Story: The Three Friends

The abandoned house

(source: sherlocked)

Once there were three friends who lived in a suburban neighborhood. The friends were named Zach, Derrick, and Cody.  The three boys were entering the fifth grade, and they were beyond excited to finally be the top-dogs of the school. After each day, the boys would get off the school bus and all walk to Derrick's house. It was here they would all work on their homework and play basketball in the driveway. On there daily walk to Derrick's house, they would pass by an abandoned, decrepit house that resided on the same street. Zach would constantly tease the others on the idea of checking out the house and discovering any mysteries that might be inside. Of course, the other two would disagree and drag Zach to the safety of Derrick's home.

October rolled around and the boys had continued to stick to their daily routine. Even though the boys were remaining static, the world was changing around them. The leaves began their yearly transition of color and the air had a crisp chill.

The boys got off the bus just like any other day and began their walk to Derrick's house. As always, they passed by the abandoned house. Zach stopped immediately.

"Let's finally go in there and check it out!" Zach proclaimed.

Derrick looked at Cody as a secondary voice of reason, but he was surprised to see Cody had a look of curiosity upon his face. Derrick began to grow frustrated with Cody. He knew the house wasn't safe. The only reason he was able to keep Zach from the house was because he had Cody constantly supporting his decision

"Zach, no. It's dangerous. Don't you agree, Cody?" Derrick replied.

"Listen, we pass by this place every day and we never go inside. It's almost Halloween. Why don't we try it? We're fifth graders, we can handle anything," Cody said.

"That's what I'm talking about!" Zach screamed as he ran toward the house.

Derrick sighed as he realized he was outnumbered. He better go with his friends. At least he could do his best to keep them out as much danger as possible. Cody and Derrick jogged ahead to catch up with Zach. Once on the front porch, the boys turned the knob and entered the house.

The house looked just as dilapidated on the inside as it did on the outside. Zach looked around the foyer and was instantly drawn toward a white door that seemed in better condition than the rest of the house. Zach opened the door and motioned for Derrick and Cody to join him. The boys used the flashlights on their iPhones to illuminate the the stairway down to the basement floor. After they reached the basement floor, Zach shined his light on the wall and let out a gasp. He began frantically shaking his phone as he gazed upon the horrors that filled the room. The basement was filled with medieval torture devices. The basement had been transformed into a dungeon. Zach shined his light to the corner of the room and saw a skeleton shackled to the wall.

"Let's get out of here!" Zach screamed.

The boys began to head for the stairs when they heard the basement door slam shut. Cody let out a blood-curdling scream. Zach felt a hand touch his shoulder. He turned around and shined his flashlight to find himself face-to-face with the skeleton that was previous shackled to the wall. Zach fell to the ground and looked up at the corpse. Derrick saw that Zach was in trouble and scanned the wall for anything he could use as a weapon. He instantly spotted a medieval flail and grabbed it off the wall. He swung it at the skeleton, instantly causing the skull to break into pieces. The skeletal body fell limp. Derrick grabbed Zach's hand and called for Cody to follow after them. They approached the closed door and Derrick wasted no time using the flail to break open the door. The three boys ran straight out of the house.

"Derrick, you were right. We should have never gone in that house. From now on, we're going to stay far away from this house on our walks house," Zach said.

The boys never returned to the house. They all valued the safety Derrick's home had to offer even more after their haunted experience.

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Author's note: This story was based on a Jataka tale called The Three Fishes. In the tale, three fish leave their life in the safe waters and go to visit dangerous areas. In this place, the two fishes are captured and it is up to the third fish to save them. He does and they return to the safety of their old water. I basically used this plot and converted the fish into humans. It was a fun story to right as I also modeled it after Halloween.

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Bibliography: Babbitt's More Jataka Tales
Link to this story

Reading Notes: Part B of Babbitt's More Jataka Tales

Jataka Tales cover

(source: ebay)

The hawks and their friends was a fantastic story. I honestly think the message that the story was trying to get across was the importance of friendship. It is difficult to roam the world alone and friends are there to help in one's time of need.

The brave little bowman was a story that just goes to show that big things come in small packages. I think it is interesting that the big man became so arrogant and attempted to get rid of the little bowman even though he wasn't doing any work.

The foolhardy wolf had a very clear message. It seems that it is not wise to abandon a situation in which one is treated with luxury. It is not smart to grow arrogant from benefits and to believe that one can do the tasks of others just because of a false sense of comfort.

The stolen plow story was strange. It says that the traders are great friends but the town trader does not act like a fan in the least. I really like how the village trader was able to spin the situation in his favor to get his plow back. He was not fooled by the town trader's tale.

The lion in bad company story seemed a lot like peer pressure. It seemed like the wolf encouraged a negative behavior that the lion's father disagreed with. The lion became addicted to the negative activity and it eventually resulted in his death.

The wise goat and the wolf story was another of story that resembled the weaker character being much wiser and having the ability to outsmart the stronger character. The wolves were too eager and foolish to successfully fool the wits of the wise goat.

The elephant and the dog story was adorable. This was one of the first stories where the animals were friends and did not watch to hurt each other. I liked how the king practically turned his entire kingdom upside down in search for a wolf only to make his elephant happy.

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Babbitt's More Jataka Tales
Link to these stories

Reading Notes: Part A of Babbitt's More Jataka Tales

Jataka Tales cover

(source: amazon)

The story involving the girl monkey and the pearls has a very interesting lesson to take from it. I feel like it initially may seem like the lesson involves the guard's clever trick. However, it turns out it is more about the girl Monkey's reveal of the pearls. It is always better to keep what you have to yourself even if there are others boasting about. A treasure hidden keeps its valuable when it is not known by the masses.

The three fishes story has a pretty simple meaning. The lesson taken from this tale seems to be that it is always a safe bet to stay in a place where there is comfort. Venturing to parts unknown without taking risks seriously may lead to destruction.

I thought the wolf would outsmart the rats in the story of the tricky wolf and the rats. It turned out that the rats were able to get the last laugh on the wolf. It seems somewhat challenging to take a lesson from this tale. I think this is simply a story of good and evil. Karma seems to be evident here as the wolf takes advantage of the rats' compassion and this causes his death.

I have no idea where to begin with the tale of the stupid monkeys. It may be the gardener's fault for thinking he could trust monkeys to properly water his trees. There was no malicious intent, but the monkeys had no clue how to take care of the trees.

I really enjoyed the story of the cunning wolf. I feel like this is a match of wits. The man was completely outsmarted by the wolf king. The man should have looked for different methods of food rather than believing he could outsmart the animals by the water. His arrogance got the best of him.

The story of the woodpecker and the lion was odd. The woodpecker had a certain sense of entitlement with the lion. The lion seemed somewhat ungrateful for having his life saved. I understand he also saved the life of the woodpecker, but this situation was only created because of the lion's dire need of a savior.

The story of the wolf and the otters was easily my favorite. The otters were extremely greedy when fighting on which side of the fish they should get. Each side was large and equal in size. The wolf was able to take advantage of the situation and show them that greed will get them nowhere.

For my story this week, I think it would be wise to look at the various lessons and situational pieces found in this Jataka tales. I can manipulate one of the stories into my own. I could also use a lesson from one of the tales and use that in my own story.

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Babbitt's More Jataka Tales
Link to these stories

Week 8 Growth Mindset

Working mind

(source: .youcubed)

I definitely think it's wise to revisit the topic of a growth mindset after traveling this far along in the semester. There was a certain analysis that this topic was seen more as a preparation to the course. After working through eight weeks, it's clear the growth mindset was meant to do much more. After really getting knowledge about this, I was able to apply this to work done. This is a course where there is freedom in what you are able to do for your assignments. At first, I considered doing what would play to my strengths. This would be a safe bet as I would have a comfort zone surrounding my grades. After thinking a little more in depth, I recalled the idea of the growth mindset. I realized that it would be interesting to challenge myself and take part in assignments that would take me out of my comfort zone. From this, I think I have been better at taking criticism and applying it correct when I go through revisions. I have been able to learn from others and using that knowledge for my own progression.

Week 8 Reflections

Reflection art

(source: saschina)

To start, I believe my reading notes are extremely successful. I have made it a priority to only include what I admire in the story as well as pointing out specific plot points that seem intriguing. In doing this, I am am to look back at my reading notes when I am trying to begin my story so I can find inspiration. Every week this as worked as I have been able come up with story ideas while using my reading notes. The reading notes present the perfect tool to craft the story. I have taken full advantage of the situations in these stories as well as specific characters traits so I can decide how I will manipulate and morph them in my story. For future readings, I definitely want to read the graphic novels as this visual representation of the two epics would allow my brain to get a better idea of the characters. As for my stories, I am completely satisfied with the reception. I have been able to use the comments from other students as well as the comments from my emails to enhance my stories. Picking the portfolio project was a wise decision as I am never content with sticking to one theme. With the portfolio, I am able to add several different kinds of stories and display them in one place. After reading the stories of my classmates, I have really admired how they are able to combine daily situations with the characters from the epics. I really want to focus on this in the upcoming weeks. Most of my stories have taken place in the epics and I think the idea of sending these characters into our reality would be exciting. Overall, I am pleased with how this semester as gone and I'm eager to see what awaits.

Reading Notes: Part B of Epified's Mahabharata

Drona approaching the Pandavas

(source: Youtube)

I really like the fact that some of the videos have a little introduction at the beginning called the story so far. It was nice to get to view that before starting today's reading notes so I was refreshed on the topic at hand. Even though they are not crucial, it is definitely a great luxury to have them.

The entire scene with Kunti summoning the god of the sun was exceptional. It allowed me to have a better visualization of what was actually happening. She was so startled that the summon actually worked and she was embraced by the god. You could see the emotion through the art and I loved it.

The narrator suddenly changing threw me off quite a bit. It's not really that important but it was interesting that the voice over suddenly as a complete change. The art style remains constant and that is all that really matters when watching these videos.

The display of Pandu's curse looked a little funny to me. Basically, Pandu murders this couple by sending an arrow through their bodies. I guess it just looks a little strange because it's extremely difficult to depict the arrow going through both bodies without a some flaws. Pandu's face is absolutely priceless.

The birth of the Pandavas was such an exciting video to watch. Kunti just starts summoning god after god and children are just being produced at a rapid pace. It's interesting getting to see the creation of these beings at the moment after knowing what ultimately happens to them later on in the story.

Bhishma makes another appearance as being the stand in father figure. It's odd because Bhishma seems like he is instantly given responsibilities after he is introduced as a character and he is constantly at work. It was nice getting to see Drona drawn out as I was curious how he would be depicted.

Drona training the children was probably my second favorite video of this section of reading notes. We get to start identifying how the Pandavas differ from each other. Each of the children begin separating and really focusing on their true strengths under the expert training of Drona.

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Bibliography: Epified's Mahabharata

Link to this reading guide

Reading Notes: Part A of Epified's Mahabharata

Shantanu's despair

(source: YouTube)

I just wanted to begin these reading notes with expressing my excitement with the portrayal of this series. Watching this first series has allowed myself to get a better understanding of the epic through the use of hand drawn pictures. I am very content with this reading choice.

I actually felt bad for Shantanu after watching the first video mainly because of the drawing style of the artist. Shantanu looked so incredibly depressed with his single tear dropping down his face. This effect definitely allowed me to sympathize with him.

Continuing with the details surround Shantanu, I had great joy in seeing happiness bestowed upon him after all this time. He was able to see Ganga again and he was also reunited with his son that was taken from him several years ago. Again, there was a relation of emotion.

The music in these videos was something else. I really enjoyed the start of the epic music that began in the fourth video. There was a sense of suspense as the drawings were happening which mixed in with the music allowed for a more captivating view.

I loved the portrayal of Bhishma kidnapping wives for his half-brother! The art in this was so entertaining for the simple fact that Bhishma looks so determined in his quest for a successor should his brother parish. I love the way he is literally dragging the women out of the court. It's my favorite art piece so far.

I completely forgot about Amba! It was one of the main connections I made between the Mahabharata and the Ramayana as there was a conflict with women spending time in the home of another man. I related Amba to Sita as they were both met by a rejection of sorts.

In this series of videos Bhishma seems like the ultimate operator behind everything. He is out arranging marriages and raising children as if they were his own. He really is the sort of like the father figure of every character we have met and he's trying to make everyone happy. This is very selfless of character.

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Bibliography: Epified's Mahabharata

Link to this reading guide