| Timpenin |
 October Newsletter~Yavanna
on: October 09, 2006 11:45
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Hi! And welcome to this month’s edition of the Realm Newsletter! We Yavannildi welcome you to our land of chocolate and nuts under the shade of the Two Trees. With Halloween coming up, we decided to give everything related to Halloween…ok, MAINLY the chocolate, a special place in our newsletter. In Yavanna, we value creativity of all sorts and thus a few months ago we decided to join together to form a magnificent and stunning piece of pure artistic genius unlike any other! Through cooperation and over 300 posts we have managed to present a part of this ongoing project for you today. Ladies and gentlemen, I now give you....
Act One:
Once upon a time, there lived an Elf somewhere in dwarven lakes, who really loved strawberries, smothered in chocolate fudge dipped in a rare but very tasty juice. This juice was of the very bestest, orangiest orange-like mushrooms to ever be juiced in the best chocolate factory of Dwarven manufacture ever to known to Middle-Earth. Thus, it flabbergasted even the Dwarves when they found out that it unfortunately had a side-effect of severely blistered feet and a thirst for chocolate, which coincidentally could only be cured if one dwarf stood on his feet after having danced with an elf for half an hour.
Unlikely as it may seem, a dwarf drank the juice instead of his warm chocolate milk that night, and was very drowsy the rest of the week. However, when an elf decided to build gargantuan theme parks themed around orangy mushrooms, the dwarf wondered what the best ride would have to offer. So, he climbed into the Chocolate Tea Cup Ride. Unfortunately, he discovered an beer drinking contest involving an elf and seven Snow Whites. Once the contest was won by Snow White #6, the dwarf and elf decided to team up against her with their incredibly optimistic idea that half a bar of chocolate could allow them to bribe the lady instead.
But devious SW #6, wanting chocolate and victory, and being tired of always coming in last, began to persuade the leader of the biggest hair salon in the world to bring scissors. Horrified, dwarf and elf clutched at beards and elf-locks, stunned. Would this be the end of their dastardly plot? Well, stay tuned because we have a special drawing and you could possibly be in with a spectacular date with everyone's favorite Uruk-Hai hairdresser! All interested must enter before we can say "Oliphaunt"!
Act Two:
Beside a very large wolf that accompanied her, a one-eyed dwarf-maiden strode, tomato in hand, to add to Eowyn's stew. After all, optimism was one of the best remedies for indigestion if one could ignore the dwarf-men and their noisy idea of what good table-manners sounded like. Once the tomato was well-chopped and turned into stew, the dwarf-maiden cautiously served it, hoping that mere contact would not cause her to become allergic and sneeze until all of Middle-Earth could hear her. The wolf, when that happened, would suddenly begin to see red, snapping at anyone who's breath smelled like cheese and broccoli.
Sometimes, the dwarf-maiden had to create new recipes when Aragorn, stomach rumbling, having avoided trying said stew adroitly, would only eat the very broccoli and cheese which, having come from Mordor, was considered the only possible remedy for Faramir's way of dancing like a hamster that their wheel stuck in during a long trip. Luckily, Faramir didn't often dance or get stuck thanks to his amazing knack for always finding a way out.
Unfortunately, today's tomatoey stew had just one flaw: the chili pot had slipped off the table and caused the hamster to run in to the water bottle hanging from a rather surprised Elrond's wrist. Surprised by the sudden nibbling, Elrond masterfully propelled the rodent towards the River Bruinen where it squeaked in shock: The annual Hobbit Gathering of hamster-breeders was having the much-anticipated Free Wheeling contest. New contenders were arriving by thousands and as our hamster perused the competing rules Merry sneaked up and caught the little critter, nearly causing him to cast himself straight into a fountain filled with lots of strawberry bubble bath.
Meanwhile, Pippin had almost forgotten his appointment with the hamster expert who had promised to initiate a serious discussion upon the hamster population in Mordor, which really annoyed Elrond, who had stock in hamster feed and chocolate, which was always a great hit with all the people who liked vacationing in Rivendell.
Enraged, the Elven Lord suddenly gave all his chocolate stock to Yavanna who hid it in Aulë's forge, just as he lit the furnace.
"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Elrond cried while Aulë stared at him, munching on his favorite alfalfa-sprout sandwiches. "Not in THERE! It will surely ruin my latest experiment and besides, I detest chocolate, which is why Yavanna never lets me choose her birthday cake."
Elrond, admitting this secret, grabbed Aulë's hammer and swung it around until it hit the only control lever he could possibly find during the fiasco that became know as the Chocolate River Run, when every June chocolate-coated elves compete to win the very famous trophy, made of luscious, long-life, sculpted dwarf chocolate, sprinkled with chocolate-covered sprinkles, topped with chocolate fudge, and then given a hugely-gigantic, big dollop of chocolate mousse. Aulë creatively placed delicate sugar statues of swiftly-running, elves (who appeared to be lightly kissing a bunch of blushing Yavannildi) on top. When it was over, every stomach for miles wanted just the smallest provocation to growl hungrily.
Act Three:
Few knew that while we were eating chocolate, the last known descendant of the throne of Yavanna was watching from the darkness in old cut-off jeans and t-shirt. Drooling, this sad creature suddenly decided the next thing to do was end the year-long tradition.
Now, every six months, this person turns up muttering about secret hoards of chocolate we've stashed which now has been melted down and made into the most ugliest rock, showing the fight with chocolate only made us stop fighting. Then, the orcs came to realize chocolate's beauty, and helped make more, utterly-delicious bricks. Even better, because orcs have a hidden cache of chocolate, they have forgotten to organize into an elite plan with guards, and very hungry Yavannildi decided to sneak, no, errr, borrow some bricks of chocolate. To disguise their theft, the sneaky Yavannildi put painted potatoes taken from the hobbit, Samwise Gamgee, into the orcs safe which in turn lead to the accident at the orc chocolate-factory where they spilled the chocolate over an extremely enraged Eomer. He in return required them to make containers for the chocolate. Supposedly, this would prevent another *accident* which Eomer would appreciate.
Then Legolas decided it was time to gather Yavannildi together for an annual meeting somewhere in Mirkwood, but as all SEEMED well, it wasn't. Instead of serving the usual gourmet consisting of chocolate-covered-fruit and Lembas bread, they served maggoty bread and sour stew, until Yavannildi protested, throwing stew over Legolas' best royal clothing in all of his wardrobe. This made Legolas angry, but Yavannildi used chocolate to sweeten him up.
Down in Mirkwood Forest some strange fellows were heard and seen by the elves of the ever changing Sunny Patch. It was here that Aragorn used to mingle with the Sunny Patch twins, Bounce and Urgle. Bounce and Urgle were chocolate lovers of the worst kind. Any sight of a brick, bar, they would attack the owner, grab the chocolate, and run away whooping. To prevent this, all that needed doing was something they did not expect. The hobbits of the Shire got together to gain the respect of their dearly beloved with a dance that only scared away those two, B&U, saving chocolate bunnies that were so delicate that the hobbits would have to walk on tip-toe when carrying the secret bowl of this precious type of Yavannildi's favorite Chocolate.
Then, out of nowhere, Bilbog pushed the head hobbit who stepped into the middle of town, calling, "I see dark chocolate!" In the ensuing rush, Bilbog horribly sprained his foot on a chocolate brick the size of the top of a very large, round, orcish house. Why the brick did not break then remains one of Arda's greatest secrets and to eat the wonderful secret, one must have twenty or so of those wee miles to Rohan and back stuffed inside a bag of chocolate! However, these bags would sometimes make one stumble if they weren't watching while eating chocolate and writing stories. Thus Bilbog would say that it was the Yavannildi's fault for detaining all chocolates and hiding it in their secret stashes.
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Thank you, one and all, thank you! And as a sign of our gratitude, we graciously present you with a precious piece of chocolate from our very own stash! Of course if you have never had such a delicacy before, you must be wondering all about it and so, here is Lossendiliel to explain it all to you with her fabulous presentation on chocolate and the people who likeloveadorelivefor it!
It comes with nuts, it comes with raisins, caramel, fruit, crackers, you name it! It comes as a drink, a flavor, a bar, a fountain, a sculpture, a crumb, a smell, or the sweet, sweet thought, which makes you close your eyes and think of nothing else but the taste, and you slowly feel your mouth curve in a smile at the memory.
“Chocolate is all around,” you cannot, and will not, get rid of it, it is there to hunt you down with its small voices calling, “eat me, eat me, eat me”. You will do anything to get a piece of chocolate! Gollum, go hide, the Ring is nothing compared to chocolate, and the Yavannildi’s obsession with it!
Here you will find all sorts of interesting facts about chocolate, plus you can cast your vote in the big poll held by the Yavanna Realm in the voting forum. Do you prefer sweet and delicious milk chocolate, or bitter, fulfilling dark chocolate? Cast your vote here!
10+1 facts about Chocolate
1. The cocoa tree was given to the man by the Mayan God Quetzalcoatl and therefore was looked upon as something divine by the Mayas. The bean from the cocoa tree was used in both religious ceremonies and as a means of payment – a good slave could be bought for 50 beans.
2. Napoleon was said always to have chocolate with him when he was out on one of his many travels of conquest – he enjoyed the sweet especially when he was in need of fast energy.
3. The amount of caffeine in a piece of chocolate candy is significantly lower than that in coffee, tea or cola drinks. For instance, a 5 oz cup of instant coffee has between 40 and 108 mg of caffeine, while a one oz milk chocolate bar contains only 6 mg and many confectionery items have no caffeine at all.
4. It is told that chocolate helped the previous First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt with her memory. Upon advice from her doctor she ate 3 cloves of garlic with chocolate every day.
5. An American study shows women wants chocolate 76% more than men. But not only that, women tend to choose chocolate 22 times more often than men when they want to be happier.
6. From around 1650 one could buy chocolate cakes in Italy and in 1660 hot chocolate was served in public in the Netherlands.
7. Rumor has it that Tyra Banks bathes her feet in a foot bath containing chocolate liqueur – a “white chocolate pedicure” – when she visits her beauty salon in LA.
8. It is only around 100 years since chocolate has become affordable and normal for all people to eat. Before that chocolate was a very luxurious thing for the rich only.
9. According to Guinness World Records the biggest chocolate bar ever produced was made by Elah-Dufur United Food Companies Ltd. back in 2000 – it weighed 2,280 kg!
10. In Yavanna, the Chocolate-Loving Realm, the favored kind of chocolate is dark, though milk is also preferred by many.
+1. Bad thing is, chocolate is not the most healthy thing in the world. But some Dutch scientists have proved chocolate to be more healthy than assumed before. According to their published study here (link) chocolate reduces blood pressure. And it seems like there is a broad agreement between scientists that the cocoa in chocolate possesses a line of antioxidants which have a preventive effect against cardiovascular diseases. And looking closer at a specific type of the antioxidants, the so called flavonoids, it gets even better. Several studies shows that not only do they prevent damage on cells and tissue – and therefore bad skin – it is thought that they prevent cancer.
The list of things TRUE Chocoholics do and don’t:
Chocoholic Do’s:
- You measure strength by the capacity to break a chocolate bar into four pieces with your bare hands – and then eat just one of the pieces.
- You wash your mouth with chocolate instead of soap whenever you say or hear a dirty word - exercise, for example.
- You know chocolate is a vegetable. It comes from the cocoa bean, and beans are vegetables, ergo chocolate must be a vegetable.
- You follow the 12-step chocoholics program: NEVER BE MORE THAN 12 STEPS AWAY FROM CHOCOLATE!
- You use chocolate as therapeutic means. Chocolate has many preservatives. Preservatives make you look younger. Therefore, chocolate is therapeutic.
- You know there is only one thing better than a good friend: A good friend with chocolate.
- You give chocolate as your very special present to a friend. Hey, it’s a very special gift, you didn’t eat it yourself but gave it to your friend; he or she is one lucky potato!
- You put “Eat Chocolate” on the top of your To-Do list. That way, you get at least one thing done.
Chocoholic Don’ts:
- You NEVER get melted chocolate on your hands from eating it too slowly.
- You will not give up chocolate. That would tell the world you’re a quitter!
- You could never imagine a world without chocolate. That is your worst nightmare. And think of all the devastation it would cause! There would be no need for control-top pantyhose; it would destroy an entire garment industry!
- You never have less than 3 chocolate bars in your home. One in your kitchen, one in your bag (you are a devoted member of the 12-step program) and one in a locked drawer or box (for emergencies)
- You would not dream of saying “no” to a chocolate bar, no matter who gives it to you and what time of day it is.
Chocoholic jokes:
- This guy found a bottle on the ocean, and he opened it and out popped a genie, and he gave him three wishes. The guy wished for a million dollars, and poof! There was a million dollars. Then he wished for a convertible, and poof! There was a convertible. And then, he wished he could be irresistible to all women... poof! He turned into a box of chocolates.
- How does the Chocoholic get 2 pounds of chocolate home from the store in a hot car? He or she eats it in the parking lot.
The Chocoholic mottos:
- Life is like a box of chocolates – you never know what you’re going to get!
- Chocolate slows down the aging process. I’m not sure if it’s true, but I dare not take the chance!
- Never get in between a Chocoholic and chocolate.
- Chocolate is better than sex! (If you believe that, you REALLY need to meet that special someone who can change your mind. If you HAVE met that special someone and STILL believe that, We REALLY need to know where you get your chocolate!!!)
- No need for any other diet than this: Eat a chocolate bar before each meal. It will take the edge off your appetite, and you’ll eat less.
The fine print reads:
*If husband is missing, next nearest or someone else's husband may be substituted. If chocolate is REALLY good, will throw in kids with husband. If chocolate is REALLY good and huge QUANTITIES are involved, will throw in House and Car with Husband and Kids. No substitutions. No exchanges. Very limited warranty on husbands.
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Wha-oh, already? *shoves hands in pocket and hides picture from her husband* He. Hehe. So, where was I? Well, in our quest to find the perfect piece of chocolate, many of us decided to pour our frustration and devotion in poetry. But we wouldn’t want you to think that we are that slavish about it, so we dabble in other subjects too--like our favorite books! Recently, we expanded our poetical bent to include all of the Realms in two Inter-Realm Poetry Contests. We thought we should give the winners--and all of the participants--a little more recognition, and so here is a recap with the final winners of both rounds.
A much favoured way of describing characters and places in Tolkien’s world is through poetry. A poem can take many shapes and the content can go from describing the city of Gondolin to saying the soft words Frodo spoke to his friends at the Grey Havens. Therefore, it was very easy to choose poetry as form for a line of contests which, if there are enough participants, will be held among the members of the Realms, no matter experience or knowledge about writing poetry.
For each contest there will be chosen a style and subject for the entering poems, and for the first contest it was a dramatic monologue about one or more of the members of the Fellowship. A dramatic monologue is a spoken piece where the speaker, often in a play, addresses the audience directly to explain his or hers thoughts or wishes. These speeches are said in verses, making it very poetic, but still the style is pretty easy if you don’t have much or any experience writing poetry. To make it easier to read the monologues they weren’t allowed to be more than 15 lines long.
24 poems were entered in the contest and these were divided into 3 polls, where the 2 poems with most votes would join in a final poll where the winner would be found. All the entries were very creative and inspiring, and the content stretched over a large line of possible settings and ideas. It wasn’t easy with such many fine entries, but the members had little over a week to vote for their favourite poem in each poll, and over 100 votes were placed before 6 finalists were found for a final poll. Given another week to vote the members voted for their winner and here I present for you the winning poem and the runner-up.
Winner:
Alkin from the Vána Realm – "When Legolas First Hears The Gulls"
Alas for the wailing of the gulls
For I am bound to their cry
That cry that awakens an elf's only illness
Homesickness
To set foot on Valinor's shores and to be free from all peril
To sing beneath the trees all day and night and not fret over my task at hand
To leave middle earth to it's bound people
But those bound people are my friends and allies
How could I leave them to weather evil times alone?
But my heart quivers and will not be still 'till the waters of the sea wash over it's tortured expanse
My friends or my home?
who can make such a choice
Ai amin*
Alas for the wailing of the gulls
*Ah me
Runner-up:
LinweSingollo from the Ulmo Realm – "Frodo’s Song On Mount Doom"
I am fading, fainting, falling,
With fingers trembling, heart appalling,
The world is ending, dreams are dying,
Day is over, time is flying,
The struggle's over, no more trying.
Why the suffering, endless aching?
Why the anguish, why the breaking?
Why the crushing black despairing?
Why the fruitless burden-bearing?
Why the grief beyond comparing?
Must I yield to fire consuming?
And through my failing, mankind dooming?
Hunger's gnawing, with thirst unslaking,
I am dying to no more waking,
My will is shattered in the last unmaking.
As for the second contest another style and theme was chosen. This time we set out to discover the world of Middle Earth by writing Road Songs. It could be sung by anyone on the road to anywhere, and all kinds of different ideas were received, all from orcs singing about killing and walking over lonely wanderer dreaming of their hometown to ensnaring words from the lips of the dead. All beautiful and unique in their own way, but only one winner and runner-up could be found as the voting began.
This time 15 poems were entered in the contest, splitting the voting into two rounds. First round included 2 polls, one with 7 poems and one with 8 poems From there respectively 2 and 3 poems with the most votes entered the final voting, where the winner and runner-up was found. I give you the winner and runner-up for the 2nd Cross Realm Poetry Contest:
Winner:
Rosearialelven from the Realm of Nienna – "The Wanderer’s Song"
Sing a song of the road, my friends
A winding road that never ends.
Where it leads, no-one knows,
But on and on and on it goes.
Away from kin and hearth and home,
Then back again, no more to roam.
But sing a song of the road, my friends
A winding road that never ends.
The call of hills and clear blue sky,
Stirs the wanderer, bye and bye.
Off again, with staff and pack,
Not knowing when you will be back.
And sing a song of the road, my friends,
A winding road that never ends.
Journey again over distant mountains,
Rest weary bones by crystal fountains.
Then turn to where your heart is yearning,
Time to return to home fires burning.
But sing a song of the road, my friends
A winding road that never ends.
Runner-up:
LinweSingollo from the Realm of Ulmo – "The Road Home"
We wander far o'er hill and dale,
through forests green on narrow trail.
Past mountains proud and valleys deep,
And fountains loud near dragon's keep.
Our restless feet seek untried ways,
So hearts must leave at break of day;
Leaving behind dear hearth and home,
We sing of elves and their ships of foam,
Of stars and kings and towers tall,
Of silver trumpets ~ we heed their call!
Sing hey! For feet that love to roam,
But better still is the Road to Home!
Where stars are strange and stranger still,
Are fold of land and rock and rill.
Where water flows dark and swift and green,
Where snow blows cold and the wind is keen.
We wander still with hearts ablaze,
With eager feet and eyes amazed.
How wide the land! How far the shore!
We walk where few have gone before!
Sing hey! For feet that love to roam,
But better still is the Road to Home!
But weary at last of stranger lands,
Of colder rivers and darkling sands,
We yearn again for familiar gate,
For tamer gardens where children wait.
Then turn our feet to the road well-tramped,
The packs are shouldered, the camp-fires damped.
We softly hum of kith and kin,
Of bed and bath and the familiar inn.
Sing hey! For feet that love to roam,
But better still is the Road to Home!
Then 'round the bend is the familiar tree,
And the Pony Prancing in the town of Bree.
A final stop before journey ends,
To rest our feet and talk with friends.
Our tales are told as flames burn low,
We laugh and sing while embers glow.
How sweet the face of kin and friend!
How sweet the beginning! But sweeter the end!
Sing hey! For feet that love to roam,
But better still is the Road to Home!
We've drunk our beer and sipped our ale,
The moon has risen, cold and pale.
Evening has come, the stars are bright,
We've sung our songs and walked all night.
We're heading home to bath and bed,
To shut out dark, and lay our head
On pillows soft where dreams take flight,
Until evening fades and turns to light.
Sing hey! For feet that love to roam,
But better still is the Road to Home!
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When we’re not busily composing verse or prose with the rest of the Realms, many of the Yavannildi took some time to grow all things bright and beautiful--or at least admire it. And, of course, we thought it so gorgeous we just had to take pictures to share with all of you!
Yavanna, Her Gardens, and her Faithful Gardeners!
One important love that unites Yavannildi, well, aside from our Number One Love of Chocolate of course, is our Joy of Gardens, whether it be growing in our own or admiring others (especially while eating chocolate...  )
And because gardens can contain most any kind of plant or ceramic gnomes or even real animals, we'll begin with Timpenin's Grandparent's garden, which at dinner time is full of hungry Peacocks, including three albino brothers.
This is Junior who always manages to know exactly when dinner time is--and will display like that for hours after he has scared all the hens away.
Here are the Albino Brothers, running for dinner.
An adorable chick with its mom who was carrying her baby around the yard on her back! Then they laid down together on the grass and she pulled him under her wing. He poked his head out so all you could see was this little head looking around from between her wing and body.
This is Timp's favorite especially when you zoom in on him. Of course, a few moments after this, our model (Victor) promptly jumped into her grandmothers flowers and began munching.
LadyAdaneth has a lovely flower garden. Over her arch grows an Albertine Rose.
Here is her beautiful Summer arch in full bloom.
And here is one of her Old-fashioned Roses.
As I said above, you can find some interesting creatures in gardens. Here is the gnarly Iceni Warrior who lives in her garden...
And here's a pretty cherub from the garden at Belvoir Castle which is a few miles away from LadyA in Leicestershire.
Other than her roses, which you may see at her CoE website, NenyaGold has few flowers in her yard.
This little guy somehow managed to grow up along the side of the house where they don't water... His face is about a half inch across. He's a Johnny Jump Up, a member of the Pansy Family.
Bougainvillea frame their home with dark purples, bright pinks, and this deep red. They all have these tiny white flowers that are about 3/8" across.
And as we've seen above, you can find all kinds of things in gardens other than flowers... Their protector, Squeeker, keeps an eye on Shades, a very old cat who lives next door.
Their neighborhood has a lot of flowers that she captures on her walks. These are California Poppies "Among the fields of gold..." and you'd think there was an entire field of them... nah... just a little 3' x 4' patch on a parking strip (between the sidewalk and the street) on the way to the video store...
Lyrics by Sting
This Snapdragon Garden is around the corner from the poppies. Their whole front yard is full of all kinds of flowers!
Lossendiliel has some beautiful flowers in her garden:
Equally Sited is full of soft lavender and purple blooms.
Silence before the Storm could be somewhere in Middle-earth...
Her personal favorite, called Trinity is vibrant!
While Lighted Sky isn't *of* her garden, she *was* standing *in* her garden when she took the photo! We think that counts...
We hope you enjoyed your stroll through our colorful gardens, and the next time you see a Gardener in their yard, thank them for adding such color and beauty to our world. :love:
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Of course, we Yavannildi don’t spend all of our time at tucked up at home—in fact, over the past year we’ve racked up thousands of miles and perhaps a few souvenirs (and the ubiquitous pictures!) in places as close as a few hour’s drive and or even whole new countries.
Venora’s Travels In History?!
Thought you were going to read just another travel tale? See a bunch of lovely pictures of scenery and brief points about each? Well, you’re correct! But because today’s your lucky day, you’re also going to get a brief history lesson! Before you close this window, screaming your dear lungs out, let me just tell you, this history lesson is from the eyes of a person who used to hate history too. But I finally realized how much it really impacts the way everyone lives today.
Let’s begin our lesson, class
From the beginning of the country we now know as the United States of America, there has been wonder, beauty, splendor, freedom, and new opportunities. But there has also been hardship, strife, and split ends. Such can be seen in the original colonies, like Maryland, which, under the Acts of Toleration, finally allowed people of different religions to live together according to the law.
One of the most famous of the “split ends” came about in what was known as the American Civil War. From what you all know already, this war was the most bloody in all of American history. America lost more of its population in that one war than any other war since. An estimated 618,000 men died. Wow, that’s a lot…how did this start?
Many think it’s just because of slavery. Although this was a factor, there are many others that not everyone knows or realizes. One was the distribution of money throughout the states at the time. The northern states (the North) had most of the money, whereas the southern states (the South) had a smaller portion. The North had manufacturing and a more industrial society, the South was mostly farming and agriculture. The North was mainly Republican at the time, while the South was mainly Democratic. These are just some of the many reasons this friction, or sectionalism, was created in the US.
In essence, the thought in America, especially the South, was to just have two separate countries. Wouldn’t that have been a whole lot simpler than actually fighting a war? Not in the eyes of the North. They didn’t want to lose the United States. Never.
Thus, the Civil War began.
Fast-forwarding a wee bit through the countless battles involved, there was one battle that turned the tide of the entire war, and the entire future, for America itself: Gettysburg. This is the battle in which the Union triumphed. Confederate General Robert E. Lee was miserably defeated by the Union General Ulysses S. Grant. The total loss for both sides grew to over 50,000 casualties (that includes wounded, killed, and the like).
It’s incredible to learn about these facts from history, learn what made the United States what it is today, and learn where part of our beliefs and government policies came from. That’s why I traveled with my family to Gettysburg over this past summer.
We decided to go on a bus tour to get a better understanding of what went on during the war. It was a dramatized audio sent to your ears via headphones, which was rather cool. It was not so much the stories that were told as the scenery that we passed on the way that really caught my attention and awe and imagination.
This is where the pictures come in! =D
I must say before I show you these, Gettysburg is one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever been to. If you ever want to see a beautiful and historical place, this should definitely be on your list.
Here are some pictures of Devil’s Den, which was literally a den of death. As you will notice, it’s a big hill with a flat surface at its foot. Very, very deadly…hence its name.
Watch Tower
Overlooking foot of the Hill
The Hill itself (Looks fun to climb right?)
A spectacular view of Devil’s Den (Quite an oxymoron, aye?)
And here are some pictures of the fields at which the bloody battles were fought. (It’s hard to imagine the battles though with the beauty of the fields now.)
Fences on the Fields (Notice the fences to the right. See the spikes? Those were to keep the enemy horses from getting over them without a fight.)
Canon on Field (These canons would literally blow your eardrums out. So if you lived in this time period and someone asked you to repeat something…you’d really know why.)
And for the Realm of Yavanna.
Now see? This lil’ history tour wasn’t half bad! =P Hope you enjoyed the travel as much as I did!
A Few Days of Peace at Lake Tahoe
by NenyaGold
Every August my family rents a cabin on the west side of Lake Tahoe. As you will see by this Map of the U.S. it's a drive across California for me - about four and a half hours. Besides going through our state capital, the City of Sacramento, we also drive through some of the most beautiful mountain passes, where the highest elevation is Donner Summit, reaching 7,239 feet. It is also the area where the ill-fated Donner Party came to a tragic end.
Near where Highway 89 intersects with Highway 80 (80 continues through Nevada and crosses most of the U.S.) is this beautiful purple-rimmed pond. It's a great place to stop and stretch tired legs.
Highway 89 winds its way along the Truckee River which flows in the opposite direction, out from Lake Tahoe and into Reno, Nevada. In Tahoe City the Highway turns right and follows the west side of the lake for about twenty minutes of similar spectacular views .
Some people live there all summer or even year-round and have time to grow beautiful flowers. The area where we stayed was quite colorful, including this bright Gaillardia.
In addition to gazing at this awesome view from the cabin, there isn't much to do except listen to the extreme quiet, that is when the Curious Chipmunk and Blue Jays aren't screaming at each other. Where we stay has no TV and no internet so we usually spend the warm days putting together jig-saw puzzles and or playing Cribbage.
I spent quite a bit of time at this wonderful lower part of the creek taking stills and movies. I love the sound of running creek water. And here on the upper part of the creek were lots of Wild Flowers.
Sometimes we get colorful Sunsets and the occasional interesting Moon Rises.
If ever you have the opportunity, stop and spend some peaceful time at Lake Tahoe. For me there is no quieter escape.
Timpenin’s Transcontinental Treks
Or
“How Much CAN You Fit Into One Summer?”
For me, everything started on May 26th about half an hour and several long speeches after I really wanted it to. I didn’t trip on the stairs, got a hug from my counselor, a handshake and “we’ll miss you” from the Principle, and a few assorted cymbal crashes, timpani rolls, and trumpet blasts from my band. We all turned our tassels and then I had officially graduated.. I also had exactly two months until my wedding on July 26th.
During those two months, I drove 1200 miles each way to Texas from Arizona (you can see pictures from that trip in the Garden section), spent a month as a Counselor at a music camp during which I turned 18 and snuck off to see the midnight showing of Dead Man’s Chest with the other crazy people I was working with. That was followed by a three-day jaunt to California to visit family there, most especially my other grandmother, whom I had not seen in over 5 years.
When I got back, I had just 4 days till my wedding and I hadn’t seen my fiancé more than an hour or two at a time since Graduation! It was strange being home, knowing that in just four days, it would never be my home again. Amazingly, and somewhat ironically for a bride and groom who were both ardent musicians (we met at band camp my freshman year—how much more band geekish can you get?) the only thing that went wrong was…..the music. But I and my butterflies got through an extremely long walk over the bridge and, despite the heat making it hard for me to get his ring on, everything worked out. However, we still want revenge on whichever family member decided that putting kissing bells on every table would be funny!
Well being married was all very well and good, but I was going to college in Minnesota. For those not in the United States, Minnesota is on our northern border, whereas Arizona is on the southern and it’s rather significantly farther east (here’s a map). And THAT meant very quickly packing and sorting through 8 years of junk and stuffing all the rest (plus some furniture my mother let me steal) into a moving truck and commencing a three-day, 1700 mile drive to Northfield. After a bit of celebratory car dancing upon crossing out of Arizona, we made our way across New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, ALL of Kansas, Missouri, and then Iowa.
Finally, we arrived in Northfield, MN and promptly discovered that it is one of the best towns in the entire country! Everything is green, with plenty of semi-Victorian clapboard houses. And then, of course, there is my college, St. Olaf. (That’s Old Main, where I have Latin) Some of the best food in the nation (5th, to be precise), beautiful campus, and a nationally televised Christmas Festival featuring the Choir and Orchestra—yep, they’re that good! And watch out, cause in a couple years it’ll be me in that Orchestra! And just to make you drool a bit more, here are some pictures I just took recently, of Holland Hall, the Rolvaag Library, my new backyard, and some of the autumn leaves.
Of course, it hasn’t all been so pretty. Barely two weeks after we moved here, the worst storm in, apparently, a long, LONG time woke me up with civil defense sirens and baseball-sized hail! With my husband at work, our car, unlike many others was spared since the hail didn’t reach there, but I was certainly scared! It got worse again that evening, and the news channels devoted three solid commercial-free hours to the storm as it developed tornadoes all across the state (30 total over the course of the entire path!) including one a half-mile wide that missed our town by only 11 miles! That, of course, meant civil defense sirens all evening long until I was about ready to jump in the bathtub with pillows over my head whether there was a tornado or not.
Since then, all has been quiet, but it’s taken a bit of adjustment to being an adult, married, and with more work than I’ve ever had in my life in college. But hey, it gives me an excuse to eat chocolate!
Dublin At Its Best
by Lossendilel
At High Schools in Denmark the 2nd year students travel to some other place in Europe for a week with a couple of their teachers. This travel is meant to be a link in the common education, and should involve studies of two of your subjects. We went away to Dublin with our English and Danish (don’t ask why, I have no clue) teacher for a week in the middle of March.
All in all, the trip was amazing! We experienced so many interesting and funny things, and got a fair view of the Irish people. The only thing I regret is the lack of time for going outside the city and see the beautiful views. But I’ll come back one day!
But during our week long trip we got to see a lot of things, mostly historical. One thing you have to see if you go to Dublin is the Post Office at O’Connell street. It was the scene of the Easter Rising back in 1916, the booster for the Irish independence fight. A very beautiful sight, but a couple of the traditional English buses came in the way of this picture.
Another must is, of course, on the many churches. A good choice would be St. Patrick’s Cathedral, which we also visited. A very beautiful church, loved the old style of it and the inside with all the graves, monuments and window ornaments.
When we couldn’t go out of the city we visited the famous park St. Stephen’s Green. Very beautiful park and the weather was quite nice. In the middle of March you could see the first signs of spring there, which you could not back in Denmark. Moreover a certain feeling of peace lies there, and, as with most other parks, you get a break from the city life.
As mentioned above, Ireland has a very interesting history, with influence from many different peoples. The Vikings had a very strong impact; they founded some of the biggest cities in Ireland, including Dublin, so why not visit an exhibition center, showing the life in Dublin in the era of the Vikings and the Middle Ages? Or the very beautiful Dublin Castle with the Royal Throne used by Queen Victoria and other royalties during their visits to Ireland. A couple of other beautiful things in there are the original mirror from the Castle of Mirrors, Versailles, and the Drawing Room where the ladies would go during Balls and other festivities to refresh themselves. Some things I find interesting myself are the beautiful paintings and ornaments in the upper parts of the walls and on the roof, and the furniture telling history in a vivid way. Especially this little plate hanging in one of the rooms in the castle. This shows where Sean Connolly, a leader in the Easter Rising in 1916, was treated before he was executed. During World War One, Dublin Castle worked as a hospital facility, thus he was taken here.
Kilmainham Jail is one of the major sceneries to Irish history. Here many rebels and freedom fighters were held, including Michael Collins. Some were executed and some were freed. But the place has much history to tell, and we learned a little of it from our visit there. The most famous place is probably the Victorian Wing, where Michael Collins, de Valera and other famous Irish were held, and where some scenes in the movie ”Michael Collins” have been taken.
Luckily, our last day there was St. Patrick’s Day. And when you are in Dublin at St. Patrick’s Day you are automatically going to get in a festive mood and celebrate together with the Irish people. And we sure enjoyed it! We saw the Parade and I of course bought some merchandise as a memory.
Else we enjoyed the trip very much, going to a café and eating Irish food at a festive restaurant the night before St. Patrick’s Day, where they also had some people doing River Dancing. And beside spending a lot of money and seeing a lot of things, we all think back on it as the best trip ever, despite the lack of sleep every night and hectic schedule!
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Now that we’re all back at home and settled in, we’ve had time to think about other things. No, not like chocolate—what makes you think that ever left our minds in the first place!? And with spider webs and pumpkins and boiling cauldrons popping up in every grocery store and on every street corner, we thought we’d help all of you get into mood with a few Halloween pictures of our own.
To get us started, here are two photos of NenyaGold’s cat, Squeeker—memorize how she looks; in Halloween season, you never know when a black cat might cross your path! Just remember that bad luck can be warded off with the proper application of chocolate. Yes, she colored in her eyes in the first one . And no, they weren't torturing her in the second one. :nono: Goldey says Squeeker LOVES to hide behind the door and wait for her to come and go BOO! She jumps up about a foot and a half, and kicks out from the wall!
Squeeker and her Friend
Fraidy Cat
This is Lossendiliel as a Dark Elf. We all think she’s too pretty to be convincingly evil, though….Or maybe that’s what she wants you to think.
And this is Timpenin with her friends from a couple years ago--she’s the one in the burgundy elf dress--which was her first-ever sewing project. And yes, that IS a real pumpkin.
But we want to see you all dressed up too, elf or orc or cardboard-box robot! So we’ve made a special thread where you can do just that We all look forward to seeing you!
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So, I bet a lot of you are wondering exactly what or who you want to impersonate come the end of the month. And no, we really don’t think you’ll still fit into that Tinkerbell costume you got when you were five But haven’t you always wanted to be someone strong, faithful, brave, loving, and devastatingly handsome? If so, then we at Yavanna have the perfect idea for you this Halloween! And we’ve even got tons of information to help you get into character (don’t forget the furry feet!!). So here he is: our Character of the Month!!
Sam, one of many without whom Frodo could not have destroyed the Ring. Frodo's best friend. A Ring Bearer himself, for a time...
Here is Samwise Gamgee's Profile in the Encyclopedia.
Lots of photos show off Sam in the Gallery, and Sean Astin who played Sam in the movies.
Do you need a Sam Wallpaper? Then check out the selection of Sam's here. Or a Sam bookmark among the other Hobbits.
Is someone you know in need of a Sam Greeting Card pick-me-up? You can find many among our member-created cards.
Did you ever wonder what the stew tastes like that Sam made with Po-Ta-Toes? That and other recipes from Sam's Kitchen may be found in Pippin's Recipe Box which is full of delicious recipes from our members.
And, since Sam is our Number One Gardener here in Yavanna, we must point out that there are LOTS of Gardening tips in the Gardening, Herblore, and Herbcrafts section of The Last Homely House, where you'll also find lots of other Garden information.
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While we at Yavanna tend to celebrate Halloween all year round—at least where it concerns certain brown, sweet, gooey substances—this month we knocked at a few doors and got a whole lot more than chocolate! So we asked a few questions and are here to present to you some more of the most hardworking and dedicated members of the site! Let’s all give a round of applause for the Staff and Member choices of the month!
An introduction to Arwen_Unómiel22 from her Council of Elrond RPG Moderator bio:
Greetings! My name is Arwen! I first discovered the wonderful world of Tolkien when I was handed an old copy of the Hobbit when I was younger. I admit it took me a while to get into it and had to restart it a few times, but once I was past the first chapter or so I was completely glued to it. As soon as I had finished it I became immediately enthralled in the Lord of the Rings. When I heard that the movies were soon to be released I picked it up again and rediscovered the fascinating world of Middle Earth where I now refuse to leave. Now I read the Lord of the Rings every year and have also read the Silmarillion, Unfinished Tales and whatever Histories of Middle Earth I can find!
The following questions were suggested by curious Yavannildi:
1. What brought you to CoE?
Hmmm... Well like many I found CoE searching for pictures [Weren't we all looking for some droolworthy pics at some stage? =p], however what 'brought' me here as such & made me stay was the wonderful community it has! = )
2. How did you become an RP Mod?
I was asked by the staff about... Wow... It must have been over two and a half years ago now! Time certainly flies! = )
3. What changes have you seen since you've been one?
Well there's been quite a lot. The more obvious ones being the establishment of Monkeygames for example - transferring all the non Tolkien RPs there, but the style of RPs has changed also. In the beginning the RP Forums were easily one of the most popular sections of CoE. It was wonderful to see such enthusiasm - we certainly needed an active team of moderators to keep up! Most of the threads were mainly influenced by the movies then, especially seeing as we were right in the middle of all the films being released. Now the forums are quieter, however quite a few of our members are making an effort to create threads that are more canon to the books. Styles of characters change a lot also. There was once a time where there were beautiful elven maidens around every path in the forest and then there were taverns with their shadowy corners teeming with shady characters! Also around the time of the films, most threads were set around the WOTR, but now we have plenty that take place in different ages. I've seen many a great RP begin and finish through these few years, it's wonderful to see members combining their imaginations like that!
4. What changes would you like to see?
Hmmm... I think I'd like to see more threads set in the First Age. There's so much potential for RPs to be set around that time and we don't get so many. Being a LOTR site, the more canon the RPs are the better, so maybe some more activity in the TT Forum. I think we have a wonderful set up as it is though and it's great to see members really progressing and developing their characters through the threads with nice long posts. There's nothing better when you are modding than to sit down and read a really good thread.
5. Which is your favorite of the trilogy?
I struggle to answer this myself every time, although I think it has to be The Two Towers.
6. Who is your favorite character of LotR?
I've always loved the Witch King. However if we are to go with main characters then he'd be followed by Aragorn naturally = )
7. What was your favorite scene of (any) LotR movie?
Again this is extremely hard to choose... However off the top of my head the scene with Aragorn, Legolas & Gimli in the Paths of the Dead was incredible and also when they come off the boats. Also from TTT when Gandalf & the Rohirrim ride down the hill at the battle of Helm's Deep.
8. How did you get into doing RPGs?
Through CoE actually. When I first came here the RPG threads were easily the most popular place on the site. I had read a few threads and instantly wanted to join in. I remember the first thread I joined was called 'A Wandering Elf'... And I haven't stopped since!
9. What do you like mostly about CoE (except for the RPGs )?
Taking the site as a whole, I love the community that has been created here on CoE. I have come to know some amazing people here on the staff and off who have definitely made a huge impact on me.
10. Dark or milk chocolate?
The bitter taste of dark chocolate. = )
11. What is your favorite Halloween costume ever?
I have an amazing elven dress I wore about four years ago which is definitely one of my favorites. A few years before that I did dress up as a ghost and covered myself and my costume from head to foot in flour - not an easy thing to wash out after I can tell you!
12. If we say "Yavanna" what is the first word that comes to mind?
Nature. = )
13. What are you doing for Halloween this year?
Well Halloween is one of my favorite times of the year so I always make sure to celebrate it well! I live in a big old haunted house too (the perfect location =p) and this year I'm holding a party. Although my animals aren't too fond of this time of year unlike myself so I have to keep them happy too.
14. What would be your ideal Halloween party?
Wow... One in Middle Earth! However I'd settle for an appearance of the Witch King & the rest of the Nazgul perhaps = ) It would be interesting to have a party with all my favorite horror characters put together too... There're endless possibilities with this! =p
15. What movie (besides LotR!) could you not live without?
I'm a big fan of horror movies and thrillers, though one of my all time favorites is Sleepy Hollow, even though it's not scary. Johnny Depp and a headless horseman - what more does one need? Especially coming up to Halloween!
16. Who is the favorite character you've created?
Hmmm... I believe it would be Levi. A dashing supercilious young man who stops at nothing to get what he wants and cares little for others. Despite this there is a certain charm to his treacherous nature and it's hard not to like him. He's an infamous kidnapper and renowned heartbreaker.
17. Is there anything you'd like to add?
In the words of my home country:
Go raibh maith agat! Slán agus beannacht leat.
[Thank you very much. Goodbye and blessings with you.]
And I hope you all have a very Happy Halloween!! =)
~ Continued in Second Post ~
Yavannildi and proud!
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| Timpenin |
RE: October Newsletter~Yavanna
on: October 09, 2006 11:55
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Here is the introduction to our Fearless Leader -- but before we go on, may I humbly note that it is said Leader's birthday on the 12th and we think it would be absolutely awful for her not to get a rousing, site-wide chorus of "Happy Birthday" come Thursday. And now back to our regularly scheduled programming.....
So, I have to admit, I never read LotR before seeing the movie. Or I should say, I never get very far into it the several times I did try to read it. I loved the Hobbit as a kid, but I just never could get into LotR. Well, then I saw the movie and got totally caught up in it-- read the books within a couple of days, went out and bought the Silmarillion, and started this site. But I knew I couldn't run it alone, so I begged all these other wonderful people to join me I'm generally in charge of underlying structure and the overall maintenance of the site, as well as delegating and overseeing the rest of the staff; so if you run into any problems, please let me know.
I'm the resident Frodo fanatic--be warned!
1. What does the future hold for CoE?
Not much, I'm afraid. You guys had best be happy that it's still up and running at all, considering the fate of most other Lord of the Rings sites. Many other sites that were big two or three years ago are either gone or dying. Our goal right now is to just hold strong, and cross our fingers that the Hobbit movie will happen. We'll continue to build content based on the books, of course, but that will happen slowly.
2. Are you still glad you started the site?
Absolutely! It's probably my proudest accomplishment, sad to say. But how many people can say they have touched thousands of other people in such a format? It's pleasing to look at the site and see all the content that has been built over the years, the friends I've made, and the things I've learned.
3. If you could do it over, what would you do differently?
I'd have started the site earlier. But I didn't know much about Lord of the Rings until I saw Fellowship of the Ring in the theater, so this site was built after many other much larger sites had already been started. Still, I think we built a better site, because we could look at the other sites, and see what they were missing, or could be improved upon.
4. What are you doing for Halloween this year?
Here on CoE? Probably nothing. Maybe we'll hold a party in the chat room.
5. What would be your ideal Halloween party?
For myself? I'd love to go to a big costume party that had dancing, bobbing for apples, hayrides, and all that cheesy kind of stuff.
6. What movie (besides LOTR!) could you not live without?
Probably “Empire Strikes Back.”
7. How would you explain the atmosphere and idea of CoE to a new member?
CoE is intended to be a place for both casual and hardcore Lord of the Rings fans to meet and share interests and information. We have fun activities for the movie fans such as games, fanfiction, and parodies. For those with a more scholarly bent, we have language lessons, a detailed encyclopedia, a books vs. movies section, and much, much more.
8. Do you still find running this site as fun and interesting as it was in the beginning?
In a word, no. Don't get me wrong, I still love Lord of the Rings. I still watch the movies regularly, and I still read through the forums on a fairly regular basis. But back when I started this site, I was a student with a lot of free time. I now work full time, and my interests have moved on. I simply don't have the time to devote to this site that I used to (which is why you don't see a lot of new areas added to the site lately). Don't worry! I'm not going to abandon it. I'm too proud of it to just shut it down, and I still devote a few hours a week to it. I just don't devote a few hours a DAY to it anymore
9. Dark or milk chocolate?
Milk chocolate, definitely.
10. If we say "Yavanna" what is the first word that comes to mind?
Fruit.
11.) What are you planning for CoE's 5th anniversary next year?
Hmm, good question. I don't really have any ideas. I should start a thread in the forum in a few months and get some ideas from all of you!
Timpenin, CoE's Realm Head of the Month, has been a very active person in the realm of Yavanna. She joined CoE in the summer of 2003 and joined the Yavannildi at it's beginning. She has contributed greatly to her realm in several areas, such as multimedia, as seen in her lovely Arwen banner and her post of assortments of media. Not only has she blessed the rest of her realm with her creations and leadership several times, she has helped CoE enough to become a CoE Volunteer!
She has been one of, if not, the only CoE member to be on the infamous gameshow "Jeopardy!".
Timpenin is also a very prestigious musician. She plays several instruments, including the flute, and currently is working on becoming a greater musician at her college.
Timp has been an amazing realm head and will continue to be for as long as she possibly can. Her fellow Yavannildi are grateful for her persistence towards a wonderful realm and for her extreme kindness to all!
LadyAdaneth, our Realm Member of the Month, has been with CoE since March of 2003 and the Realm of Yavanna since its beginning. She has been very active in all areas of the site and the Realm, whether it be writing Lime Putty articles for the Last Homely House, offering Gardening Advice in our Newsletters, or quenching thirsty Elf Lords and Ladies with her Herby Lemon Refresher (V) drink recipe. Several times she has been a Yavanna Realm Leader and is currently a CoE Volunteer.
In addition to being an avid gardener, LadyA is quite the musician as you can see by this staggering list of instruments on her CoE Website. If you have a chance, stop by her site and leave a message in her guest book.
Wife, mother, gardener and musician among many other talents, she is also our dear friend. We are very fortunate to have LadyA in our Realm and are proud to finally bestow this well-deserved honor.
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Sadly, we have nearly reached the end of this month’s newsletter. But don’t forget to vote in the poll, and post your own creepy pictures! Or maybe send a Halloween e-card to one of our great staff members and maybe a piece of chocolate or two to go with it We Yavannildi have had a wonderful time creating this for you and we hope you enjoyed every bit of it. So, in the spirit of community, we leave you with a conversation between Yavanna and Lorien, written by Lossendiliel and Lorien’s very own ShotoKid. Enjoy! We wish the light of the Two Trees upon your path, plenty of chocolate in your pockets and…Happy Halloween!
L: It's nice of you to join me, Yavanna. You know I'm quite partial to walking.
Y: I enjoy walking too, Lorien, as long as I can look at nature and make sure it is okay.
L: I saw you with one of your children, Lossendiliel, the other day. How is she doing? Has she told you any of her dreams?
Y: Ah, the girl you speak of is troubled with a dream. She told me of it the day you saw us, maybe you can help me understand its strange shape, for I myself have no clue as to what it says.
She is standing in a field, looking straight in front of her. In the distance she sees a small village, to her left is a light and warm forest, to her right a dark and strange wood. Although these are just as far away as the village, she could feel the presence of them more fiercely than the blowing wind. She slowly starts to walk towards the village, but soon creatures start running out of it, towards her. They run past her, all kinds of creatures and living things. As soon as they have passed her by, she looks back at the village.
Then she woke up. She cannot remember how the village looked, but she says her heart was beating heavily and her eyes were wide with fear as soon as she looked at herself in the mirror.
Can you tell her anything about the dream, dear friend?
L: It’s quite simple, really. The warm forest represents everything good and peaceful in the world while the dark wood represents all the evil forces. The village is a place where the good and evil are together. Because the forest and wood in her dream are pure good and pure evil while the village had both, she was able to feel the presence more fiercely than anything.
You see, when good and evil are alone and pure, they can be seen and felt more than when they’re together in one spot. The creatures are running from something, most likely bad from your description of the dream. They are like humans in a way: they don’t like to face bad things. Why she looked back is that she is taking an objective look at humanity, represented in a village, which is pretty much what the whole dream is about.
If you would see beyond what exists or what may exist or be less earth-bound, maybe you would be able to tell the meaning of such dreams without my help.
Y: Ah, that I will say to her when we meet again.
But I do not see a reason for going away and beyond what is beautiful and enchanting here among us, for something with multiple sides and no simple truth. Why wander in dreams and thoughts when you can wander in a forest, in a field or by a lake, among the beauty and warmth of what the earth can produce? Maybe if you took time to study a small seed, see it grow, maybe help it by giving it water and fresh air, and become a unique plant, you will see the beauty and peace of our own place of living.
L: My children and I will sometimes create gardens. Have you not been to my favorite place to rest, Lothlorien? It’s quite a picturesque place to be, filled with living things at every turn. My children are quite active so we’re sure to get the Scepter next.
It looks like Míriel is up ahead getting some s’mores ready. Would you care to join me for some?
Y: Yes, I have been there, and I'm sure you will get the Scepter next... And I'm glad you make gardens too, we often speak of our gardens and help each other improving them... Often we listen to music while doing it, music is most creative and many of us play an instrument or sing. Have you enjoyed music lately, Lorien?
Why yes, I would love some s'mores, if there is a lot of chocolate in them. I LOVE chocolate like the rest of my brothers and sisters!
L: I listen to music everyday, Yavanna, but I don't play an instrument. I was part of a chorus at one point, though.
My favorite s’mores are when the marshmallows are very slightly burned on the outside and very soft and gooey on the inside. How do you like s’mores?
Y: Ah, then you still have music in your body, which is good; music is the language of the world, some believe!
Hmm, well, I don't like them burned, but they must be very soft on the inside, almost runny. But I know it's hard to get them like this without burning them. But a lot of chocolate would be nice. I like chocolate in/on everything, almost.
L: Almost? How can you almost like something on everything? You are not making much sense today.
Y: No, I don't know why I said it like that... My mind was somewhere else I guess, but what I wanted to say is I like chocolate on most things where it makes sense to have it, and a few things where it doesn't make sense. How about you, do you like chocolate?
L: Oh, I love chocolate. Chocolate by itself or with other food is good. Even chocolate with horse meat sounds good.
Y: Yes, it seems like chocolate sauce on some kinds of meat is quite the delicacy in some places. Can't imagine the taste, but it could be fun to try it.
Tell me, where is your favorite place which is nature-related?
To be continued in the Realm of Lorien's upcoming newsletter...
And finally....congratulations to you for making it all the way to the end And also a great big thank you to the staff who helped us with this month's newsletter and, more importantly, to Yavanna's amazing Leaders, NenyaGold and Lossendiliel, and all of the Yavannildi who helped with this project and make our Realm the best place on CoE to meet friends, share lives, be goofy, and eat chocolate!!
Yavannildi and proud!
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