Week 11 Reading Diary A: Indian Fairy Tales

Indian Fairy Tales

• The Lion and the Crane 
•  I wonder what it is about lions that always makes them dumb and mean in stories like these. 
• I like that the lion was basically like, "I don't give a frick what you did for me, I'm still king"
• The Broken Pot
• Hahaha - this story just makes me laugh. This is totally the case with people who just overthink things waaay too much 
• The Magic Fiddle 
• Vaguely reminds me of the scene in "Alice in Wonderland", when the water keeps on rising and rising because of her giant tears
• It's like the poor girls soul is stuck in the fiddle and her sadness can be heard every time it is played. What if that was a story? A fiddle that only plays sadly
• Look up what a Bonga is??

The Bonga girl filling up her pail. (Source)

• The Tiger, The Brahman, and the Jackal
• This is also a great story, and very similar to another one I've read in the untextbook. 
• I like that, for once, the trickster uses his tricks for good! 
• I'd like to see it as the jackal being a woman, the Brahman still a brahman (or maybe even a child), and the tiger a man
• The Charmed Ring 
• when the ogress disguises herself as a hag to get to the princess, it's like Snow White - what if I told that story that way?
• Why is the princess such a mindless person in this story?

Week 10 Reading Diary A: The Mahabharata cont.

• What would it have been like to stay at Duryodhana's camp? Such merriment and fun, they were all probably oblivious to his malicious and greedy intentions - pg 102
• Chasing and hunting a deer because someone in distress asked him to do so; this is very much like when Sita asked Rama to catch her the golden deer. I wonder if this is a trap? - pg 104
• Arjuna's choice of disguise while staying in Matsya is extremely interesting! What would make him want to be that way? What would it be like for him to see the privacy of a ladies' chamber?  - 109
• The fact that the Queen herself feels threatened by Draupadi's beauty is an alarming sentiment. Rather than feel threatened, she should appreciate Draupadi's kindness and friendship and use her own power to protect her. - pg 113

Draupadi with Kichaka (Source)

• WHAT THE F$%&! She gets molested and when her husband defends her honor and kills the asshole, SHE get's blamed?? I can't handle this. If I wrote it differently, Draupadi would kick some ass
• The encounter between the Prince and Arjuna is pretty funny - could be written very comically
• Every part of the battle preparations seems to be out of trickery or spies - that's just not right! Sometimes it's hard to remember that the good guys aren't always good 

Week 9 Storytelling: What the Water Taught Me

Arjuna was sitting on the damp ground next to a vast river. The breeze softly rippled the surface, distorting the fish and plants that were living quietly underneath. He sat quietly observing the sky, slowing growing darker as gray clouds approached. His own mind clouded as he looked back on his first year of exile. Sadness filled his heart as he thought of his brothers, who he had left behind.

He tried to push those sad and bitter feelings out of his heart and head. He closed his eyes and did his best to clear his mind and steady his breath. He heard a low humming, like a song coming from someplace far away. He opened his eyes. There was no one around him. All was still. Arjuna closed his eyes again and tried to meditate. Again a humming seemed to vibrate his mind, spreading an odd calm through him. Rather than try to find its source, Arjuna accepted the sweet sound and let it roll over him. Suddenly, he opened his eyes. He felt the need to bathe. Slowly, he removed his clothing and stepped into the lake, feeling at peace despite the water's chilled temperature.

Once submerged fully in the water, Arjuna opened his eyes and found that he could breathe as easily underwater as he could minutes ago on land. Somehow, this was no surprise to him. The radiating humming had become stronger than ever, keeping his mind and body at ease. He saw something move below him and swam towards it. As he approached it, the humming stopped abruptly. A girl emerged from the dark waters below. Her eyes seemed to glow, giving Arjuna the same sense of calm throughout his body. He tried to speak, but his words were inaudible in the depths of the water. 

Mermaid (Source)

"You don't need to speak here." Arjuna heard the voice in his head. Startled, he tried to speak again to the girl in front of him, but his lungs suddenly filled with water.

"Don't speak, human, just think," the voice spoke to him again.

"Who are you?" Arjuna thought, both to himself and the girl.

"My name is Ulupi, I am the princess of Naga, this netherworld which you now find yourself in. Who are you?" Her voice seemed calm yet strange, like no sound Arjuna had ever heard before.

"I am Arjuna. Why am I here?"

The girl looked back at him with blank eyes. She seemed to be thinking, though he heard no words. "Why do you think you are here?"

"I broke a promise of privacy to my brother and wife. As punishment, I have been exiled for twelve years. It has only been a year since then, and I am traveling to as many holy rivers as possible. Although I did not mean to bathe in this one, I felt drawn to it as if it was something I was supposed to do."

Light seemed to gleam down in patches as the clouds above began to pass, illuminating the dark waters. When the light shined, parts of the depths became visible and Arjuna could see in the distance tall, wave-like structures. The sunlight disappeared, and so did the life below.

"Perhaps," Ulupi's voice interrupted Arjuna's trance, "you would like to come down with me into the water." Her body, shaped like a human's from the waist up but covered in scales, seemed to shimmer and glow at the idea.

"I do not think that is what I am meant to do..." Arjuna meant to think to himself, but he knew Ulupi heard it, too.

"Your time in exile has not been spent as it should have been. You must continue on, travel further, journey wider. It is there that you will find happiness," she stated coolly.

A sense of dread overcame Arjuna at the thought of another eleven years away from his family and loved ones. The water seemed to darken around him. His mistake seemed so heavy on his heart that he did not't think he would be able to go on.

"Remember, Arjuna," Urupi seemed to brighten from within, "you will be united with your family again. Love will not be a stranger to you. But you must move forward to find it."

Suddenly, Arjuna couldn't breathe. He swam as fast as he could to the surface, but it seemed miles away. Water filled his lungs and he jerked forward.

He was on the riverbank and the clouds were still coming in to darken the sky. He looked around, astonished at what he had just experienced. Had it just been a vision? After a few moments, he smiled to himself and walked on.

 ~~

Author's Note: This story is based on Arjuna's character in Narayan's "The Mahabharata." After he and his brothers marry Draupadi, Arjuna breaks the rule of interrupting his wife when she was with his brother. As a result, he was exiled for twelve years. The story only says that he was meant to bathe in holy rivers, and meanwhile he married Urupi, the serpent princess, and Krishna's sister. I was immediately intrigued with what a serpent princess would be like, so I decided to elaborate on their meeting. After doing some research, I found that the story goes that Urupi fell madly in love with Arjuna while he was practicing a religious ritual. She essentially drugs him, drags him to her world under water, and says she will only let him go if he agrees to marry her. Well, that just seemed like a story I wasn't ready to get into. So, I decided to merely use the same characters and setting and create a fantasy-like encounter between the two of them. I have no idea where the concept of having them talk only with their minds came from, nor do I know if it adds or takes away from the story at all. I picked the image I did because I wanted her to be dark, but not in a scary or threatening way. I think this picture conveys that. 

Arjuna's Exile
Narayan, R. K. (1978). The Mahabharata.

Week 9 Reading Diary B: Narayan's "The Mahabharata"

• Duryodhana is seriously evil. What is wrong with people! The Pandavas didn't do anything to him 
• Dhritarashtra's indecisiveness of whether he likes the Pandavas or not is so annoying. There's nothing worse than someone who flip-flops all the time. How is this guy even king?
• People are advising Dhritarashtra to do all different things. This guy should just tell them to all go to hell and make up his own mind (61)
• The moment Vidura tells the Pandavas that they can return home and Yudhistira is contemplating it in his mind - storytelling post could describe the festivities and happiness of their new life, and now getting this news. How do you decide that?
• What if Krishna hadn't been there to reassure them to return home?
• What would Indraprastha be like? A beautiful futuristic city 
• Tell the story of Sunda, Upasunda, and Tilottama (64)

Ulupi, princess of the serpent world. (Source)

• Ulupi, princess of the serpent world?? Marries Arjuna during his exile

Week 8 Famous Last Words

Lately, I have been receiving some really encouraging feedback about my writing. I really never considered myself to be an author, and yet I'm feeling more and more confident each week that it could be something I'm good at. But when I really think about it, I enjoy editing far more than I do writing. It's really got me thinking that I could do editing professionally some day. I just don't know what exactly makes a good editor. I've been thinking about offering my editing services to students on campus for papers and things like that. I used to have my mom and sister edit my papers all the time because the writing center was inconvenient or always booked up. Maybe I could be that second set of eyes for other students!

I realized this week that I'll probably be moving to Dallas in a month or two. I've been staying with my mom for the past month while working, and it's been a little crazy having to sleep in her office. I thought I'd be able to work remotely from OKC but it just makes the most sense to move to Dallas, since that's where my job's office is. So here I go again! I've only been in this OKC apartment for 2 months and I'm going to have to move again. Ugh...I hate packing.

This weekend I attended the second annual Sooner Mosaic. For those of you who have never heard of it, it's a social justice symposium that the OU Women's Outreach Center puts on every year. Student speakers present different social justice issues and talk about their research on whatever subject they're passionate about. It's a really amazing event that we have on campus that I don't think is widely advertised. They do it every March, so you should try your best to make it next year! I attended "Is Sexual Objectification a Legitimizing Myth?", "Deconstructing Racism", "Natives and the Academy", and "Minorities in For-Profit Higher Education". It was hard to choose just these four workshops, as there were many others to choose from. If any of these sound interesting to you, I'd be happy to tell you more about them!

Today I was happy to take a trip to the OKC Library and check out a few new books. My next choice is going to be "A Tale of Two Cities", which I regrettably have never read. I have always been a fan of classic literature, and try my best to read the older stuff. It's a great insight into how humanity and culture has progressed (or hasn't).

I'm also really excited because this week I bought tickets for my sisters and me to go see Mumford and Sons perform in Colorado in August! They are continuing their Gentlemen of the Road tour (which they brought to Guthrie, OK a few years ago). I went to the festival when they were here and it was one of the best experiences of my life. I am excited to see them perform again and be able to share it with my sisters!

Crowd at "Gentlemen of the Road" tour in Guthrie, OK. (Source)

YouTube Tech Tip

This is the music video for "Uptown Funk" by Mark Ronson ft. Bruno Mars. If you haven't heard this song, STOP WHAT YOU'RE DOING and listen to the goddman greatness.

I heard this song and immediately fell in love. It's the kind of music that makes you wanna say "groovy" and dance at a disco bar.

Everything about this music video is amazing. The clothing, the dance moves, the music. I must have watched this 5 times in a row. I think it's great that the older style of music and clothing is coming back. I'm a huge fan of the 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s - I love it all! Each decade offers something great in music and style and overall culture.

Comment Review Week

I enjoy reading the introductions blog posts and then moving on to their storytelling blog. It helps me get a feel of who they are and why they write the way they do. When commenting on people's stories, I always like to give spelling and grammar edits separately. That has to be the number one detriment to the flow of story. When the word choice is wrong or the phrasing is awkward, it throws everything off for me. So, I like to start off with that. Then I move on to the story as a whole: parts that I like and don't like. Whether the requirement is a short or long comment, I pretty much try and go into detail either way.

The easiest part about commenting, like I said, is pointing out any grammar or structure issues. The hardest part is pinpointing where the story needs improvement. Sometimes I will read a story and be generally unimpressed with it, but it is hard to figure out what about it could be improved. Actually figuring out what about the story I didn't like can be difficult. When you're reading something, and it's not bad but not necessarily good, how do you figure out where to improve?

Although the commenting is a great way to hear what people think about my stories, it doesn't quite create the same connection or discussion that you might get in a classroom. I'm not sure how to remedy this. I thought maybe using a chat-room type deal, but it would be difficult to coordinate times between everyone. There just needs to be more back and forth between the students. Usually after leaving a comment, you don't hear anymore from the person.

In lieu of recent news about the Department of Justice's investigation of the Ferguson case, this seemed appropriate. (Source)

Writing Review Week

As much as I really enjoy reading, being able to write creatively has been my favorite part of the class, by far. When I was younger, I wanted to be an author. I used to think of stories, but only in their climax. I never had the patience to build the rest of the story. So even though I loved the idea of writing, I pretty much gave it up after the fourth grade. But I've really enjoyed the chance to retell stories in my own way. I was never able to come up with my own ideas for stories. This way, I get to still write and I don't feel as though it's any less of a skill! The stories have my own spin to them.

The best stories, I think, come from being interested in what you're writing about. That being said, you should pick a storytelling topic based on what piques your interest. Whether something made you laugh or made you want more, use that to make it how you want. This is basically like glorified fan fiction! We can tell the stories in our own way, so that they turn out how we would want them to.

I really appreciate being able to hear everyone's feedback, but so far the comments have all been really nice. Which, of course, makes me happy and flattered. But some constructive criticism would be nice, too! Often times we're afraid to tell the truth because we don't want to hurt people's feelings. But I would really enjoy hearing both the strong and the weak points of my writing. Even if you liked it as it was, was there a point that could have used more dialogue? More detail? Sometimes I think I don't work as hard at my stories as I should, and I'd like to know how I can improve them more!

The most rewarding part of writing so far has been having people tell me that I took the story and changed it in a way that they never imagined possible. If I can evoke emotion somehow, good or bad, then I feel like I've done a decent job. While writing can be an outlet for the author, I think it should also be enjoyable for the reader!

A beautiful forest. (Source)

 

This picture above was used for my Week 2 storytelling post, "The Girl of the Forest". It is one of my favorite that I've used in my posts, by far. I really lucked out in finding it, because I think it perfectly depicts the Eden-like forest that Soorpanaka loves so dearly. It can be frustrating trying to find a picture that is labeled for reuse. So many good ones don't have any indication of whether they can be used or not! But, again, this picture was just what I wanted.

Reading Review Week

When the class began, I was really excited to read Narayan's Ramayana just so I could hear the story. And his version was perfect for that because it was short and sweet and to the point. By the time I had finished that and moved on to Buck's version, it was more difficult to stay focused since I already knew the story. Granted, Buck has such a different and more detailed writing style, one that I really enjoyed. His version gave the characters and stories a new life. But when it came to deciding whether or not to finish Buck's version or move on to the UnTextbook, it was an easy choice for me. The stories in the UnTextbook have been so fun to read. I never knew there could be so many different tales and fables! I do appreciate when the stories are a little longer and more developed, rather than the stories that are just a paragraph or two.

The strategy I utilize when writing my reading diaries has taken the form of a sort of commentary. I note when I like characters or certain stories (per the suggestions of past students), but I like to also include my thoughts on it. Did that part surprise me? How would I have made it different? Did it remind me of something else I've read or seen? It may not always be a full thought, but it's useful when going back for storytelling ideas. Usually I know I want to re-tell a story as soon as I read it, and I'll note that when I can.

I can tell that a lot of thought has been put into finding these stories and the different versions of the epics we've read. I really appreciate that! I also like that we can have options for what to read and write stories about. I suppose one interesting thing that could be added to the course readings is media. Since many of these stories are infamous, it would be cool to compare and contrast them with video adaptations of them. Have any of them been made into films or TV shows?

Ravana kidnapping Sita (Source)

I used the above picture in my Week 2 Reading Diary when we were reading Narayan's Ramayana. Even though it's probably insanely overused in this class, it is one of my favorites I've seen so far. The movement is real and it's exactly how I would depict Sita's abduction. I love that Sita's face is hidden but Ravana's is exposed, and smiling. It truly shows their characters' personalities.