers because of how he is the Sorcerer of Technology. For his scepter, I went with Tecna's Mythix wand, with some adjustments. Redheads look surprisingly really good in the color yellow. I decided to make Timmy a sorcerer because of how I feel it suits his personality. He's not as action-oriented as the other guys but more intellectual, even though he still fights. Imagine how amazing he'd be with technology with magic. He'd excel! No, I don't have him being from Zenith like Tecna but from another technology planet, though one that isn't considered as high up as Zenith. So this makes him feel a little intimidated by Tecna, that and him having a MASSIVE crush on her. He always is trying to prove that he is capable and isn't just some weak nerd. Out of all of the specialists, he's one of my favorite, if not my number one favorite. He's just absolutely awesome with how much of a dork he is.

Helia

Helia was the one that I was looking the most forward to doing a redesign of because of how I made him a fairy. Out of all of the Specialists, he's the one that really benefits the best from being made a fairy, especially when I got to his Believix and Enchantix. He has more of a feminine personality while still proving he isn't a wuss but rather a badass, despite being a pacifist. This gives him layers and depth beyond just being a typical good looking hero. Plus, his hair is just AMAZING! I used the body of Mako from The Legend of Korra, the eyes and nose of Shang from Mulan, and the head/face of Little Creek from Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron. I also gave him Brandon's skin tone to make him look more brown instead of just a light Asian. His outfit is very feminine but also clearly meant for a man because of how it's kind of toga looking. But I did his toga in a way that looks more Asian inspired instead of Greek inspired. Plus, this look suits his chill and relaxed personality. I made his outfit salmon pink with some orange because those colors just look so good on him and just suit his character. I made him the fairy of art, the same way that Musa is the fairy of music. So he can make art literally come to life, turn things like paint into ropes, can control paper (Particularly when in an origami shape), create portals, can jump into paintings to hide, and you get the point. Basically, his powers are awesome!

Nabu

And now we've come to my favorite of The Specialists, Prince Nabu. First of all, I want to make VERY CLEAR that in my version, Nabu DOESN'T die! That was a bunch of BULL CRAP! I mean, he's introduced in season 3 and then close to the end of season 4 they kill him off? Not to mention that out of all the boys, they chose the darkest one, who was also the love interest of black woman! She ended up having to suffer more than any of the other girls because of this. Not to mention that in season 5 they tried to replace him with a brown (But much lighter) man with terrible blonde hair and a terribly bland and boring personality to match, Roy. Then when that didn't work, they did a dumb love triangle in season 6 where the white man that has a personality mixture of Riven and Brandon, Nex. Yeah, all of this is TOTALLY not racist! And that's coming from a white man. Also, I wanna also point out that Nabu is NOT black! He is Indian, so he is coded as South Asian. Now that we got my rant out of the way, for his design I used the face/head of Naveen from The Princess and the Frog, the body of Flynn Rider from Tangled (I wanted to use Naveen but there wasn't a base of him to use or a tasteful nude picture of him), and the eyes of Esmeralda from The Hunchback of Notre Dame. I also chose to keep his super long single braid instead of the two shoulder blade length braids he had in season 4. Why? Because it just looks SO MUCH better and is more badass. Non-white men just look amazing with long hair. He is still a prince but he doesn't come from Layla's planet, Andros. Why? Because that planet is water themed and his powers aren't related to water. His powers are illusions and healing, so it only makes sense that he comes from another planet, especially when the rules of Andros are black while Nabu and his family are Indian. He and Layla are in an arranged marriage, which she refuses and their relationship still goes the same way it did in season 3. Except, I'm having them meet during my Sirenix story line because that season would be about Layla, due to it being water themed. He still went by a disguised name, Ophir before revealing his true identity once they fell in love. So I'm giving true respect to the Sorcerer of Healing and Illusions.

And now for Brandon and Helia's Believix!

Just like the girls, Brandon and Helia are getting Believix and Enchantix forms. For the Believix forms I took inspiration from @teawithlemonacid, who did some fanart of The Specialists as fairies. I did make some adjustments of my own but still did take inspiration from that artist, so credit where credit is due. As I said when I did the girls with their Believix, the way they earn their Believix is pretty much the same way they earned their Charmix in season 2. They have to believe in themselves and overcome a personal struggle. I also took liberties with the Believix aesthetic because of how I want the fairy looks to be more timeless rather than dated-looking.

Brandon's Believix

For Brandon's design, I gave him a new hairstyle because if the girls get new hairstyles for each new fairy form, so do the boys. I gave him Nex's hair, apart from those dumb looking sideburns. I embroidered some stoned onto his outfit because of how he's the fairy of geodes. Since I also decided to have his race be Middle Eastern, I decided to incorporate some of that into his look as well. I gave him some curled toed shoes and some Middle Eastern inspired accessories. That was hard because of how most Middle Eastern jewelry are women's jewelry. I gave him Tecna's Mythix wings because they just really suit him for some reason. As for how he earned his Believix, well he had to overcome some hidden resentment he had for Sky that was starting to show during a trust exercise. He resented that he had to put his life on the line for Sky ever since they were kids. That really effects a child when they are having their lives in danger in order to protect someone else. Yes, Brandon did agree to do it in order to protect his friend but he also knew that if he didn't do it that he and his parents would be in trouble with the King and Queen. Sky's parents didn't really show much concern for Brandon's safety and that caused more resentment because Sky didn't really say anything to his parents about their poor treatment of his friend. Sky could tell something was up and it was only when Brandon stopped bottling up his feelings that things started to get better. It was emotional and difficult but Brandon felt better when he finally let it all out. It was then that he earned his Believix.

Helia's Enchantix

homeworldHelia's Believix was A LOT of fun to do. I loved getting to have his hair loose because it looks amazing. I didn't make too many changes to the outfit I modeled this after. I love how the gold has a paint-like feel to it. It really adds to his powers being art based. I used Flora's prototype Bloomix wings for his Believix wings because they just seemed to suit him. I also had the magic coming from his hand looking even bigger and more powerful than it was during his Magic Winx form. The way he earns his Believix was different from how others earned their Believix. instead of mainly being an emotional struggle, it was also a physical struggle because he had to overcome his passive nature. He has a lot of power but he holds himself back because of an accident that happened when he was a kid. Because he didn't restrain himself, a friend of his got badly hurt. The friend lived but his parents wouldn't allow him to be friends with Helia anymore. After that, Helia kept to himself, chose not to be aggressive, and wouldn't live up to his true abilities because of that accident. His grandfather, Saladin (The headmaster at Red Fountain), has been trying to break him out of it and live up to his true potential. It was only when his friends, specifically Flora, were in danger that he finally overcame his passive nature and started using his full power. This caused him to earn his Believix.

And finally for Helia and Brandon's Enchantix

We have come to Helia and Brandon's final transformations, Enchantix. Just like the girls, they must earn theirs by saving someone from their homeworld by making a big sacrifice. The boys were hard to do, due to how there wasn't really anything for me to go off of. However, I think I managed to do a pretty good job. I also wanted to have them be in revealing outfits just like the girls. I mean, fair is fair, after all. Let me know what you think.

Helia's Enchantix

For Helia, I wanted to do something that had an Asian influence to it that also showed his art powers being influenced. I gave him something that was very flowing to go with his sensitive and feminine personality while also having a rainbow theme to go with his powers. I didn't use the colors of the rainbow because I didn't want him to just look like a Pride themed look, which ended up looking awkward and busy when I first attempted it. So I limited the colors to the ones in his wings to make it look better. I still wanted to include his two main colors, salmon pink and gold while still making the rainbow colors pop. I went with a very Asian inspired hairstyle, which actually shows both of his eyes. The eye that is usually covered is actually blind, which goes with the childhood backstory I gave him that helped him earn his Believix, which will also play a part in earning his Enchantix, which I will get to in a little bit. I felt it would show him embracing himself while also showing the Asian culture. I took some liberties with the jewelry because of how most jewelry is meant for women, which is why most male looks are boring. I tried to butch up his shoes to make them look less girly and making the gems resemble a paintbrush. For his wings, I used Stella's Mythix wings because they look like a rainbow, which really suits Helia. I made his powers in his hand the biggest and strongest they've looked out of all his fairy forms. As for how he earns his Enchantix, I had him save his old childhood friend, who Helia had accidentally caused to become permanently blind because of his powers, which also caused Helia to become blind in his right eye. He had seen him but was avoiding him because of his guilt, despite his old friend trying to reach out to him during this time. He saves his old friend from an avalanche that was caused by The Trix, specifically Stormy. Helia not only almost died but his wings were crushed, so he wouldn't be able to fly. He said that he lost his friend once because of something he did and wasn't going to lose his friend again when he could do something about it. However, it was due to this sacrifice that he was able to earn his Enchantix and gain a new and MUCH stronger pair of wings. Not only that, but he had his old friend back after all this time. Helia apologized for what he did to his friend when they were kids, but his friend forgave him and said he missed Helia.

Brandon's Enchantix

Brandon's Enchantix was even more difficult than Helia's because of how Brandon's not as feminine as Helia. I took some inspiration from Tynix because of how Brandon's powers are related to geodes. I made his vest and best/waist thing look like diamonds. I even incorporated gems into his sash. I took major liberties with jewelry because Middle Eastern (Which is the race I decided Brandon is) jewelry is very limited in jewelry for men, at least from the google search I did. I love the one sleeve look I gave him with his emerald vest/armor. I even gave him some gems on the bottom of his pants. I gave him very Aladdin looking pants, only without the crotch being so low lol. I gave him the hairstyle of the character Thoren from Winx Club and Stella's Tynix wings. The way he earns his Enchantix was by saving Sky from being eaten by one of Valtor's minions, causing Brandon to be eaten instead. This cause Brandon to earn his Enchantix and his powers were enhanced to where he could destroy the creature from the inside. This earned him not only his Enchantix, but also finally getting respect from Sky's parents, who, AT LAST, apologize for how they treated him. Yeah, this is simple but you get the point.

ENJOY!

Credit for the character bases goes to SelenaEde, Credit for the backgrounds goes to SparxGuardian, credit for Helia's Believix wings goes to darkfairyofmadness, and credit for the Enchantix wings and Brandon's Believix wings goes to AstralBlu. All of whom are on DeviantArt.

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queenmercurys · 5 years ago

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My ramblings on The Prince of Egypt (1998)

I recently wrote a lengthy rant about why I think Disney becoming a monopoly is a bad thing, and how most of the animated films the studio has released in recent years don’t (for me, personally) hold a candle to some of the classic non-Disney animated films I’ve seen over the years. One of my examples was The Prince of Egypt. I first saw this film when I was a kid, but I recently rewatched it (I think it’s on Netflix essentially everywhere, please watch it), and was blown away. And since I found it a bit therapeutic to put my thoughts into these mini ramble-essays, I thought I would do the same on The Prince of Egypt, and why I hold it in such high regard.

I’m by no means an expert on animation, storytelling or anything like that. My best qualifications are a BA in English literature, and recreational drawing throughout my life. Neither of these things make me in any way an expert in storytelling or animation. Just wanted to make that clear. And me praising The Prince of Egypt is not me trying to take anything away from other animated films. I just think this film is dope and I wanna talk about it. So, to start off, I guess I should make it clear that I’m not religious. I would actually classify myself as a little bit anti-religious, simply because I think there are some inherent flaws in most organized religions that result in really damaging things throughout the world and throughout history. And yet, I can very clearly understand the appeal. I understand that religion is a source of comfort and hope for a lot of people, and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. But I felt the need to say this to make it clear that my bias towards this film has nothing to do with the religious message it conveys.

With that out of the way, I want to properly start by talking about why I think the film tells the story of the Book of Exodus in a really, really talented way. Like I probably just made clear, I can’t call myself an expert on the mythology, but I know the general gist of it. I think the way The Prince of Egypt manages to transform a dark biblical story into a family-friendly (yet, still serious enough) animated film is pretty impressive. I was most impressed by the way in which the characters were fleshed out, particularly in the cases of Moses and Rameses. Both of their motivations are clear, and their conflicts are depicted through their actions, dialogue and (especially) facial expressions. You can definitely feel their connection throughout the film, and their struggles as they are pitted against each other feel very real. The other characters are fleshed out enough to be believable as people, but not too fleshed out, so to not distract the audience from the main duo. And in relation to this, the voice acting is superb. The voice cast for this film is pretty darn good, and I believed every single one of them as their characters.

Next, my favorite bit of the film. The music! I was absolutely blown away from the very first minute “Deliver Us” began to play. The movie is filled with absolutely breathtaking pieces of music that, to me, are unrivaled by any other animated film. And when I found out that Hans Zimmer was involved in the film, well, that just made perfect sense to me. I heard that the film’s music was influenced by The Hunchback of Notre Dame among some other movies, which I think can be heard throughout. The Hunchback of Notre Dame is actually one of the few Disney films that I would consider near-perfect, and the music is a big part of that. I am a really big fan of super theatrical musical pieces that maybe take themselves a bit too seriously at times (my favorite band is Queen, after all), and both The Hunchback and The Prince of Egypt deliver 100%. But I would actually rank The Prince of Egypt higher than The Hunchback, because, to me, every single musical number in The Prince of Egypt is perfect. My personal favorites are “Deliver Us” and “The Plagues”, but I would gladly take any of them over basically any other animated musical number. The songs are meaningful, impactful, tell a clear narrative, and are accompanied by amazing visuals. I usually dislike musicals, and usually dread musical numbers in films, but with The Prince of Egypt I was constantly eagerly awaiting the next song.

I also wanted to talk about the visuals. I’m including a few screenshots in this ramble to illustrate what I mean, but overall all I can say is that I really, really miss 2D animation. I think The Prince of Egypt perhaps does it better than I’ve ever seen before. The level of detail, the expressions on the characters’ faces, the lighting effects, it’s all incredibly impressive. And I believe the film also uses some 3D elements to its advantage, and those little bits have really aged quite well. One of the few scenes I still remembered clearly from when I was a kid was the parting of the Red Sea, and watching it again, it was even more breathtaking than I remembered. I’m not saying that The Prince of Egypt did anything that hadn’t been done by other films. I’m simply saying that the animation left an impact on me in a way that not many other films have done.

Lastly, I wanted to talk about how I feel The Prince of Egypt handled the themes of the story wonderfully. Even though it is technically a religious tale, it never feels like one. You never feel like you’re being preached to, and you never feel like the ultimate message of the film is “believe in God and everything will be ok”. The film is essentially about seeing the bigger picture, of seeing yourself as equal to others, rather than as being above them. This is depicted in the way Moses interacts with his people vs how Rameses interacts with his subjects. Even though the songs and the dialogue often allude to biblical themes and morals, it never feels like Bible class. You never feel like you’re being forced down this narrative that you don’t necessarily personally care about. It feels like a story of an oppressed people who find freedom and happiness against all odds. And mostly, it feels like a character study of the relationship between two brothers at the opposite ends of a spectrum. And that is something I really applaud the film for. It really could have alienated its audience by preaching about religion and God, but it chooses to not do that, and instead is a film that is accessible to everyone - regardless of their religious beliefs.

Overall, I think The Prince of Egypt is a pretty great film and if you haven’t seen it yet, you absolutely should. Thanks.

#the prince of egypt #prince of egypt #dreamworks #my ramblings

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helsaguy · 5 years ago

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Isn’t it SO GOOD THOUGH?? Dreamworks didn’t have to go that hard for their first movie, BUT THEY DID. And I appreciate that. They told the story that needed to be told, and didn’t shy away from the darkness of it. Disney needs to get back on that storytelling technique. #PrinceofEgypt

This is Dreamworks' first movie? DAMN.

First of all the start of the movie rightaway gave me goosebumps with the slaves and all. The animation was stunning in theentire movie too.

Of course there were already moments that almost broke me, that touched on my feelings. But the moment that made me drop tears without being able to stop it was the song Through Heaven's Eyes. The philosophy or hope in that song just- it hit me too hard. It was a beautiful moment in the movie. And it was most likely the moment that made me wish even more for Stephen Schwartz to write songs for the hypothetical Frozen 3 I would want.

The last thing that impacted me with this movie is that while I was happy that Moses got his people free; I wasn't enjoying seeing the antagonistic figures getting what was coming to them. I mean, they sacrificed babies and enslaved people because they wanted to build a big kingdom, which is a bs motive. They were horrible, terrible, awful. But I didn't enjoy children had to pay the price... I'm conflicted because I'm not sure if I should feel this conflicted or not? I mean, the bad guys were awful, they are being punished for it, and I'm not enjoying it? Why?

I couldn't fully enjoy the ending because of all the deaths. Maybe I'm thinking too much on this? It isn't wrong of me to feel bad that a father lost his son the way he did, right? Or I'm wrong about caring about this? Rameses didn't stop when he was given the opportunity and he deserved losing his son? God, I swear my brain hurts.

I don't know if I should feel bad. They enslaved people, killed infants without remorse. They deserved the plagues. But having their children/first born taken like that? Was it because God was losing his children too? Was it that God said "an eye for an eye"? I don't know how I should feel. I'm just super conflicted. While I was happy for Moses and his people, I was still feeling bad for the losses.

I thought it would be easy to hate Rameses'character because of the things he did and enjoyed. But seeing how he grew up,seeing him sad for the loss of his son. I felt bad for him and I don't reallyknow if I should feel bad for him at all. That's my problem.

Maybe one thing to take from this movie isthat is ok to not enjoy the suffering of those that wronged you or your kin?Because Moses certainly wasn't happy to do what he was doing, was he? He wasjust doing what God told him to.

Either way, keeping my conflicts aside,this was a terrific movie. I really liked it. Very well done. The voice castwas also excellent.

Disney is absolutely NOT what it used to be. It's been letting me down hard for years now. But I have to admit, not everyone in the company or not every project from the company has let me down, just a few and one in particular. I think anyone who follows me knows well which project I'm talking about.

#prince of egypt #disney #stephen schwartz #dfg answers

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ahopefuldoubt · 6 years ago

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Aaron and Rameses Parallels in The Prince of Egypt

based on a few points from this list (jul.-aug. 2016). written between dec. 2016 and jan. 2017. originally posted in 2017 [x].

An interesting parallel between Aaron and Rameses seems to occur about midway into the movie, doing so off-screen:

While Moses is in Midian, both take up more prominent roles in their respective communities. Rameses becomes Pharaoh of Egypt, and Aaron assumes the position of doubtful spokesman for the Hebrew people*. Because the throne room scene with Moses and Rameses is followed by the mud pit scene with Aaron and Moses, these changes get revealed in succession, creating a nice opportunity to explore the characters themselves as well as their dynamic.

There’s some dramatic irony where Rameses is concerned. Those who are familiar with the story know that he is the pharaoh whom Moses must contest. However, for the characters, the situation is ambiguous, and their reunion is therefore able to cover a lot of emotional ground. Moses comes back to Egypt to discover that his brother has taken their father’s seat, and suddenly his mission from God takes on a much heavier dimension — “Pharaoh will not listen,” but perhaps Moses hopes that the brother he’s always loved and respected will. And Rameses is none the wiser, secure in his authority and bemused by Moses’ humble appearance. Their amicable acknowledgement of the past and present quickly turns into a tense hint at the future.

On the other hand, Aaron is a surprise to Moses and the audience. Not only does his assertiveness in the mud pit scene seem sudden, but the overall changes from the source material are also unexpected. And here is a reverse parallel of sorts: In reviews, the movie’s alternate take on Rameses and Moses’ personal relationship is often considered a unique addition, whereas the differences made to Aaron’s character are thought of as a curious reduction. Aaron is an important Jewish figure whose admired qualities include his positive relationship with his younger brother (a notable contrast from all the fraternal strife in the Book of Genesis), so in that regard I understand people’s disappointment. But his shift from being fearfully vigilant, to calling for justice, to taking the first steps into the Red Sea is compelling, and in my opinion it humanizes him in a meaningful way (just as the other characters have been humanized for this film). It also means that, like Rameses, he must navigate his past, present, and future relationship with Moses — though it’s one that has a rather different history and track.

The directors cite practical reasons for changing Aaron’s part, as it allows Moses to maintain agency (e.g., Moses performs all of miracles and plagues instead of delegating the first few to Aaron, as happens in the Book of Exodus) and puts a better focus on his conflict with Rameses. Personally, I think that the Rameses-to-Pharaoh, Aaron-to-spokesman transition also gives them this more immediate sense of opposition, or greater approximation (and makes me feel all the more deeply about certain lines of dialogue**). Maybe, in some odd way, it’s a small nod to the story in the Book of Exodus.

Representing Aaron as someone who frets and questions things brings me to the next parallel, which is that now both brothers are skeptics of God and of Moses. In The Prince of Egypt, Moses must convince them both (to very different ends, of course). There are moments in the reunion scenes where their responses to Moses sound alike in topic and tone:

Rameses

I do not know this God. Neither will I let your people go.

Aaron

God? When did God start caring about any of us?

Here they sound angry and faithless, but it’s another similarity that separates them, I feel, since their doubt in and experiences with God differ quite a bit.

In reaction to the conditions of slavery, the persistent threat to their lives, Aaron has turned to wondering, bitterly and from a place of anguish/fear, if God has abandoned them. Moses’ return means many things to Aaron, and the unintended outcome of Moses’ confrontation with Rameses probably seems like further proof that God does not care. Rameses, on the other hand, has no experience with the God of the Hebrew people. To admit inexperience with something isn’t necessarily bad; however, he speaks about God and those who practice the faith as the Other. Moses’ return means many things to Rameses, too, and Rameses perceives God — and even/eventually Moses — as a challenge to his sovereignty.

Beyond the parallels discussed in this post are others that visually and auditorially connect Aaron and Rameses. Serious and cautious***, Moses’ brothers tend to carry many troubles and hold on to negative events from the past. It’s possible to treat Rameses as a prisoner of tradition, or a victim of his family and God’s wrath. It’s possible to criticize Aaron for his fears and lack of faith in God. But neither is fully or fairly illustrative of who they are as characters. (For me, that interpretation of Rameses absolves him of too much responsibility. And that reading of Aaron causes too much oversight of his courage and compassion.) Indeed, it’s important also to recognize the choices they make in the film and the paths they walk. I think that there, too, lies a vast difference between them.

* From here: It’s worth noting that Aaron’s role throughout the film is representing his people’s doubts and concerns. But I also think it’s something that develops as he grows/ages…

** I’m referring to the line, “Pharaoh still has the power over our lives.” Also, as I note here [link to be added], there’s really no film-canon evidence that Rameses even knows of Aaron’s or Miriam’s existence. This is interesting to me because it deviates from the Book of Exodus, in which Aaron deals with Pharaoh directly. But, it’s also interesting because of course viewers know how all the characters in the film version are related, and I feel that fans like to project some kind of “rivalry” onto the brothers, usually boiling down to which one is the “real” brother. The line of dialogue above helps underline the grossly uneven power dynamic between Rameses (Pharaoh/Egypt) and Aaron (the Hebrew people).... and this dynamic is one of the many reasons why any “rivalry” over “real brother” status will never sit right with me — especially if it's one that disparages Aaron (to be frank).

*** “Cautious” describes Rameses as a teenager. He loses his uncertainty and self-doubt when he becomes an adult — though he’s still afraid of being “the weak link.” Aaron remains cautious into adulthood, and the source of his uncertainty is markedly different. Not to keep belaboring a point, but Rameses does not want to lose power (at the same time, he doesn’t believe that his power can be threatened); Aaron is afraid of losing his life (losing Miriam, losing everything). [2019 edit] I might also need to rewrite this sentence with a word other than “serious” because I don’t think it’s quite the right word. But I know there must have been a reason why I used it.

i’ll probably be adding a few notes to this space, so… stay tuned. [eta] here are some:

This is a multi-pronged subject, and rather than address the adoption aspects, I decided to concentrate more on the themes, character motivations, dialogue, etc. of/in the movie itself. I tried to think about the implications of the changes that were made to the original story; I’m sure a lot of it is conjecture on my part (but reasonable conjecture?). While writing I also discovered even more depth to the story and characters… which I worry I didn’t include enough of in this post…

I don’t know if I’m going to do another one of these, though I’d like to… and back in August [2016] I did start to write an analysis of a parallel from the first half of the movie, which would examine more directly Aaron’s and Rameses’ relationships with Moses (as well *clears throat loudly* as Aaron’s with Miriam). And of course the adoption stuff is always on my mind. It’s natural to want to show and seek out similarities and differences between the biological and adoptive families in The Prince of Egypt, especially since the characters and their relationships are so rich. At times, the movie draws conscious comparisons: for example, having baby Moses grasp Yocheved’s finger, and later, Tuya’s. I probably tend to view things through a more critical, and personal, lens, but I’ve also given much thought to these parallels. And as usual, there’s just a lot I’d like to write about the siblings…

Last edited: 2/23/17; 1/8/19, some clarifications

[2019 2020 notes and thoughts] Where to begin? I thought I’d have the time to edit this, but I didn’t, so I’ll write more notes later:

Added, in italics: Aaron is an important Jewish figure whose admired qualities include his positive relationship with his younger brother (a notable contrast from all the fraternal strife in the Book of Genesis).

It’s a bit hard to come back to this after another year has passed, mostly because I don’t remember what I was going to write. I think I had changed this sentence to reflect some of what I learned between 2017, which is when I wrote this analysis originally, and 2019. I wanted to make a more specific statement about Aaron being a Jewish figure and ancestor, as well as pull in some Torah interpretation and midrash (for example, that Aaron embraces Moses right away, when he could or might have been more steely towards him; and that the two have a very different partnership and relationship than do Joseph and his brothers, Jacob and Esau, Leah and Rachel ( (“sororal” is a word I didn’t know), etc.).

#the prince of egypt #aaron #rameses #my stuff #my writing #parallels #ah the mud pit scene #i've realized and learned so many things since writing this

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tealchameleon · 6 years ago

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Prince of Egypt rant

I don’t outwardly admit it because it may seem odd to some but my biggest dream in life is to make something beautiful. Whether it’s music, or art, or a movie or a show, I want to make something that can shake people to their core, make them laugh and cry, something they can relate to on a level they might not even really understand. And I want it to be beautiful in a way that someone could talk about it for hours, and pick out all the little pieces of it that make it the masterpiece it is, and feel so strongly about it that it’s like a personal connection.

My version of that is the Prince of Egypt, because I could talk about it’s animation, it’s plot, and its soundtrack forever. It’s so beautifully made, and I feel so deeply about it that I can’t explain it. I listen to the soundtrack for comfort almost, because to me it’s a personal bond I have with it. The songs always move me every time I listen to them, if not make me cry. I don’t even really believe in God, but there’s something about the hope in the movie that makes me feel encouraged.

When You Believe helps me through hard times, and helps me have hope in myself and my future. The duet is so gorgeous, and the lyrics in Hebrew are so lively that it makes me feel stronger almost, or more hopeful...? And after that, when the whole choir joins for the chorus, it’s so overwhelming, and strong, and everyone’s unified and together as a people, and it just resonates hope and perseverance and courage in the face of difficulty, I sob every time. Because “though hope is frail, it’s hard to kill.” And that last part, when they interject “now you will” into the chorus,,, it gets me every time. I may be over analyzing but to me that’s a statement of determination, like this is going to happen for us, it’s our time, and we’re moving forward from the terrible place we were in. I can really relate to the message of that song, and it’s honestly one of my main things I do in order to motivate myself.

And the scene with the burning bush makes me downright weep. The music gets so intense, and Moses is just floating weightless with light all around him and you can see it reflected in his eyes, it’s so impossibly beautiful and it makes me feel this emotion I can really only relate to religion, despite my being an atheist. He’s so close to God in that scene, and it’s breathtaking, kind of like being saved, or being told things will be okay. And of course him crying after the scene doesn’t help me not cry either. The music rises and recedes as this all takes place, and it really makes the seem magical. I listen to this part of the soundtrack just for that feeling it gives, despite the fact that’s it’s not really a song with lyrics.

And the feeling that’s poured into the soundtrack, even the “mundane” parts, it’s still ridiculously amazing. The recurring melodies at different parts of Moses’ life tie the events together. And they set the mood so so well. Like you know what’s going on by the music alone.

Deliver Us, and Yocheved’s lullaby, it’s so tragic and sorrowful, god damn it kills me. They’re begging for hope and an answer, any way out of the pain they endure, the whole song is really just a prayer. The lullaby is stuck in my head constantly.

And The Plagues. Holy shit, I’ve never heard a song that comes down as hard as that. It just resonates power, I mean it’s about God smiting Egypt with all His strength. And the conflict with Moses and Rameses is so heartbreaking, and Moses is losing everything he once had, it’s so emotional... and the choir singing out the plagues and “thus saith the lord” is so strong like it’s got some punch behind it...

Finally, Through Heaven’s Eyes is a favorite of mine. I listen to it when I feel downtrodden, and when I feel like I have nothing and I want more out of my life. That song really makes me think about how it’s better to see things through a different mindset than my own. Helps remind me that money isn’t everything and in the end life is about how good of a person you were, not your wealth or fame. Like “so how do you measure the worth of a man, in wealth or strength or size? In how much he gained, or how much he gave?” Like damn that’s a question that really makes you think... and it’s so poetic in its wording. There’s other deep lyrics too, e.g. “And that's why we share all we have with you, Though there's little to be found, When all you've got is nothing, There's a lot to go around” because yeah money isn’t everything, and it’s people who detach themselves from wealth that are the kindest and most giving, even though the rich have the most to give. Really hits me hard.

As for the animation, it’s stunning. The flowing hair, the background art, the water, the work they put into coordinating the music with the scene, there’s so much detail and effort that anyone who appreciates art at all can see that this movie took a lot and got a lot of hard work put into it. Moses’ speaking is so natural, and the characters’ movements are so fluid, it’s amazing to watch. And you can tell the pure feeling that went into it, like you can almost know the animator has been in love (Moses twirling Tzipporah, and kissing her in her sleep). And you can tell that they understand emotion, again by how Moses cries. When he sobs after the burning bush, and how he crumples on the palace wall after the tenth plague and seeing Rameses’ dead son. They really knew what they were doing when they animated those. And the parallels between Yocheved and Miriam, both looking up with tears in their eyes as they sing, holy shit... that’s heavy. And the blood in the Nile, how Moses can hear God, and it’s almost silent as he places the staff in the water and the blood starts flowing and everyone’s confused, until the soldiers realize what’s happening and they slosh blood everywhere. Damn powerful imagery there. Don’t even get me started with the burning bush scene oh god, it’s so BEAUTIFUL. You can almost feel Moses’ fear and trepidation as he first speaks with the bush, and how he cowers when he’s scolded. And he winces as he recalls his mistakes in Egypt. And the little tumbling rocks and light waves on the floor, and how God’s voice is emphasized on certain words with stronger light. And then, the best part, when Moses is lifted, and wrapped in light, he’s so awestruck and the light in his eyes and his flowing hair and clothes, it looks so divine and it really feels like encountering God myself. The feeling from that scene is so grand and wonderful, and like I said, I relate it to the feeling of being saved and being cared for. It’s the most religious thing I can relate to. It leaves me shaken, but in a good way. All that animation must’ve been hard but damn they did a beautiful beautiful job. And during when you believe, they coordinated the animation with the music perfectly. It starts in darkness before dawn, but gets more joyful as the song progresses. And you see families being happy and people working together. In particular I like how people slowly join the crowd, and it’s awesome how they even included Egyptian soldiers dropping their weapons and joining. Very cool of them to show that, I guess as a reminder that they weren’t all bad and could choose to turn to God. And before you know it the crowd is huge, and the lyrics become Hebrew, then it’s that big chorus... I love that. So pretty. And for the parting of the Red Sea, hot damn... Moses wades out into the water, with the army so close, and the column of fire in the back, and it’s so quiet it’s strange. And he looks up, listening to God, and he hears the words, and just like that he plunges the staff into the water, and the animation of his movement for that is so so so good. Like you can tell he’s putting his whole being into that miracle. And the water soars up, and it’s so majestic and miraculous, it’s breathtaking. The water just shoots out from his feet, and you get a real sense for what is at play in terms of God’s power. And the people with torches passing through, and the whale seen in the water, like who thinks of that?? They do because they wanted to emphasize how spectacular and even terrifying the experience was for the Hebrews. And when the water comes crashing down, that’s a masterpiece in itself. It sweeps the soldiers away and Rameses tries to stand up against it, only to be swept away himself (I dare say thats symbolism for him losing and yielding to God’s power). And when the waves close, the water still laps and vibrates, and you can see the mist on the surface being blown by the wind. So gorgeous...

honestly I could gush about this movies animation and music for days upon days. I’ll never get tired of it. It’s a beautiful masterpiece, a story of hope and overcoming obstacles. I want to make something like that, so people can see things in a similar way. That is my ultimate goal in life.

#rant #this was supposed to be a paragraph but i accidentally wrote an essay #prince of egypt #idk who would even read this whole thing #like its pretty much a movie analysis hot damn #im obsessed #this is so nerdy of me #why cant i be obsessed with normal things #like nah ill be the atheist kid obsessed with a 90s bible movie #i hope there are other nerds like me for this movie bc i feel whack #rants

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a-kosher-dunk · 6 years ago

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moses, aaron, and miriam for the character ask?

Moses

Favorite thing: I admire his ability to listen and empathize. In Torah and in the movie, speaking isn’t his strongest trait -listening to other people is.

Least favorite thing: Pretty much everything young Moses does before learning the truth about his past.

Favorite line: “No kingdom should be built on the backs of slaves.” (I could write a whole essay on how this line gives me “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas” vibes.)brOTP: I know everyone loves that angst with Rameses, but I’m going to say brOTP with Aaron.

OTP: With Tzipporah! (For the canon. See Miriam for my gay AU Tzipporah OTP)

nOTP: Please, AO3, stop shipping him with Rameses.

Random headcanon: He enjoys sewing but didn’t do it much before living in Midian. Seti thought it was undignified for a prince of Egypt.

Unpopular opinion: More of a preference than an opinion, but I’m not terribly interested in the relationship between Rameses and Moses. It’s important, it’s done well in the film, but I just�� don’t care.

Song I associate with him: This is arguably cheating, since it veers into my Torah!Moses headcanons as opposed to my PoE!Moses headcanons. But every time we sing “El Na Refa Na La” in Temple I think about Moses. It’s the healing prayer he sang for Miriam after she was struck with leprosy.

Favorite picture: I like that towards the end, we see him facing away from the audience. It reminds me of when everyone in Temple turns to face the ark.

Aaron

Favorite thing: How protective he is towards Miriam.

Least favorite thing: His defeatist attitude at the water-to-blood scene, when he says, “Didn’t you see? The priests did the same thing you did.” I understand that it’s tough to be optimistic in oppressive situations and not everyone can be Miriam, but also, the entire Nile just turned to blood! That means something!

Favorite line: “When did you start caring about slaves? Was it when you found out that you were one of us?” I have deep respect for characters who call out the protagonist.

brOTP: With Tzipporah. I know they only interact like twice, but I could see them bonding over being sarcastic.

OTP: I’ve never thought about Aaron’s romantic life before now, so I’m going to say whoever makes him happy, because he deserves it.

nOTP: I don’t know. Are there even ships for Aaron? I could see someone writing an incest ship, which would definitely be a nOTP.

Random headcanon: He has a really good memory for written words. Give him enough time and he can memorize just about anything he reads.

Unpopular opinion: Aaron deserves more love from the fandom. I promise there’s just as much angst potential with him as there is with Rameses.

Song I associate with him: “Hey Brother,” cover by Jada and Kyson Facer.

Favorite picture: More hugs for Aaron!

Miriam

Favorite thing: Her sense of hope. I tend to be a pessimistic person, so I admire her certainty that the future will be better, no matter how bleak the present is.

Least favorite thing: She can be stubborn, which I respect. But I also recognize that it’s not a great trait to have, especially when you’re living in slavery. Can you imagine how many times she must have tried to argue against an Egyptian and needed Aaron to step in and defuse the situation?

Favorite line: “We are not afraid / although we know there’s much to fear.”

brOTP: With Aaron. I love imagining what their relationship was like before reuniting with Moses.

OTP: Still Miriam/Tzipporah. Though I have a half-serious crossover AU planned out with her and Esmerelda from Hunchback of Notre Dame (Disney version).

nOTP: Allegedly Miriam/Rameses is a thing that someone has written, which, uhhh… no.

Random headcanon: She loves singing, and has composed a few songs for herself. I’ve heard something about a midrash that claims she wrote “Mi Chamocha”, and whether this is an actual midrash or not, it’s an idea I personally like.

Unpopular opinion: I would have kind of liked to see Miriam’s and Aaron’s personalities reversed. Miriam is very much the faith/optimism to Aaron’s doubt/pessimism in the movie. While this works well for the plot, in Numbers 12, Miriam is the challenging one while Aaron, throughout most of Exodus, is unquestioningly supportive. I don’t mind the direction Prince of Egypt took, but I’d like to see a version of the Exodus story where Miriam is the doubter and Aaron is the faithful optimist. There’s something gender-normative about the way their personalities play out in the movie, which, again, isn’t necessarily a bad thing. But I’d like to see something different done in a different movie.

Song I associate with her: “Hands” by Jewel.

Favorite picture: Sure, just hit me right in the feels, why not.

#prince of egypt #asks #moses #aaron #miriam #poe headcanons

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outroshooky · 6 years ago

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Questions Tag!

Tagged by @tendershepherd (Danke Shep!)

Tagging: @a-heart-full-of-javert, @vankoya, @joonbird (If y’all’ve already been tagged or want to skip this, go for it)

1. Nicknames: Written, Seagull, Scuttle, Yun Mango Dango, Moon Yong (thanks @lolnxcole)

2. Gender: Female

3. Zodiac: Aries

4. Height: 5′5″

5. Age: 16

6. Time: 2:55pm (EST)

7. Favorite Bands/Solo Artists: Oh boy, there are a lot of these. Favorite bands would have to be Panic! At The Disco, Fall Out Boy, BTS, CHRVCHES, Imagine Dragons, Caravan Palace, Monstercat (technically a record company, but oh well), and twenty one pilots. Favorite solo artists would have to be blackbear, Agust D, Troye Sivan, Tristam, Muzzy, Dion Timmer, Conro, Grant, WRLD, San Holo, Karma Fields, Rameses B, KSHMR, TheFatRat, Alan Walker, Galantis, Avicii, Zedd, Loote... virtually anything electronic.

8. Song Stuck in my head: Where Did You Come From by BTS.

9. Last movie I saw: Pretty In Pink about a month ago... It wasn't a voluntary decision.

10. Last thing I googled: "BTS love and support memes" for love and support.

11. Other blogs: Nada.

12. Why I chose my username: I'm a very indecisive writer, and I erase and rewrite constantly before working out a final product. I originally selected the blog name "writtenthenerased", but mistyped it as "writtenthanerased" in a text to a friend. I didn't catch the typo until he asked me to clarify between two meanings, one of which was "Do you mean it as in 'I'd rather be written than erased'?" I thought it personally fit me rather well, and I selected writtenthanerased as my blog name.

13. Following: Twenty-eight blogs over a wide variety of topics: yourdaily, interior design, self-help, writing tips, best friends' blogs, art tips, and Bangtan writers.

14. Average amount of sleep: Either five hours, nine, or none at all. I'm a high school student, so I really don't have the concept of a sleep schedule.

15. Lucky Number: 7!

16. What am I wearing: An oversized high school band sweatshirt, a gray Monstercat Uncaged t-shirt and pajama pants.

17. Dream job: Airline pilot, professional procrastinator.

18. Dream trip: Since I've already gone on my dream Europe trip, I'm currently in the works with a friend about a Southeast Asia trip to Japan and South Korea. Owl cafés? Owl cafés.

19. Favorite Food: My grandmother's pasta, which is utterly heavenly, or strawberry bubble tea.

20. Play an instrument: Clarinet, handbells, piano.

21. Favorite song (right now): I can't pick just one, sadly: Airplane Part 2 and Fake Love by BTS, Your Side Of The Bed by Loote, Wanderlust by blackbear, Questions by Tristam, an Airplane Part 2/Havana mashup, and a Monster/Save Me mashup on YouTube.

22. Play(ed) any sport: I played softball for two years before being hit in the head and realizing that catching things wasn't my calling. I have, though, played tennis for nine or ten years and counting.

23. Hair color: Dirty blonde.

24. Eye color: Namely green, although it changes to a more bluish or brownish shade depending on the light.

25. Languages you speak/are learning: I speak English and some various German profanities. I'm currently in year two of four of my high school Latin education. Yeet cum fiducia! (Side note, I'm not responsible for whatever links come up when you input that phrase into Google)

26. Random fact: So this is going to sound really freaking weird, but I'm actually a student pilot! I've been flying since I was thirteen (yes, here in the United States, it is legal to fly a single-engine plane before you can drive a car. Lovely lawmaking, isn't it?) and have nearly enough hours to apply for my private pilot’s license (a minimum of forty). As I just turned sixteen two months ago, over the summer I will be going to a flight camp for three weeks, upon which I will take my first solo flight! I'm looking to pursue this in college and obtain a Bachelor's in Aeronautical Science; from there I'll hop into the airlines and hopefully start working my way up from there. I've always been passionate about aviation, and I'm an air show junkie who's been to shows and air tattoos in numerous states and countries. It's a weird hobby for a sixteen year old to have, but hey, I like a little diversity in my life.

27. Describe yourself: I’m an INFJ on the Meyers-Briggs scale, and a 1w2 on the Enneagram.

To be honest, I’ve spent more time thinking about this question than was probably necessary, but I struggle to accurately sum myself up in a brief paragraph, perhaps because I’m not quite sure who I am yet. Bear with me, this might be a little long.

People tell me I’m intelligent, self-reliant, mature, and wise; apparently I’d make a good therapist, and I’d have to agree. I’ll listen to you even if you’re my worst enemy, because everyone deserves to be heard, no matter what our relationship status is. I’m a natural mediator, and it takes a lot to get me truly angry, but once I am, it’s not a pretty sight. I’m painfully selfless, maybe too selfless at times, and I’ve learned that I give people too many chances. I trust a little too quickly, but I’m also terrified of telling people my inner thoughts (what a weird conundrum, huh?). I’m hung up on the “what if”s, they’ll haunt me until the end of time. I’m anxious; I love to be alone, but I’m scared to be lonely. I hope for the best and assume the worst, and the end product is usually somewhere in the middle.

I’m usually fairly quiet because if it’s a weekday, chances are I haven’t slept well. I rarely take the initiative in conversations, but god, get me on a topic I love? I’ll talk your ear off for hours about Overwatch and European History and the F-18. My friends say I’m sarcastically savage, but also have a heart of gold, and will do anything for the people I love. I love without abandon; I like to assume the best in people and find the good in every bad situation, seek out the little things that bring joy to a darker day. I create endlessly, through writing and drawing and architecture and dreaming. My mind is always thinking, always conceiving, and rarely does it ever stop, but I’m painfully perfectionist; I criticize constantly, from the ragged edges of my chewed-short fingernails to the sentence I just typed on a blank Google doc. I run from the past and look to the future, and it seems so far away, but I blink and I’m suddenly looking at junior year of high school and the world of college and student loans and sweet, sweet independence. It’s right here, I’m right on the verge, and just about when I think I can see who I actually am, the kaleidoscope turns a little to the right, and there’s a different design in the eyepiece.

It’s been turning a lot lately, it seems. I’ve lost a lot of people, been burned at the edges, discovered what it’s like to have everything fall out from underneath you. But you know what? I’m still here, and that kaleidoscope is still rotating, because each time another block has been pulled out, I see yet another side of myself I never knew existed, and even in just a few months, I’ve learned countless lessons about people and feelings and even my own self. Thus, I’ll keep looking through the eyepiece and watching the pieces turn, beautiful and bright in their design.

Because I can’t do much else other than hope and dream, push forward to the future, to the days when things will work themselves out, to the moment when I can work myself out.

And that day, I think, I’ll finally see the whole mosaic.

#writtenthanerased #ask written #questions tag #ask me questions #ask me anything #i was supposed to start studying twenty-four minutes ago #whoops #i wanted to get this done #this became a complete ramble #whoops again

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nightcoremoon · 4 years ago

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I might start a war with either moral guardians or discoursers here but either we should stop glorifying world mythologies since they're all full of incest OR we should agree that real life incest is bad but fictional incest is fine I guess OR since you shouldn't disparage any culture's religious beliefs we should assume that world mythology all has truth to it so we shouldn't have an issue with invest beyond social taboo and the whole biological reproduction problem.

except, wait, all those options fucking suck.

alright so let's take shinto, the religion of japan. at its roots, izanagi and izanami- twin siblings and also lovers- are responsible for creating japan, the sun moon & atmosphere (amaterasu tsukuyomi and susanoo), and humanity. shinto implies that twincest was totally fine, a good thing actually, which is... yikes. I don't seek to disparage japan or shinto but something's just icky there. we know that if blood siblings have children there's a very high likelihood the baby will die, be infertile, or have horrible defects. so don't fuck your sister. "but you can have sex using prophylactics to prevent pregnancy so therefore safe sex between siblings should be fine save for the social taboo" shut up shut up shut up SHUT UP. I mean you're right but ew. social taboo is still important though. "but why is it taboo" because it's incest shut up idiot. "squick isn't a good enough argument to ban it it just means you as an individual won't do it" I am going to put a fucking claymore between every single one of your ribs. "you're using a white lens to judge ancient japan" maybe so but don't. fuck. your. sister.

moving on.

egyptian mythology. shu and tefnut had sex and had geb and nut- siblings- who had sex and made isis, osiris, nephthys, and set. isis and osiris- siblings- had horus. osiris and nephthys- siblings- had anubis. set and horus had thoth. I think. this is fucking weird and gross and I don't like it but this means that ancient egyptian culture was also okay with sibling incest, worshipped it in fact. man, no wonder moses was like "hey bro that's weird, please either love the abrahamic god or let us leave" and his brother who might have been rameses was like no fuck you and then, well, passover happened and the red sea got parted and all that jazz.

"so you're saying that judeochristianity is the only valid religion?" no, come on, adam was eve's biological father, god didn't make any other humans, so their kids would've had to all fuck each other down the family tree to noah, and then noah ham shem and japheth's wives and kids were the only humans left alive so they'd have all had to fuck each other, but at least it wasn't like OPEN about it. and who knows maybe god made more humans but we don't religious know because the israeli gov't controlled the jewish history 2000 years ago, the evil papacy controlled the christian history since then, and then hitler destroyed a whole bunch of really important jewish relics because he's a fucking evil asshole. but like. that isn't important anyway because god literally killed everybody except for noah's family. and the only people who believe the flood myth that society bothers writing down is the dipshits who said that creation was 4000bc and the flood was 2300bc because YEAH IM REALLY SURE THE INDISPUTABLE EVIDENCE THAT THE UNIVERSE IS BILLIONS OF YEARS OLD IS ALL WRONG, SCALIGER, YOU STUPID ASS. anyway that doesn't matter either because why would the corrupt evil oligarchies delete the evidence that incest didn't happen unless they either a) liked incest or b) didn't find any proof that incest didn't happen and so couldn't have destroyed it anyway since it wasn't there.

greek mythology. need I say more?

norse mythology, not so bad but Sinfjötli's parents were brother and sister. sigh. god damn it vikings. you were so close. granted the parents were murderers so hey maybe nords come out on top here. but then that would mean all the white supremacists were right and we can't have that because that's stupid.

I can't really speak on much else, I don't know shit about hindus, sikhs, jains, zoroastrians, and I really don't wanna do hours of research to say oh good another culture that didn't worship incest so I'm just gonna assume that at least half of what I don't know is incestless and the reason why the things I do know what I know are all because of the holy roman empire just... killing everyone who didn't join them. history is written by the victor and unfortunately it seems the catholics won a lot of wars because they're all murdering bastards.

so if you love incest you're siding with genocide

there I fixed it. we have incomplete data because everyone died.

so don't fuck your sister

0 notes

verdigrisprowl · 7 years ago

Text

Mar 31 Bevel’s Movie Night - Rugrats Passover & The Prince of Egypt

Today, Prowl learned about human history. It’s wild, but like, not really any more wild than Cybertron’s early history? He can handle a talking shrub with hologram flames that hands out snakes with stick alt-modes.

Today Bevel 7:30 pm *she's a little subdued tonight, but the room's set up, and she's sitting on the floor fiddling with something laying on the floor in front of her* Ratchet 7:33 pm *pops in* Bevel 7:34 pm *looks up and smiles at Ratchet* Hi, Ratchet. Ratchet 7:34 pm Heya, kiddo. Whatcha got there? Bevel 7:37 pm Part of my ship's engine. I gotta fix it before I leave. Ratchet 7:39 pm Oh! *flomps down beside* What's the issue with it? Bevel 7:41 pm I think *she points to a mess of wires inside the panel she's working on* something got crossed wrong. Or a circuit board is wrong. I can fix the first one tonight but the circuit board means I gotta weld stuff. I cannot do that during the documentaries. Ratchet 7:44 pm Hmm. Doesn't seem like too much trouble, then. Bevel 7:45 pm ((this is so bad, I'm gonna just... Ratchet 7:45 pm [[ it is truly terrible ]] ItsyBitsySpyers 7:47 pm *Soundwave creeps in, smelling faintly of smoke and melted plastic. He'll sit down like nothing's wrong and give the other two calm nods.* Bevel 7:48 pm No, just annoying. *she sticks her glossa out at the reek from Soundwave* Hi, Soundwave. ItsyBitsySpyers 7:48 pm *What are you calling a reek. FAINTLY.* Ratchet 7:49 pm *he smell bad* ItsyBitsySpyers 7:49 pm *LISTEN HERE* Ratchet 7:49 pm *DECEPTICON STANK* ItsyBitsySpyers 7:49 pm *This is the scent of MORALS* Ratchet 7:50 pm *Ratchet doesn't mean that he knows Soundwave is not a Decepticon* ItsyBitsySpyers 7:51 pm [[What will you be showing tonight?]] Bevel 7:52 pm Passover documentaries from Earth and something Miko said I would like. ((gonna start on the hour so if everyone needs food, drinks, potty breaks, now is a good time. Ratchet 7:54 pm [[ this is reminding me there was a really cute Jewish family who I was on the same plane with on the way both to and from TFCon last year ]] Bevel 7:54 pm ((heee Bevel 7:57 pm One of them is about a prince in Egypt? Ratchet 7:58 pm Sounds interesting. I've met a prince from.... huh. I can't remember what country he was from. Bevel 7:59 pm Was he nice? Ratchet 7:59 pm Yeah! He helped the Aerialbots out. ItsyBitsySpyers 7:59 pm [[Ah, he knows that story. He has seen it before. It is most satisfying.]] Bevel 8:00 pm Awesome. *to both things, she goes back to poking at her project* Ratchet 8:01 pm [[ THAT is Prince of Egypt music ]] VProwl 8:02 pm ((... i can't find a chat log for it so i guess prowl hasn't seen it before. has it been since before i was on prowl that i saw it in a stream??)) Ratchet 8:03 pm [[ last time i saw it in stream u were drift and i was sadie ]] VProwl 8:03 pm ((i DID find the stream log on drift, so i guess it's been... almost 3 years... wow)) Ratchet 8:03 pm [[ unless there's been a time since then??? i thought maybe there was.... ]] Bevel 8:04 pm ((Oh good I don't feel so bad reshowing it then VProwl 8:04 pm ((i thought there was too, but i don't have a log, so...)) ItsyBitsySpyers 8:05 pm ((someone showed it like a year ago but i think i'm the only one who went?)) Ratchet 8:06 pm [[ i know whirl has seen it at least twice. i was there when whirl saw it a second time and was still delighted by heqet ]] [[ he pointed it out to windchill ]] Bevel 8:06 pm *giggles quietly at Angelica's idea of freedom* ItsyBitsySpyers 8:06 pm *Soundwave settles in to see this story. He hasn't seen this version of it.* Bevel 8:08 pm ...mom acts like this sometimes if you mention Optimus. It is less funny when she does it. VProwl 8:08 pm *A human holiday. Those are dangerous.* ... When in this holiday? Bevel 8:08 pm Right now! ItsyBitsySpyers 8:08 pm *Soundwave thinks it's hilarious, but he's not sad about the Prime's loss.* VProwl 8:09 pm Oh. *If anons were going to try to harass him into celebrating it, they probably would have done so by now. He must be safe.* All right. Bevel 8:09 pm Hi, Prowl. ItsyBitsySpyers 8:10 pm *That sounds like Laserbeak's requirements for a holiday* Ratchet 8:10 pm Oh! Hey, Prowl. VProwl 8:10 pm ... Hi. *Oh. Yeah. He didn't really greet everyone. He sort of just snuck in as it was starting.* ItsyBitsySpyers 8:10 pm *Nods to Prowl, who is almost certainly going to sit with Ratchet, and continues listening* Bevel 8:11 pm Why not the other babies? ItsyBitsySpyers 8:11 pm [[He dislikes the youngling with the yellow hair.]] ItsyBitsySpyers 8:12 pm [[HA.]] Bevel 8:12 pm *laughs* VProwl 8:12 pm *Soundwave is right; Prowl does so.* Maybe the others didn't have baskets. Ratchet 8:13 pm Hehehe. I've done that a time or two. *Ratchet is on the floor with Bevel* *just so Prowl knows where he's sitting* VProwl 8:13 pm *On the floor he is.* Bevel 8:14 pm *floor bots yay* VProwl 8:15 pm ... Building a pyramid upside-down is actually a far more impressive architectural achievement than the regular way. ItsyBitsySpyers 8:16 pm [[Clearly, the pharoah knows nothing.]] VProwl 8:18 pm ((... i didn't know the subs could keep going while the picture is frozen)) ItsyBitsySpyers 8:18 pm ((...neither did i)) Bevel 8:18 pm ((hulu really ItsyBitsySpyers 8:19 pm ((i was sitting here like 'oh that's clever, not having to animate all that')) Ratchet 8:19 pm [[ me too lmao ]] ItsyBitsySpyers 8:21 pm [[Toning it down for the bitlets, he sees.]] ((LMAO THE PHONE)) VProwl 8:23 pm They could have chosen better actors for the dramatic reenactment. It's not very dramatic. ItsyBitsySpyers 8:23 pm [[You'll like the other version better, he thinks.]] Bevel 8:23 pm Is it more serious? ItsyBitsySpyers 8:23 pm [[Quite.]] Bevel 8:24 pm *nods* Ratchet 8:25 pm *snickers* VProwl 8:25 pm ((that pun oh my god)) ItsyBitsySpyers 8:25 pm ((the baby bath water joke omg)) Ratchet 8:25 pm *baby with the bathwater* ItsyBitsySpyers 8:26 pm *Soundwave isn't familiar with the expression or he'd have found that hilarious.* Bevel 8:26 pm So much for Pharaoh. ItsyBitsySpyers 8:27 pm [[Indeed.]] VProwl 8:27 pm ... Somehow I feel like the original story was... bloodier. ItsyBitsySpyers 8:28 pm *Soft huffing. Prowl isn't wrong.* Ratchet 8:28 pm [[ that was really cute though i haven't seen rugrats passover before ]] [[ *wiggles* ]] [[ honestly we could watch this movie every week and i would never get tired of it ]] Bevel 8:29 pm ((I love the Rugrats Passover so much ((same ItsyBitsySpyers 8:29 pm ((PoE is hard to watch sometimes but i love it so)) Bevel 8:30 pm I guess we will find out now, Prowl. This is a much longer documentary. *she forgets her tinkering for the moment* ItsyBitsySpyers 8:31 pm *Soundwave scoots forward on his seat and rests his chin on his hands. A history lesson, a story he can get behind, and music. What's not to like?* VProwl 8:31 pm *They're singing. And Prowl's already on high alert for dogs.* Bevel 8:31 pm ((omg prowl ItsyBitsySpyers 8:31 pm *No, no. That's Monday.* Ratchet 8:33 pm *leans back on his palms* *this music. mm.* VProwl 8:33 pm *Well. It's already bloodier than the last documentary.* ItsyBitsySpyers 8:35 pm [[This youngling was extremely fortunate to have avoided certain death so many times.]] Ratchet 8:35 pm [[ what i appreciate most about this movie as an adult, tho, is that there's not a single damn white person in it. ...... at least in the way that they're animated. ]] Bevel 8:36 pm ((same VProwl 8:36 pm ((v good job they did there)) ItsyBitsySpyers 8:36 pm ((ye)) VProwl 8:36 pm ... Do humans usually adopt each other that fast? Bevel 8:37 pm *shrugs* ItsyBitsySpyers 8:38 pm [[He has not seen many tales of human adoption.]] *Huff.* [[One might say they have a nose for trouble.]] Bevel 8:39 pm This looks like a fun race. Ratchet 8:39 pm *sputtering* SOUNDWAVE. ItsyBitsySpyers 8:39 pm *Bobbing quietly.* Bevel 8:39 pm *giggles* VProwl 8:40 pm Pff. Bevel 8:41 pm *frowns* Bad dad. Bevel 8:43 pm ((my new thing, that line kills me every time ItsyBitsySpyers 8:44 pm *Low, irritable buzz.* Bevel 8:45 pm *scowls* VProwl 8:45 pm Ugh. Bevel 8:45 pm Ha. *and she's back to frowning* VProwl 8:46 pm ... Does he have ANY experience in architecture? ItsyBitsySpyers 8:46 pm [[Presenting another living being as a gratification toy. They deserved to have their fingers bitten off by her.]] [[And it is unlikely.]] VProwl 8:50 pm Hm. *okay the architecture thing isn't as offensive as the slavery thing. but it's pretty offensive.* Ratchet 8:50 pm *did YOU have any experience Prowl* Bevel 8:51 pm Oh he got it. ItsyBitsySpyers 8:51 pm [[Music can be a powerful cause of recall.]] VProwl 8:52 pm *he had one hell of a crammed education, five architecture and construction experts guiding him, and the willingness to turn to the people who were supposed to be working for him and tell them he was clueless and needed their help.* Bevel 8:52 pm *nods and hums* ItsyBitsySpyers 8:54 pm [[He would like to see the archives from this time. He is sure they do not move like this, but they must still contain many stories.]] VProwl 8:54 pm *certainly hopes they don't move like this.* Ratchet 8:55 pm [[ it is raining real hard and butter* is lookin out the window all interested like ]] ItsyBitsySpyers 8:55 pm [[You deserved to be risen against, human.]] Bevel 8:55 pm Yeah. VProwl 8:56 pm The best way to not be risen against is to be the kind of person against whom it would not be beneficial to rise up. ItsyBitsySpyers 8:57 pm *Nodding.* ItsyBitsySpyers 9:00 pm [[Good.]] Bevel 9:00 pm *gasps* ItsyBitsySpyers 9:01 pm *Knew it was coming and still took every delight in seeing the whip-holder thrown.* Ratchet 9:04 pm [[ one of these days....... ONE OF THESE DAYS i am gonna get around to writing a prince of egypt/transformers mash up type fic with megatron as moses and optimus prime as rameses ]] Bevel 9:05 pm ...whoa, is that a thing that really happens on Earth? ItsyBitsySpyers 9:05 pm [[It is.]] Ratchet 9:05 pm [[ because in my heart of hearts i am a dirty decepticon sympathizer ]] Bevel 9:06 pm Does Cybertron have them too? ItsyBitsySpyers 9:06 pm [[The rust sea has a version of them.]] Bevel 9:07 pm Oh hey it is the bitey girl. *mental note to never go to the Rust Sea* ItsyBitsySpyers 9:09 pm *Is gonna try his damnedest to see that pattern anyway.* Ratchet 9:09 pm That's a lovely tapestry. Bevel 9:09 pm *...this is Bevel's favorite song so far* ItsyBitsySpyers 9:09 pm *Feeler wiggle. It's hard not to be caught up in this one.* VProwl 9:10 pm *a thread can certainly see its part in a tapestry; it just needs some well-placed mirrors.* *............ and eyes, but.* ItsyBitsySpyers 9:11 pm ((amazon what is your PROBLEM lately)) Bevel 9:11 pm ((amazon I'm gonna VProwl 9:11 pm ((amazon needs to get its shit together)) Ratchet 9:14 pm [[ omg i never noticed the reprise of that theme before...... ]] [[ this is ur home ]] Bevel 9:14 pm ((masterpiece of a movie Ratchet 9:14 pm [[ it's so good ]] ItsyBitsySpyers 9:15 pm *Ohhh, the part with the voices. It intrigues him so.* VProwl 9:16 pm *... what in the world is going on here?* *hologram? some kind of bioluminescence?* VProwl 9:18 pm *kind of a rude deity. he raised reasonable objections.* ItsyBitsySpyers 9:19 pm *Soundwave has no idea. The first time he saw it, he thought the human was hallucinating. He stopped thinking that after the... whatever the substance was that moved him around. Now he doesn't have a clue.* Bevel 9:20 pm *is fairly certain it was the human's version of Primus. whoever. whatever it is* VProwl 9:20 pm *well sure, but if primus had started talking out of a weird non-burning fire prowl would be asking how HE did it too* Bevel 9:21 pm *magic?* ItsyBitsySpyers 9:22 pm *Ask him how he made the carved tabletop move ilke the scene in this film while you're at it, Prowl. Soundwave still can't puzzle that out.* VProwl 9:22 pm *magic is merely insufficiently understood science* Bevel 9:22 pm *if you say so, Prowl* ItsyBitsySpyers 9:23 pm [[He wonders how long the Moses human was gone.]] [[Egotistical, isn't he.]] Omicron 9:24 pm *IceQueen peers in* ItsyBitsySpyers 9:25 pm [[Good evening, Ice Queen.]] Bevel 9:25 pm *waves to Ice Queen with her spanner* Omicron 9:25 pm O,o Bevel 9:25 pm Is this gonna be the gods fighting now? The human did not mention this in the first story. ItsyBitsySpyers 9:25 pm *Whirl's voice:* [][][]Praise Heqet.[][][] *The mech isn't here to do it himself. Someone had to.* VProwl 9:26 pm ... Is THIS where that was from? ItsyBitsySpyers 9:26 pm [[It is.]] Omicron 9:26 pm *wonders at the spanner, settles down on the floor in her bot mode with murmering hatchling on her shoulders* hello VProwl 9:26 pm Whirl worships a human Egyptian god? ItsyBitsySpyers 9:26 pm [[Apparently.]] VProwl 9:27 pm I'd assumed Heqet was—I don't know. A gun manufacturer. ItsyBitsySpyers 9:27 pm *Soundwave IMMEDIATELY shakes up a storm* Bevel 9:27 pm God fight. *points to the snakes* ItsyBitsySpyers 9:28 pm [[That does seem like the kind of thing he would have worshiped, doesn't it.]] Omicron 9:29 pm hmm Bevel 9:30 pm 😔 Omicron 9:32 pm Racer: *climbing down Icy's back* Bevel 9:33 pm *sits forward so she can see what Moses is going to do this time* ItsyBitsySpyers 9:34 pm [[There is your 'bloodier'.]] VProwl 9:35 pm I didn't mean literally, but—yes, I suppose so. ItsyBitsySpyers 9:36 pm *He knows what Prowl meant. There will be that, too.* Omicron 9:36 pm well this is an interesting way of doing a speach ItsyBitsySpyers 9:37 pm *Soundwave's feeler claws cilck. A favorite sequence comes now.* VProwl 9:37 pm *Doesn't consider faith alone much of a counterbalance to the power to take lives, but okay.* Omicron 9:37 pm *a hatchling might be eyeing the feeler, or the derection* Bevel 9:37 pm *Bevel changes her mind, this is her favorite song* VProwl 9:38 pm *Plagues and small creatures are a good counterbalance.* *... And fireballs.* ItsyBitsySpyers 9:39 pm [[Stubborn fool.]] Bevel 9:39 pm *so faith?* Omicron 9:39 pm very VProwl 9:40 pm *No no, not faith. A big friend with bigger powers than their enemy. Whether or not they have faith in said friend doesn't change that friend's power.* ItsyBitsySpyers 9:40 pm [[How his own citizens did not rise against him for subjecting them to this to save his own pride, he does not know.]] Bevel 9:40 pm *maybe it does for the friend but Bevel doesn't know anything about this particular god* VProwl 9:40 pm Propaganda blaming it on Moses and the Hebrews, I'm sure. Omicron 9:40 pm guards? VProwl 9:42 pm ... When lower castes try to demand equality to upper castes, the leader refuses, and the lower castes cause trouble, who do the upper castes generally blame for the trouble? The leader, for standing up to social upheaval, or the lower castes, for not knowing their place? Omicron 9:43 pm *rumbles, and pets her hatchling's back* ItsyBitsySpyers 9:44 pm *Soft vent.*

[[All right. He knows. He simply - wishes it was not always so. Here. And... other places.]] Omicron 9:44 pm ........what ItsyBitsySpyers 9:44 pm [[It is as he says. The first creation of every Egyptian will perish.]] VProwl 9:44 pm ... Mm. Omicron 9:44 pm >C ItsyBitsySpyers 9:45 pm *There it is again. The... whatever that is. Smoke?* Lingo 9:45 pm ...So an alien comes out of a wormhole and eats all the human firstborn? Bevel 9:45 pm I think it is the human's Primus. Lingo 9:45 pm How can it tell which is which? Omicron 9:46 pm this....they take out everything on the youngest that can not defend or have a say in what their elders do? Bevel 9:46 pm Well, the Hebrew's god. The Egyptians have different ones. Lingo 9:46 pm well that was distressing. Bevel 9:46 pm *who sadly aren't doing much to stop things, maybe they thought the slaves should be freed as well?* VProwl 9:46 pm ... A brutal god. But most stories of gods I'm familiar with tend to be. ItsyBitsySpyers 9:47 pm [[The humans with the blood painted on their doors were not touched. That is how it knows. And only those forced to be slaves knew to do it.]] Lingo 9:47 pm I've heard a few stories about Egyptian gods. They seem to operate like reality tv casts Bevel 9:47 pm Casts? Like a play? VProwl 9:47 pm And brutality is sometimes a necessity. Omicron 9:47 pm *Icy gives a low growling in her spot, racer tries to minic* Lingo 9:48 pm Well more like a bunch of drunken people who have no business sharing a house together ItsyBitsySpyers 9:48 pm [[It is retribution for what was done to the creations of the slaves under their rule.]]

*He has always disliked that younglings were forced to suffer, but... what else could be done?* Bevel 9:48 pm Oh. Lingo 9:48 pm than like a cast of a play VProwl 9:48 pm Sometimes. *he's not going to openly support or criticize this one's choices.* Lingo 9:49 pm There's apparently quite a bit of hooplah concerning who receives the semen ItsyBitsySpyers 9:49 pm *Soundwave nods at Prowl.* [[What do sailors have to do with gods?]] Bevel 9:49 pm Seamen? Lingo 9:49 pm No more like a milky human byproduct They seem very hung up on it ItsyBitsySpyers 9:49 pm [[Ugh. Human ooze.]] [[Please, say no more.]] Bevel 9:50 pm Ha. Omicron 9:50 pm *snorts* Lingo 9:50 pm Apparently there is a kind of lettuce who also produces a similar textured milky white byproduct Omicron 9:51 pm yeah, lets not get into those human oddies Lingo 9:51 pm ....and something about necrophilia? but I think that might be an unrelated story to the lettuce. Bevel 9:51 pm *shrugs, humans and their gods are strange she guesses* ((so glad they actually put the words instead of [singing in Hebrew] Omicron 9:52 pm at least there are many more young ones that have been freed Ratchet 9:52 pm [[ YES i've always wondered what the words were that was really nice ]] Omicron 9:53 pm ((yes!)) ItsyBitsySpyers 9:53 pm *...He may not be THAT fond of organics, but he's oddly pleased by the humans' happiness. Look at how thrilled they are to be freed. He remembers moments like that.* Bevel 9:53 pm Cybertronian stories about the Thirteen are weird too. I can send you some. Lingo 9:53 pm You can leave out the ones about Micronus.

I'm not speaking to him currently. VProwl 9:53 pm ... They probably could have got the same result with much less loss of life if, instead of killing every firstborn offspring, their deity had just killed the pharaoh. Bevel 9:53 pm *nods* Ok. ItsyBitsySpyers 9:54 pm [[He has thought that a few times, himself.]] [[THAT is a power.]] VProwl 9:54 pm *gestures* And the pharaoh wouldn't be around to send an army, either. Bevel 9:54 pm There is one about Solus that I think someone who did not like her wrote about her getting murdered by one of the other Thirteen who was being really creepy. It was stu--*distracted by awesome fire* Lingo 9:55 pm Egyptians killed pharaohs all the time, though. Less than a day someone else would have the reigns Omicron 9:55 pm O-o primus it takes all the fire breathers on the ship to do a firestorm close to that Bevel 9:56 pm *this is so much cooler than the first version* VProwl 9:56 pm *how many things can that stick do* ItsyBitsySpyers 9:56 pm *Isn't it, though.* Lingo 9:56 pm It'd be like killing the prime. Yeah there's a hit to morale but the matrix just gets handed off to the next guy in line and if he dies it goes off to someone else and so on. The fancy hat is the same. Ratchet 9:56 pm .... *and Ratchet thought he didn't like SOUNDWAVE* Bevel 9:57 pm ((I would like to say that in the original story, Aaron was actually really awesome and it is my only complaint about this movie that he's mostly relegated to whining here Omicron 9:57 pm .........skybite? *Icequeen and Racer perk up* ItsyBitsySpyers 9:57 pm *...He would almost like to walk within a sea like that himself. Imagine all the strange underwater life forms he could see up close. Not just octopuses, either.* VProwl 9:58 pm ... What's keeping the fish from swimming out of the wall. Does the same forcefield that's keeping the water up also keep the fish in, or are they able to see where the water ends and avoid it? ItsyBitsySpyers 9:58 pm [[He assumes it is the field.]] Omicron 9:58 pm *sound wave could do a see visit sometime with Icy's crew* Bevel 9:58 pm Killing the Prime is to a big deal. Omicron 9:59 pm .....well.... that's inadvertent tactics? VProwl 9:59 pm *gestures* And the pharaoh ends up dying anyway. Ratchet 9:59 pm Thank you, Bevel. ItsyBitsySpyers 9:59 pm [[The idiot did not see a trap as plain as the evening and morning star he claimed to be.]] Lingo 9:59 pm Well yes it's a big deal but it doesn't upset the daily grind for more than a week Ratchet 10:00 pm *stands up* Have a good evening, Prowl. Bevel 10:00 pm Yeah it does! *she slams the spanner down onto the floor* Ratchet 10:00 pm Thank you for the movies, Bevel. ItsyBitsySpyers 10:00 pm [[Goodnight, Ratchet.]] VProwl 10:00 pm Evening, Ratchet. Omicron 10:00 pm have a peaceful evening medic VProwl 10:01 pm Even if it WASN'T an obvious trap, who would walk between through tenuous walls of death liquid without the-- oh, he isn't dead. Without the reassurance that the being who SPLIT those walls is on your side? ItsyBitsySpyers 10:01 pm [[A final miracle. He should have been dashed against the stones.]] Bevel 10:01 pm It upsets everything. VProwl 10:01 pm *Dryly.* Aren't miracles supposed to be good? Omicron 10:02 pm he should have been crushed by the water pressure alone, let alone it coming down most mecha can't survive water pressure at depths alike to that ItsyBitsySpyers 10:02 pm *Light venting at Prowl.* [[He enjoys every opportunity to see that documentary. Thank you for giving him another.]] Bevel 10:03 pm *she might have been able to shrug Lingo's comment off last week but the weld over that wound has been torn clean off with the loss of the Star Saber* Lingo 10:03 pm *Whoo hokay gonna be backing out of range of slamming tools* Bevel 10:04 pm *fuming on the floor like y'do* ItsyBitsySpyers 10:04 pm *Soundwave's just. Gonna stretch a feeler out and gingerly rest it on Bevel's back.* Bevel 10:05 pm *she trembles for a moment at the touch before dropping the spanner to the floor* Sorry. Lingo 10:05 pm .......................... *is only very smol and not sure if Soundwave has back or not but best not to bank on that*

Okay so maybe I'm off base here. I've never actually had.. a prime in my lifetime until recently so it's a little ... weird...? to me...?? Bevel 10:05 pm Sorry. I will... I have one more thing to show. Lingo 10:05 pm I'm- uh- sorry.. Ratchet 10:05 pm *halfway home, and remembers he was going to offer Bevel a hand with that engine* Bevel 10:05 pm *nods jerkily to Lingo* Ratchet 10:06 pm @Bevel ::Let me know if you need a hand with anything, hey? I'm pretty good with repairs, myself.:: Bevel 10:06 pm ... @Ratchet: ...yeah. Ratchet 10:07 pm [[ boyz II men ayyy ]] Bevel 10:08 pm ((one last thing to wind down to ItsyBitsySpyers 10:08 pm @L: [[He does not disagree, but you speak to the spawn of one, and one who is recently deceased at that. Do not change your mind for another's benefit, but you must also know your audience.]] Omicron 10:08 pm ((having a happy spazz here XD just got a second draft of Icy-commission )) Bevel 10:08 pm ((congrats! ItsyBitsySpyers 10:08 pm [[...What is this?]] Bevel 10:09 pm Um, Steven Universe. It is about aliens on Earth. Miko thought I would like it. ItsyBitsySpyers 10:09 pm [[Earth is a popular destination these days.]] [[PRIMUS BELOW.]] [[What is -that-.]] Bevel 10:10 pm Monsters. ItsyBitsySpyers 10:10 pm [[He can -see- that they are monsters. What -are- th--]] Aha. Century poodles. VProwl 10:11 pm ((century poodles: what happens when you bury a poodle to ferment)) Omicron 10:11 pm huh ItsyBitsySpyers 10:11 pm ((LMAO)) Lingo 10:11 pm @slendy: Well if yours is anything like mine you'll have a zombie prime wandering around if you give it enough time...... Omicron 10:11 pm ((LOL)) Lingo 10:12 pm Oh this is that show With the little green one ItsyBitsySpyers 10:13 pm *...He can see who Prowl's favorite is going to be.* VProwl 10:13 pm *okay Prowl already likes the one that's talking about the trajectory of petals falling* Bevel 10:13 pm *Bevel already pegged that one as Prowl too* VProwl 10:13 pm *HOW DID YOU GUESS* Omicron 10:14 pm O,o Omicron 10:15 pm ..........so, this is their equivalent of their learning how to transform? ItsyBitsySpyers 10:15 pm *...Doesn't think he relates to any of the four, really, but he's curious about this gem business.* Omicron 10:15 pm Racer: *stands up and flops, transforming attempt fail* Bevel 10:15 pm HA. Omicron 10:15 pm .........Pffffffffft! ItsyBitsySpyers 10:16 pm [[What is he going to do when he is out of the cookie cats?]] Bevel 10:16 pm *well this helped make her feel a little better* VProwl 10:16 pm Learn the recipe? Lingo 10:16 pm I dunno, Garnet kind of reminds me of you, Soundwave Omicron 10:16 pm learn how to make icescream? VProwl 10:17 pm *The one Prowl relates to is named Pearl. INTERESTING.* ItsyBitsySpyers 10:17 pm [[It seems very inconvenient.]]

[[And why is that?]] Lingo 10:17 pm Tall, stoic, stretchy arms, visor? ItsyBitsySpyers 10:18 pm [[Connecting with the energies of the universe is... really more Drift's business.]] Omicron 10:18 pm sounds like something Skybite would go on about Lingo 10:18 pm A pokeball! ItsyBitsySpyers 10:19 pm [[Urgh.]] Omicron 10:19 pm *might be purring* ItsyBitsySpyers 10:20 pm *...Idly wonders if Prowl knows how to use a spear as well?* Bevel 10:20 pm ((just one unless y'all wanna watch another VProwl 10:20 pm ((sure!)) Bevel 10:21 pm *transforms her fists... into bigger fists* VProwl 10:21 pm *Soundwave is welcome to ask.* Lingo 10:21 pm (( I'd be down but I'm like two hours behind you if you're getting tired )) ItsyBitsySpyers 10:22 pm *You know what? He's going to do that.*

@P: [[...It occurs to him that he has never looked into your full set of weapons skills. Are you trained with spears?]] Bevel 10:22 pm ((one more and then I'll switch to music ItsyBitsySpyers 10:23 pm [[...Generally speaking, floating optics are not good.]] VProwl 10:23 pm @S «No, I've never used them.» ItsyBitsySpyers 10:24 pm @P: [[What -do- you use? Aside from blasters, your missiles, and acid, if you do.]] Omicron 10:24 pm ...well Bevel 10:24 pm At least they tried. Omicron 10:24 pm that's a predacon tactic if I ever saw one Lingo 10:25 pm Why is his coloration so weird? ItsyBitsySpyers 10:26 pm [[Hopefully your Predacons are better at improvising than these crystal-gem aliens.]] [[...Clean your slagging storage shed, human.]] Omicron 10:27 pm Generally we are Soundwave. There aaare moments though...of...moments VProwl 10:27 pm @S «Shock batons and a couple types of martial arts.» ItsyBitsySpyers 10:29 pm *Shock batons? Martial arts? Despite knowing what his own Prowl could do, he didn't expect either of those.*

@P: [[...He would be interested in seeing demonstrations of both, some time. If you were willing.]] Omicron 10:30 pm at least those two have a positive relationship it seems ItsyBitsySpyers 10:31 pm *Hmm. That says something about how much the Rose alien liked the Greg human.* Bevel 10:32 pm I want a cannon like that. VProwl 10:32 pm @S «I don't spar very often, but I'll try to remember to let you know next time I do.» ItsyBitsySpyers 10:33 pm *Confirmation ping. And maybe a set of markers for enthusiasm and impatience. A 'can't wait', if you will.* Ratchet 10:34 pm [[ okay i'm sleep good night ]] ItsyBitsySpyers 10:34 pm ((night!)) Bevel 10:34 pm ((night! Omicron 10:34 pm (rest well!) Bevel 10:36 pm *she picks the spanner back up and goes back to poking at the engine on the floor* VProwl 10:37 pm @S «I'm not spectacular with any of them.» *he figures Soundwave probably knows and probably doesn't care, but he thought it only fair to warn him anyway.* Lingo 10:38 pm *inches over towards Bevel out of curiosity* ....whatcha working on...? ItsyBitsySpyers 10:38 pm *Nope. Doesn't care. That is, he cares enough to want to see what Prowl can do, but he remembers Prowl saying the best trainers in the Autobots could only teach him so much. He just wants to see for himself without people needing to be in mortal danger first.* Bevel 10:39 pm *tenses slightly before shrugging* I have to fix my ship before I leave. It was easier to pull this part of the engine out to work on it. I wanted to show the documentaries. *she likes having people visit* Lingo 10:41 pm That's a handy skill to have. I don't know much about engine repair. ItsyBitsySpyers 10:42 pm *...Maybe one day see how much of an offense Prowl can throw at him without anything bad needing to inspire that either. He might not have liked being -forced- to be a gladiator, but he does still enjoy testing people's strength from time to time.*

[[Before you leave? Where are you going?]] Bevel 10:42 pm *nods and whatever she's about to say is cut off by the question from Soundwave* ItsyBitsySpyers 10:42 pm @P: [[That's fine. He's never used shock batons, himself.]] ((I love this sooooong)) Bevel 10:43 pm The Star Saber is not on Cybertron. Mom checked. *while yelling at her about playing with greyface magic* Omicron 10:43 pm O,o the prime sword? Bevel 10:43 pm *nods* ItsyBitsySpyers 10:44 pm [[...This is the most sensible post-departure song he has heard in millennia.]] [[And where IS it, then?]] Bevel 10:44 pm I do not know but I am going to find it. ItsyBitsySpyers 10:45 pm [[...By yourself?]] Omicron 10:45 pm ...do you need any help? Bevel 10:45 pm Rolodex does not want to come. Um, if you want to. What about Racer? Lingo 10:46 pm ......do you have like, a honing beacon on it...? Omicron 10:47 pm He rides along with the crew all the time. and Dreaded Wings is starting to get rather good with jumping now that our bridges make it between worlds Bevel 10:49 pm Yeah, but I gotta be closer for it to work. I was just gonna... go toward Earth and see if maybe it went back there. *it didn't but well it's a start* Bevel 10:50 pm If you want to. I do not know how long it will take to find. Lingo 10:51 pm Well.... I'm on Earth. I can listen and see if I hear any chatter about a huge sword appearing suddenly? Bevel 10:51 pm Thank you. Lingo 10:52 pm @Slendy: I think I recall something about it breaking during the war...? ItsyBitsySpyers 10:53 pm @L: [[Ours is not broken. Bevel had it just days ago.]] Lingo 10:55 pm @Slendy: mmkay... well I'll keep an ear out... Omicron 10:59 pm *watching raver keep jumping off her knee or tail, doing a weird flip or twist for a while now* Bevel 11:00 pm *wiggles her fingers at Racer* Lingo 11:01 pm (( slendy your attention is needed briefly on skype )) Bevel 11:01 pm ((she's having a computer hiccup it'll be a moment Omicron 11:02 pm Racer: *Fingers! wing flaps a trot over to pounce them* Lingo 11:02 pm (( ( =3=)b )) Bevel 11:03 pm *giggles and keep them just out of reach* Omicron 11:06 pm Racer: *he's getting strong little bit by little bit...also, he's been eating metals so jumps for it with wing flap* Bevel 11:07 pm *she swoops her hands down to grab him up and toss him gently into the air before catching hold of him again* Omicron 11:10 pm Racer: BAH! *wing POOF at the toss, and sits in the hold, wings out, looking confused....omg do that again* Bevel 11:11 pm *smiles and tosses him up again* Omicron 11:12 pm Racer: *exited chitters, wings flapping, trying to get the flying concept, has a while to learn* ((ooh, possible good song if you don't mind the fandom it was made in? its close to Icy's voice 😅)) (-hides in shy blanket-) Bevel 11:15 pm ((sure thing ((lemme know what it is and I'll play it next ItsyBitsySpyers 11:15 pm *Soundwave has a lot of nervous energy going nowhere because he doesn't know what to do about Megatron yet. He kind of wants to move around but doesn't want to leave but doesn't want to dance in public. Damn it.* Bevel 11:16 pm *would pat you on the back if she knew but well* Omicron 11:17 pm *would offer the planet she's on for a run around on too* Bevel 11:18 pm *Bevel could offer a fight since she's been itching for one, but Soundwave would probably kick her butt super fast* ItsyBitsySpyers 11:18 pm ((oh my god it ended with the train fight)) *Yes. Yes, he would.* Bevel 11:18 pm *Go pick a fight with Elita, Soundwave* ItsyBitsySpyers 11:19 pm *He'll kick her aft too.* *Any aft except terrorcon aft, for the moment. He's not quite prepared to deal with that.* Bevel 11:19 pm *hey now she'd at least give him a good fight* Omicron 11:20 pm *he could go say hi to Dreaded Wings? distracting* Lingo 11:20 pm *is only a tiny thing she would get punted like a football* Bevel 11:20 pm ((omi~ what's the song you wanted me to play Omicron 11:22 pm ('changling Queen') Bevel 11:24 pm ((Excellent voice choice. I like it. Omicron 11:24 pm (I'm working on something that works for predacons) (but if you ever wanted to know what Icy is like or what she sounds like singing) *humming* ItsyBitsySpyers 11:28 pm ((*casually reminds everyone present of the Singing Favors Deal*)) Omicron 11:28 pm (?) Bevel 11:28 pm ((hehehe Omicron 11:29 pm (??????) ItsyBitsySpyers 11:30 pm ((okay so)) Bevel 11:30 pm ((...i may have lied accidentally when I said Elita couldn't sing ItsyBitsySpyers 11:32 pm ((It is NOT common knowledge at all but soundwave will deliver one free favor within reasonable limits to anyone who sings specifically for him if they ask to collect on it, one time and one time only. uncommon as in most people who have sung for him for one reason or another don't even know that's an option.)) ItsyBitsySpyers 11:33 pm ((basically you have to be clever enough to a) find out that he collects those files and b) realize exactly how much it means to him so you can insist he owes you for it.)) Omicron 11:34 pm (hmm....) (that thread with him coming to Dreaded wings, he's most likely to hear not just the living ship sing but Icy lead her crew in something. They do it to bond, as well as plays) ItsyBitsySpyers 11:36 pm ((well, if she ever learns enough about him to put it all together, she might be able to call on it. but it'll be a while yet 😃 )) Bevel 11:36 pm ((Bevel would sing for free ngl Omicron 11:36 pm (something for the future possably. In the mean time he can get pulled in- not having to sing but hear the crew and Icy sing) Bevel 11:37 pm ((But does it count if she can sound like anyone she's heard before? Omicron 11:40 pm Racer: *noming on a pede?* Bevel 11:45 pm *she makes a triumphant sound and pulls a bent circuit board out from the engine part in front of her, problem found* I have to go work now. ((mun is getting tired Lingo 11:45 pm (( nini <3 have good sleep )) Bevel 11:45 pm ((night <3 Omicron 11:45 pm (<3!) [rest well] Bevel 11:46 pm ((song played in the most loving of ways, I do appreciate everyone who showed up and enjoyed the movie and cartoons tonight Omicron 11:46 pm *Icy comes up and picks up her sparkling* let me know if you might need some help. Living attack class ships are good for back up ItsyBitsySpyers 11:47 pm *Well, there's no escaping reality now. Back to confronting the truth.* *He'll get up and get going.* Bevel 11:47 pm I will. Night, Soundwave. VProwl 11:47 pm *disappears* Bevel 11:47 pm *bye Prowl*

#chat

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dfroza · 4 years ago

Text

A pure seed.

this is the Word that has been sent to earth to be planted in the heart. just as the Spirit has been sent to be welcomed (inside, Anew)

and we are being asked by Love to be open to receiving, in humility as children

Today’s reading is from the book of Mark:

[The Story of the Scattered Seed]

He went back to teaching by the sea. A crowd built up to such a great size that he had to get into an offshore boat, using the boat as a pulpit as the people pushed to the water’s edge. He taught by using stories, many stories.

“Listen. What do you make of this? A farmer planted seed. As he scattered the seed, some of it fell on the road and birds ate it. Some fell in the gravel; it sprouted quickly but didn’t put down roots, so when the sun came up it withered just as quickly. Some fell in the weeds; as it came up, it was strangled among the weeds and nothing came of it. Some fell on good earth and came up with a flourish, producing a harvest exceeding his wildest dreams.

“Are you listening to this? Really listening?”

When they were off by themselves, those who were close to him, along with the Twelve, asked about the stories. He told them, “You’ve been given insight into God’s kingdom—you know how it works. But to those who can’t see it yet, everything comes in stories, creating readiness, nudging them toward receptive insight. These are people—

Whose eyes are open but don’t see a thing,

Whose ears are open but don’t understand a word,

Who avoid making an about-face and getting forgiven.”

He continued, “Do you see how this story works? All my stories work this way.

“The farmer plants the Word. Some people are like the seed that falls on the hardened soil of the road. No sooner do they hear the Word than Satan snatches away what has been planted in them.

“And some are like the seed that lands in the gravel. When they first hear the Word, they respond with great enthusiasm. But there is such shallow soil of character that when the emotions wear off and some difficulty arrives, there is nothing to show for it.

“The seed cast in the weeds represents the ones who hear the kingdom news but are overwhelmed with worries about all the things they have to do and all the things they want to get. The stress strangles what they heard, and nothing comes of it.

“But the seed planted in the good earth represents those who hear the Word, embrace it, and produce a harvest beyond their wildest dreams.”

[Giving, Not Getting]

Jesus went on: “Does anyone bring a lamp home and put it under a washtub or beneath the bed? Don’t you put it up on a table or on the mantel? We’re not keeping secrets, we’re telling them; we’re not hiding things, we’re bringing them out into the open.

“Are you listening to this? Really listening?

“Listen carefully to what I am saying—and be wary of the shrewd advice that tells you how to get ahead in the world on your own. Giving, not getting, is the way. Generosity begets generosity. Stinginess impoverishes.”

[Never Without a Story]

Then Jesus said, “God’s kingdom is like seed thrown on a field by a man who then goes to bed and forgets about it. The seed sprouts and grows—he has no idea how it happens. The earth does it all without his help: first a green stem of grass, then a bud, then the ripened grain. When the grain is fully formed, he reaps—harvest time!

“How can we picture God’s kingdom? What kind of story can we use? It’s like a pine nut. When it lands on the ground it is quite small as seeds go, yet once it is planted it grows into a huge pine tree with thick branches. Eagles nest in it.”

With many stories like these, he presented his message to them, fitting the stories to their experience and maturity. He was never without a story when he spoke. When he was alone with his disciples, he went over everything, sorting out the tangles, untying the knots.

[The Wind Ran Out of Breath]

Late that day he said to them, “Let’s go across to the other side.” They took him in the boat as he was. Other boats came along. A huge storm came up. Waves poured into the boat, threatening to sink it. And Jesus was in the stern, head on a pillow, sleeping! They roused him, saying, “Teacher, is it nothing to you that we’re going down?”

Awake now, he told the wind to pipe down and said to the sea, “Quiet! Settle down!” The wind ran out of breath; the sea became smooth as glass. Jesus reprimanded the disciples: “Why are you such cowards? Don’t you have any faith at all?”

They were in absolute awe, staggered. “Who is this, anyway?” they asked. “Wind and sea at his beck and call!”

The Book of Mark, Chapter 4 (The Message)

Today’s paired chapter of the Testaments is Deuteronomy 19 where Moses gives instructions for living that have to do with administering Justice. and this was pretty harsh, as in eye for eye, life for life. and we do have consequences to pay for wrongdoing with laws placed in our judicial system that exist in modern times, although not all laws of man are righteously designed. but when the new covenant of grace was revealed when the Lord walked the earth He spoke of blessing our enemies and forgiving rather than taking revenge. and this is a new mindset, because even though we should be rightly punished for our sins, He laid down His life to forgive us, to cleanse us from them, and to deliver us from spiritual death and separation from God our Creator (who is Love itself)

[Deuteronomy 19]

When God, your God, throws the nations out of the country that God, your God, is giving you and you settle down in their cities and houses, you are to set aside three easily accessible cities in the land that God, your God, is giving you as your very own. Divide your land into thirds, this land that God, your God, is giving you to possess, and build roads to the towns so that anyone who accidentally kills another can flee there.

This is the guideline for the murderer who flees there to take refuge: He has to have killed his neighbor without premeditation and with no history of bad blood between them. For instance, a man goes with his neighbor into the woods to cut a tree; he swings the ax, the head slips off the handle and hits his neighbor, killing him. He may then flee to one of these cities and save his life. If the city is too far away, the avenger of blood racing in hot-blooded pursuit might catch him since it’s such a long distance, and kill him even though he didn’t deserve it. It wasn’t his fault. There was no history of hatred between them. Therefore I command you: Set aside the three cities for yourselves.

When God, your God, enlarges your land, extending its borders as he solemnly promised your ancestors, by giving you the whole land he promised them because you are diligently living the way I’m commanding you today, namely, to love God, your God, and do what he tells you all your life; and when that happens, then add three more to these three cities so that there is no chance of innocent blood being spilled in your land. God, your God, is giving you this land as an inheritance—you don’t want to pollute it with innocent blood and bring bloodguilt upon yourselves.

On the other hand, if a man with a history of hatred toward his neighbor waits in ambush, then jumps him, mauls and kills him, and then runs to one of these cities, that’s a different story. The elders of his own city are to send for him and have him brought back. They are to hand him over to the avenger of blood for execution. Don’t feel sorry for him. Clean out the pollution of wrongful murder from Israel so that you’ll be able to live well and breathe clean air.

Don’t move your neighbor’s boundary markers, the longstanding landmarks set up by your pioneer ancestors defining their property.

You cannot convict anyone of a crime or sin on the word of one witness. You need two or three witnesses to make a case.

If a hostile witness stands to accuse someone of a wrong, then both parties involved in the quarrel must stand in the Presence of God before the priests and judges who are in office at that time. The judges must conduct a careful investigation; if the witness turns out to be a false witness and has lied against his fellow Israelite, give him the same medicine he intended for the other party. Clean the polluting evil from your company. People will hear of what you’ve done and be impressed; that will put a stop to this kind of evil among you. Don’t feel sorry for the person: It’s life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

The Book of Deuteronomy, Chapter 19 (The Message)

my personal reading of the Scriptures for friday, july 17 of 2020 with a paired chapter from each Testament along with Today’s Psalms and Proverbs

Today’s reading along with a set of posts by John Parsons and Today’s message by the ICR:

From our Torah portion this week (i.e., Masei) we read: “These are the journeys of the people of Israel (מַסְעֵי בְנֵי־יִשְׂרָאֵל) who went out of the land of Egypt...” (Num. 33:1). The sages ask why the word “journeys” (plural) was used here, since only the first journey – from Rameses to Sukkot – literally marked “yetziat mitzrayim,” the going out of Egypt – and the other journeys were outside of Egypt, in the desert. They answer that the journey out of Egypt goes beyond the physical land into the spiritual realm - an exodus from captivity to the secular world itself. As has been said, it took the LORD 40 days to get Israel out of Egypt, but it took 40 years to get Egypt out of Israel... The “journey out of Egypt” is therefore a journey of smaller journeys that leads to deliverance....

Along the way we are repeatedly tested. The “desert experience” reveals what is hidden in our hearts... The murmuring and rebellion of the Israelites in the desert is our own, and our challenge is to find healing from our fears. Anger, doubt, boredom, cravings, and outright rebellion are symptoms of a deeper problem, and to change we must first confess our inner poverty, neediness, and emptiness (James 5:16). When we stop making excuses we can learn to trust in God’s provision for our lives; we will taste of the heavenly manna and be satisfied; we will be delivered from our fears by being filled with God’s love. The impulses that sought to lead us away from God will no longer be able to pretend to be the truth, since God’s peace and love will direct the heart. We will begin to take hold of the promise...

Be encouraged my fellow sojourners walking by faith through the desert of this present world. The Torah uses a repetitious expression, "Sanctify yourselves and you shall be holy" (הִתְקַדִּשְׁתֶּם וִהְיִיתֶם קְדשִׁים) (Lev. 11:44) because when we make an effort -- no matter how feeble at times -- to draw near to the LORD, He will draw near to us... Indeed the walk of faith is one of ascent and descent and ascent again: It's often “two steps forward, one step back...” It is a long road, a process, as we learn to obey and seek to grow closer to God. Authentic repentance doesn't imply that we will never sin or make any mistakes, of course, but rather means that the oscillating pattern of "up, then down, then (even further) up" is the basic way we walk. Our direction has changed for good; we have turned to God for life and hope. We now understand our sins in light of a greater love that bears them for us even as we draw ever closer to the One who calls us home... [Hebrew for Christians]

7.16.20 • Facebook

“You do not know what spirit you are of...” (Luke 9:55). Yeshua’s words imply that each of us has the responsibility to know ourselves (γνῶθι σεαυτόν), and to learn to endure (and overcome) the natural motives and focus of our hearts. We discover the truth of our spiritual condition in the midst of our daily frustrations, as we experience conflict, opposition, and the inner groan that arises from pressure and disappointment. Spiritual growth means learning to transcend our negative reactions, to stop cursing our conflicts, and to awaken to the blessings that surround and pervade our way. God’s grace enables us to open our eyes so that we may “choose life and live” (Deut. 30:19). Our daily struggle with sin reveals the contradiction between the ideals of our faith and the spontaneous reactions of our heart.... We live in between the “is” and the “ought,” the real and the ideal (though often we deny one or the other). The impulse to despair, to be angry, to complain and curse our experience can be transformed into an opportunity to pray, to ask God for help, and to refocus on what is real. This is the “hidden blessing” (ברכת סוד) of our troubles. When we learn to surrender to God’s Presence, we can breathe in his peace and love, despite the grief we encounter over ourselves and others. When we come to the light, and do not deny the truth about our condition, we can honestly ask the LORD for healing (Heb. 4:16). When we seek for the good - and even bless the struggle - we express our trust that God will use our sorrow to help us grow and to bring beauty from our ashes (2 Cor. 7:10). Hashivenu: “Turn us back to you, O LORD, and we shall be turned...” [Hebrew for Christians]

7.17.20 • Facebook

“Speak to the children of Israel, and say unto them, ‘When ye are passed over into the land of promise… drive away all the inhabitants of the land before you; destroy all their carved images, all their molten images, and demolish their high places’” (Num. 33:51-52). The Hebrew word for idolatry is “avodah zarah” (עֲבוֹדָה ז��רָה), which literally means strange or “foreign” worship... The worship of anything other than the true God, whether it is pleasure, money, fame, control, security, self-improvement, health, religion, etc., is regarded as foreign, since it alienates us from the truth of reality. We were created to be in relationship with God but we lose sight of this truth whenever we elevate what is finite to the status of the infinite. Indeed idolatry is the substitution of not-god (לא־אֵל) for the sacred, absolutizing the present and worshiping the temporal. Since our greatest good is found in the eternal verities of the divine communion, the Lord cannot give us an absolute good apart from Him, since there literally is no such thing. “No one can serve two masters,” Yeshua said, and “a divided house cannot stand.” For our own good, then, God necessarily is the Ultimate Concern of our life, and he wants to spare us the pain, disappointment, and trauma of being double-minded, disintegrated, and full of inner conflict. Spiritual warfare therefore means taking every thought captive before the bar of God’s truth, rooting out and destroying all our inner idols so that we can be delivered from the anguish of uncertainty and ambivalence.

What is at stake here is your inner life, or rather the threat of the disintegration of your deepest essence into a fragmented multiplicity without center... The soul must be grounded in Reality or it is lost, dissipated in existential dread and despair. Yeshua said that when your eye is “single” (ἁπλοῦς), your whole being will be full of light (Matt. 6:22), which means that being single-minded and wholehearted unifies and heals the soul.... Being pulled in opposite directions is both painful and debilitating, for there is no overarching reason to direct the will in its decisions. Hating and loving the good is the ambivalence of despair. Being both willing and unwilling weakens the soul, but seeking the good and making God your ultimate concern binds up the broken heart and centers the will. “Your faith has made you whole...”

“Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life” (Prov. 4:23). The heart, that is, the willing and desiring center of the self, is to be proactively guarded, and for this sacred task God offers us heavenly comfort and resolve. Courage does not chase away or deny fear and despair, but instead gives us determination to persevere despite these feelings. “Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope thou in God" (Psalm 42:11). Courage expresses hope in the midst of the struggle; it finds strength to confront pain, danger, or grief with God’s help. Courage is grounded in the decision to trust that God is with us, despite our circumstances or feelings of abandonment. How you choose to guard your heart from the corruption and hardness of the world will determine the "road" of your life. If you do not care to keep your heart open and soft, you will become cynical, weary, and more and more selfish. Your way will be lonely, suspicious, and dangerous. If, however, you keep yourself from the hardness of unbelief, you will experience compassion, encouragement, and the joy of loving others. [Hebrew for Christians]

7.17.20 • Facebook

July 17, 2020

For Our Transgressions

“But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.” (Isaiah 53:5)

The 53rd chapter of Isaiah (actually, the chapter should begin at Isaiah 52:13) contains the clearest and fullest exposition of the substitutionary sacrifice of Christ for our sins to be found in all the Bible. Our text verse is the central verse of this chapter, which, in turn, is the central chapter of Isaiah’s second division, chapters 40–66.

Although the chapter and verse divisions of the Bible were not part of the original inspired text, it almost seems that some of them (notably here in Isaiah) were somehow providentially guided. Part 1 of Isaiah contains 39 chapters and part 2 has 27 chapters, just as the Old and New Testaments have 39 and 27 books, respectively. Likewise, the major themes of the two Testaments—law and judgment in the Old, grace and salvation in the New—respectively dominate the two divisions of Isaiah. Many other correlations can be discerned—for example, the second division begins with the prophecy of John the Baptist and ends with the prophecy of the new heavens and the new earth, just as the New Testament does.

Be that as it may, this central verse of the central chapter of Isaiah’s salvation division surely displays the very heart of the gospel. Christ was “wounded” (literally “thrust through,” as with great spikes) and “bruised” (literally “crushed to death”) for our sins.

On the other hand, we receive “peace” with God because He was chastised (i.e., “disciplined”) in our place, and we are forever “healed” of our lethal sin-sickness because He received the “stripes” (i.e., great welts caused by severe blows) that should have been ours. What wondrous love is this! HMM

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