Post by garamond on Feb 8, 2023 0:06:59 GMT
SPECIAL EDITION ISSUE 2
I am pleased to report that I've gotten a special request for a reading, from an unexpected source. Though I promised not to name her directly, I was more than happy to do my best to answer the question she wrote me.
What is love?
My anonymous inquirer, who shall be known as "Su," asked me to see if finding her true love is in her future. She said there is a man in her life that is "rather moody, dark, sullen, and overall pretty dreadful." But, she can't help but think about him. "Against my will, too!" she added. In the past, she was embarrassed when he kissed her on the cheek in public at a flower contest, infuriating her.
The question, as she wrote it, is a little befuddling. I couldn't tell whether she fancied him, or if he was a pest in her life with his grouchiness and boldness.
To consider how to proceed, I sat in meditation in front of an array of crystals I had massed. (After that accident with the amethyst on the bridge, I learned to keep extra crystals. I can't keep dropping them in the water!) I pondered the shards for a while, until fatigue took me, and I found myself awakened by a sharp point digging into my forehead, which had lapsed toward the table.
As Fate chose that moment for me to pay attention, I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes and saw the morning rays coming in the window, striking the display of fragments in front of me. The light seemed to bounce from one facet to another, before crossing through a particularly large, hand-sized crystal. A rainbow of colors splayed across me, and the wall behind me. This awe-inspiring event lasted for a few minutes until the light outside passed, and the room resumed its dimness.
The impact of being blinded by colors was still fresh in my mind, however, and I began to consider the sign.
Love comes in all sorts of colors, doesn't it? It's not just the romance written in stories and poems. It's in friendships, families, and acts of kindness. So, what makes true love, anyway?
Baby, don't hurt me
I was a young man, once. Being a young man of the empire, there's all sorts of expectations of behaviors. (Note to readers: The columnist is from Rome.) I was raised believing men don't cry, they don't weep hearing music, they don't wear flowers, and they definitely don't kowtow to the ladies.
Of course, I know all this to be nonsense.
But it gets me thinking. Even I was one of those young men that was gruff and misunderstood, in my youth. I was raised to join the legion as a soldier, and the thought of wooing a lady was something unheard of. Men didn't do that in the legion. We wed when we were told to wed, and didn't see our wives after that.
So, when I left the empire and started traveling east across the continent, I had no idea how to talk to anyone, let alone women. I had to learn how to be kind and soft-spoken, and change my behaviors to be less abrasive and hurtful.
This gets me thinking. Maybe this gentleman Su is describing is just someone who's not adept at talking to others, or social situations. It may be that the boldness he exhibits is an experiment where he's trying to figure all that out. Perhaps, this is what he thinks love looks like.
Don't hurt me, no more
A rainbow is composed of many different colors. They're signs of hope in many cultures. And there's nothing quite as wonderful as being bathed in so many shades of light.
I imagine, that's what love is like - being clothed by something light and ethereal, with so many tints and facets creating the whole. It's not something you can hold, as it's impossible to hold light, but you experience it, and you behold it.
Friendship is love. A romantic partnership is love. Me writing this column is love. Taking a long soak to reward oneself after a hard day is love. Piety to one's family is love. Performing services for one's kingdom and community is a form of love. Compassion and empathy to a stranger that may seem gruff is love. These are all different colors of love. And they're all "true."
"But Miss Gary, you know very well she's asking about romance, dangit," is what my readers are probably thinking right about now. I would say, yes, I know. But, as an advisor, I'd be amiss if I didn't lecture just a tiny bit about these things.
These aspects of love are just as fulfilling as the romance, and can stave off the hurt of isolation efficiently, if one opens themselves to it.
Get back to the point, Gary
Su was asking about her true love, and how to handle this man in her life that seems unpleasant, and discouraging to be around.
I wonder if this man just needs some empathy. Misunderstood people can lash out when their communication methods aren't received. Attempting to level with him may be a worthwhile investment, if he is someone Su has an interest in. Communication is a big factor in building any relationship, whether it is romantic or platonic.
If it's a case where the attention isn't appreciated, I advise she talk to him to let him know that whereas she appreciates his time, she isn't interested in a relationship.
As for this idea of "true love," I do believe that happiness can be found in any of the aspects of love I previously mentioned.
But, I do caution that you have to be a willing and ready recipient for love; if your eyes are closed when it passes in front of you, you may miss your chance.
After all, I needed to drop my head onto a table full of sharps to open my eyes and see the rainbow from the prisms bathing me. Had I not, I'd have missed out on that breathtaking moment.
With love and sparkles,
Garamond "Miss Gary" Beatrix
I am pleased to report that I've gotten a special request for a reading, from an unexpected source. Though I promised not to name her directly, I was more than happy to do my best to answer the question she wrote me.
What is love?
My anonymous inquirer, who shall be known as "Su," asked me to see if finding her true love is in her future. She said there is a man in her life that is "rather moody, dark, sullen, and overall pretty dreadful." But, she can't help but think about him. "Against my will, too!" she added. In the past, she was embarrassed when he kissed her on the cheek in public at a flower contest, infuriating her.
The question, as she wrote it, is a little befuddling. I couldn't tell whether she fancied him, or if he was a pest in her life with his grouchiness and boldness.
To consider how to proceed, I sat in meditation in front of an array of crystals I had massed. (After that accident with the amethyst on the bridge, I learned to keep extra crystals. I can't keep dropping them in the water!) I pondered the shards for a while, until fatigue took me, and I found myself awakened by a sharp point digging into my forehead, which had lapsed toward the table.
As Fate chose that moment for me to pay attention, I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes and saw the morning rays coming in the window, striking the display of fragments in front of me. The light seemed to bounce from one facet to another, before crossing through a particularly large, hand-sized crystal. A rainbow of colors splayed across me, and the wall behind me. This awe-inspiring event lasted for a few minutes until the light outside passed, and the room resumed its dimness.
The impact of being blinded by colors was still fresh in my mind, however, and I began to consider the sign.
Love comes in all sorts of colors, doesn't it? It's not just the romance written in stories and poems. It's in friendships, families, and acts of kindness. So, what makes true love, anyway?
Baby, don't hurt me
I was a young man, once. Being a young man of the empire, there's all sorts of expectations of behaviors. (Note to readers: The columnist is from Rome.) I was raised believing men don't cry, they don't weep hearing music, they don't wear flowers, and they definitely don't kowtow to the ladies.
Of course, I know all this to be nonsense.
But it gets me thinking. Even I was one of those young men that was gruff and misunderstood, in my youth. I was raised to join the legion as a soldier, and the thought of wooing a lady was something unheard of. Men didn't do that in the legion. We wed when we were told to wed, and didn't see our wives after that.
So, when I left the empire and started traveling east across the continent, I had no idea how to talk to anyone, let alone women. I had to learn how to be kind and soft-spoken, and change my behaviors to be less abrasive and hurtful.
This gets me thinking. Maybe this gentleman Su is describing is just someone who's not adept at talking to others, or social situations. It may be that the boldness he exhibits is an experiment where he's trying to figure all that out. Perhaps, this is what he thinks love looks like.
Don't hurt me, no more
A rainbow is composed of many different colors. They're signs of hope in many cultures. And there's nothing quite as wonderful as being bathed in so many shades of light.
I imagine, that's what love is like - being clothed by something light and ethereal, with so many tints and facets creating the whole. It's not something you can hold, as it's impossible to hold light, but you experience it, and you behold it.
Friendship is love. A romantic partnership is love. Me writing this column is love. Taking a long soak to reward oneself after a hard day is love. Piety to one's family is love. Performing services for one's kingdom and community is a form of love. Compassion and empathy to a stranger that may seem gruff is love. These are all different colors of love. And they're all "true."
"But Miss Gary, you know very well she's asking about romance, dangit," is what my readers are probably thinking right about now. I would say, yes, I know. But, as an advisor, I'd be amiss if I didn't lecture just a tiny bit about these things.
These aspects of love are just as fulfilling as the romance, and can stave off the hurt of isolation efficiently, if one opens themselves to it.
Get back to the point, Gary
Su was asking about her true love, and how to handle this man in her life that seems unpleasant, and discouraging to be around.
I wonder if this man just needs some empathy. Misunderstood people can lash out when their communication methods aren't received. Attempting to level with him may be a worthwhile investment, if he is someone Su has an interest in. Communication is a big factor in building any relationship, whether it is romantic or platonic.
If it's a case where the attention isn't appreciated, I advise she talk to him to let him know that whereas she appreciates his time, she isn't interested in a relationship.
As for this idea of "true love," I do believe that happiness can be found in any of the aspects of love I previously mentioned.
But, I do caution that you have to be a willing and ready recipient for love; if your eyes are closed when it passes in front of you, you may miss your chance.
After all, I needed to drop my head onto a table full of sharps to open my eyes and see the rainbow from the prisms bathing me. Had I not, I'd have missed out on that breathtaking moment.
With love and sparkles,
Garamond "Miss Gary" Beatrix