Post by garamond on Mar 1, 2023 9:14:00 GMT
SPECIAL EDITION ISSUE 3
Whew, I'm absolutely beat. It was a fulfilling Surasang Feast, even though I wasn't allowed to nibble anything off of King ChaeRi's plate. The beans were even off-limits! But, all's well that ends well, as I can still fit in my robes and gowns, and don't have to feel guilty about overindulging.
Not only was the Feast a delicious reminder of how important it is to be grateful for the traditions of the past keeping us going toward our future, it was a time for collaboration and friendship to take center stage. (It was also a time for me to forget that magic isn't allowed in the Josang Hol, but that's neither here nor there.)
Sweet surrender
I went to bed early in the morning, having swept up the last of the violet sparkles and waited on the storms to carry off the purple talismans marking all the paths. There's this sort of "post-event malaise," as Miss Bats and I call it, where you're feeling fulfilled, and aimless at the same time. You're used to running all the time that when you have to stop, you don't know what to do with yourself, anymore. You then get this sensation where you have to find something else to rush to. It's an anxious feeling, to be running, suddenly halting, then running again for more of that fulfillment.
There's a hexagram this reminds me of. Number 9. We call it the Hsiao Ch'u, often associated with surrender.
_______ In the art of the I'ching, you'll build it from
_______ the bottom, where it is a series of strong, solid
___ ___ Yang forming the trigram of Heaven. Heaven is
associated with change and dynamic natures. It can
_______ be oppressive. Continuing to stack the lines up
_______ vertically, that bombardment of Yang is suddenly
_______ interrupted by a broken Yin. After that pause,
the push of the Yang resumes.
When you're forced to stop and surrender, the world gets small. You're forced to pay attention to directions, to communicate, and reflect. You have to give up and focus.
And after having busted our rear for an entire weekend, it was time to stop being swept up by the Chaos and return our minds to that smallness.
Vegetable medley?
A bowl of kimchi may be a delicious side dish that is the heritage of our kingdom. or a metaphor for survival and diversity. But a lot of ingredients go into the sour, tangy, and fermented goodness.
When's the last time you looked up a kimchi recipe? It's more than just cabbage. It's the same thing with large-scale events. There's a lot of variables that go in to make the thing work. And if one thing is missing, the entire batch loses some of its flavor.
Sixty-two people visited the Feast. Did you remember the names of all who came? What about all the jokes that we shared, carrying across the events? Will you be able to look at fish the same way again? Would things have gone differently with other hosts, or did their personalities add spice?
When's the last time we said we were thankful for someone else? Kimchi takes time to ferment, and festivals take time to plan and host.
But, not everyone likes kimchi. How do you acclimate for that? How do you account for the people who are bitter and unthankful? What about those that don't read the room, and don't share the same desires for friendship? It's impossible to please everyone. And it's not reasonable to expect everyone to get along.
But, keep people busy, and they're less likely to fight. It's not until the broken Yin pauses the Yang that chaos strikes to keep the balance.
Balance in the smallness
It's in that broken line of Yin in the Hsiao Ch'u that the world is small, as we already discovered. It's the downside to it all. When the universe shrinks, we lose sight of the whole. But to enjoy the whole flavor of kimchi, we need a good bite full of variety.
While the Yang is running, focus on the breath of the room, take in the energy. Three strides forward, then pause and inhale. Look around, rest. Don't look for chaos to keep the blood running. Be thankful for those around you. Be thankful you're not alone. Then, resume the gallop.
Which, brings us back to that "post-event malaise," and the fact I can't sleep. The Earth Pony is done dashing, having turned the Sun itself off and on. Another instance of that broken line that keeps haunting me in this sleepless ramble.
Conclusion
It's okay to push yourself. It's alright to want to please others. It's perfectly fine if things don't go exactly as planned. There will always be a little Yin in the Yang.
Once the excitement is done, absorb all those little experiences, and exhibit thankfulness for the variety of people you got to meet that make up the kingdoms. Don't focus on the failures or the little things that went wrong. It's not worth it to focus on all that nonsense.
Now, if I can just recover from having utterly botched that closing ritual, I might be able to sleep sometime in the next 45 years. Oh my gods, licking scribbles and sticking them onto my colleagues' foreheads...
Love and sparkles,
Garamond "Miss Gary" Beatrix
Whew, I'm absolutely beat. It was a fulfilling Surasang Feast, even though I wasn't allowed to nibble anything off of King ChaeRi's plate. The beans were even off-limits! But, all's well that ends well, as I can still fit in my robes and gowns, and don't have to feel guilty about overindulging.
Not only was the Feast a delicious reminder of how important it is to be grateful for the traditions of the past keeping us going toward our future, it was a time for collaboration and friendship to take center stage. (It was also a time for me to forget that magic isn't allowed in the Josang Hol, but that's neither here nor there.)
Sweet surrender
I went to bed early in the morning, having swept up the last of the violet sparkles and waited on the storms to carry off the purple talismans marking all the paths. There's this sort of "post-event malaise," as Miss Bats and I call it, where you're feeling fulfilled, and aimless at the same time. You're used to running all the time that when you have to stop, you don't know what to do with yourself, anymore. You then get this sensation where you have to find something else to rush to. It's an anxious feeling, to be running, suddenly halting, then running again for more of that fulfillment.
There's a hexagram this reminds me of. Number 9. We call it the Hsiao Ch'u, often associated with surrender.
_______ In the art of the I'ching, you'll build it from
_______ the bottom, where it is a series of strong, solid
___ ___ Yang forming the trigram of Heaven. Heaven is
associated with change and dynamic natures. It can
_______ be oppressive. Continuing to stack the lines up
_______ vertically, that bombardment of Yang is suddenly
_______ interrupted by a broken Yin. After that pause,
the push of the Yang resumes.
When you're forced to stop and surrender, the world gets small. You're forced to pay attention to directions, to communicate, and reflect. You have to give up and focus.
And after having busted our rear for an entire weekend, it was time to stop being swept up by the Chaos and return our minds to that smallness.
Vegetable medley?
A bowl of kimchi may be a delicious side dish that is the heritage of our kingdom. or a metaphor for survival and diversity. But a lot of ingredients go into the sour, tangy, and fermented goodness.
When's the last time you looked up a kimchi recipe? It's more than just cabbage. It's the same thing with large-scale events. There's a lot of variables that go in to make the thing work. And if one thing is missing, the entire batch loses some of its flavor.
Sixty-two people visited the Feast. Did you remember the names of all who came? What about all the jokes that we shared, carrying across the events? Will you be able to look at fish the same way again? Would things have gone differently with other hosts, or did their personalities add spice?
When's the last time we said we were thankful for someone else? Kimchi takes time to ferment, and festivals take time to plan and host.
But, not everyone likes kimchi. How do you acclimate for that? How do you account for the people who are bitter and unthankful? What about those that don't read the room, and don't share the same desires for friendship? It's impossible to please everyone. And it's not reasonable to expect everyone to get along.
But, keep people busy, and they're less likely to fight. It's not until the broken Yin pauses the Yang that chaos strikes to keep the balance.
Balance in the smallness
It's in that broken line of Yin in the Hsiao Ch'u that the world is small, as we already discovered. It's the downside to it all. When the universe shrinks, we lose sight of the whole. But to enjoy the whole flavor of kimchi, we need a good bite full of variety.
While the Yang is running, focus on the breath of the room, take in the energy. Three strides forward, then pause and inhale. Look around, rest. Don't look for chaos to keep the blood running. Be thankful for those around you. Be thankful you're not alone. Then, resume the gallop.
Which, brings us back to that "post-event malaise," and the fact I can't sleep. The Earth Pony is done dashing, having turned the Sun itself off and on. Another instance of that broken line that keeps haunting me in this sleepless ramble.
Conclusion
It's okay to push yourself. It's alright to want to please others. It's perfectly fine if things don't go exactly as planned. There will always be a little Yin in the Yang.
Once the excitement is done, absorb all those little experiences, and exhibit thankfulness for the variety of people you got to meet that make up the kingdoms. Don't focus on the failures or the little things that went wrong. It's not worth it to focus on all that nonsense.
Now, if I can just recover from having utterly botched that closing ritual, I might be able to sleep sometime in the next 45 years. Oh my gods, licking scribbles and sticking them onto my colleagues' foreheads...
Love and sparkles,
Garamond "Miss Gary" Beatrix