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digestionsack · 2 years

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El’s Playlist Part Four: The “Holy Shit” Songs/My Favorites

1: “Shut Up and Let Me Go” by The Ting Tings

Just…heh 😏

There are…a lot of breakup songs on El’s playlist; however, the person that song is directed at (from El’s point of view) can be very up-in-the-air. They could be about Henry, Brenner (mostly), and yes, Mike as well. I covered a lot of them in Part 3–and those were mostly about Brenner, so that makes sense. But, being a Byler catering to the Byler tag…I had to single this one out as one of my favourites because it’s so clearly about Mike that it’s not even funny—not Brenner or Henry or even Hopper. Let’s proceed…

“Shut up and let me go/This hurts, I tell you so/For the last time you will kiss my lips”

So obviously “kiss my lips” can’t be about Hop or Brenner or Henry because…ew. So this gave me my first hint that this is about Mike. And it checks out if we’re going with the “El knows about Byler and wants Mike to just let her go instead of trying to prolong a relationship where he isn’t giving her the love she wants him to give” track. And yeah, it’s going to hurt like hell, especially after that monologue. If this is foreshadowing El breaking up with Mike in S5 and how she will handle it, I’m very proud of how she could be going about this.

“Now shut up and let me go/Your jeans were once so clean/I bet you changed your wardrobe since we met”

Ooooh…get wrecked, fr. “Were once so clean” could be referencing when they met in S1–when Mike was introducing El to the outside world and be openly himself. Throughout the seasons, almost completely once he starts romantically dating her, he “changes his wardrobe” metaphorically—he tries to ditch D&D in an attempt to “grow up,” he lies to her (which, after S1’s ethos “friends don’t lie,” understandably confuses El greatly), and we the audience are cut off from his POV as his character shifts. And this really tells me that this isn’t about a Brenner—El eventually learned that Brenner was a manipulative asshole, but Brenner always was a manipulative asshole. His “jeans” were never “clean,” even long before El came to be (think Brenner experimenting on Henry before El was even born), so he did not change from a good person into who we see.

“Now, oh so easily you're over me/Gone is love/It's you that ought to be holding me/I'm not containable/This time love is not sustainable”

Damn, if this isn’t blatant as hell. “Gone is love?” “This time love is not sustainable?” Do I even need to explain this?

“I ain't freakin'/I ain't fakin' this/Shut up and let me go”

Can I just say how much I admire and am in awe of El’s development over the seasons? She goes from being an experiment in a lab taught to never defy orders to being a young woman able to express her anger and tell the people around her when she’s unhappy. Even when she’s miserable in the beginning of S4, she has the courage to confront Mike about his lack of “I love yous” and how that makes her feel. If (hopefully when) she breaks up with Mike in S5, she will articulate her point clearly and stand firm. Yes, she will be hurt, and she will show that, and there will likely be tears involved, but if these lyrics are any indication at all, she will handle it in a very mature way and speak her mind, trusting her instincts instead of outside influences. God I love her so much 😊

“Shut up and let me go/This hurts, well, I can't show/For the last time you had me in bits”

Like I said before, this indicates that El will stand firm on whatever decision she makes in regards to breaking up with Mike. “The last time” line could be referencing the monologue, maybe, but imo this is referencing their initial fight in S4 that resulted in the pseudo-breakup (“from El”). She was in tears, in “bits.” She was angry and hurt (understandably so) and the fight was pretty explosive. And the S3 breakup was also very dramatic (although it was played for laughs). But the “last time” line could imply that El will be quiet but firm in the S5 when the breakup comes. Damn, I’m gonna be so emotional wrecked in two years…I can’t wait 😛

“Now shut up and let me go/For fear of living in regret/I've changed since from when we first met”

THIS IS WHAT I’VE BEEN SAYING. THIS IS WHAT WE’VE BEEN SAYING! This is the entire warning story (established by Karen Wheeler) against living in regret because you felt forced into a societally acceptable life instead of the one you really wanted. Imo, El doesn’t want to draw anything out past it’s time—especially not now that Max is in a coma and so many things have gone to shit. And YES—she HAS changed in the years since she met Mike, and so has he. This is the definition of “growing out of the romance.” This doesn’t necessarily mean that they can’t be friends or that they don’t care about or love each other, but they have grown out of this romance.

“It's me that ought to be moving on/You're not adorable/I want something un-ignorable”

At this point I’m not even going to explain. I mean, look at this! “You’re not adorable;” thinking of when Mike is singing and El cuts him off but when Max is singing El enjoys it…hmm.

2: “Holding Out for a Hero” by Bonnie Tyler

So, when I initially looked at these lyrics, I was kind of confused. Not because the lyrics are anything super cryptic, but…a lot of you know this song, right? And you know it’s about wanting a man to be your hero, right?

“I need a hero/I'm holding out for a hero 'til the morning light/He's gotta be sure, and it's gotta be soon/And he's gotta be larger than life/Larger than life”

And we know that this…could not be less El. She doesn’t need a defender! Yes, she needs her family and friends and her love for them, but she doesn’t need a man. Her whole S3 “there’s more to life than stupid boys” (and literally the rest of the show) has proven to us that although she values and needs the emotional support of her family, she doesn’t need a man or romance to prop her up.

Great, now that we’ve acknowledged that…why in the hell is this song on her playlist?

I have a theory—the basis for which is two lines in two songs.

Song 1 (“Holding Out For a Hero”):

“Isn't there a white knight upon a fiery steed/Late at night, I toss and I turn/And I dream of what I need”

Song 2 (“White Rabbit”—next song):

“When logic and proportion/Have fallen sloppy dead/And the White Knight is talking backwards/And the Red Queen's off with her head”

BONKERS, people. BANANAS. WHAT exactly does this imply? “White knight” is way to specific a phrase for this to have been a coincidence.

My theory: The fact that they put in a song that seemed so opposite to El’s experiences which included lyrics about a romantic, idealized “white knight” only to follow it up with a song about how said “white knight” is talking backwards and using Alice in Wonderland as a metaphor for how nothing is as it seems??? REALLY suspicious. This leads me to believe that the romantic meaning of “Holding Out For a Hero” is supposed to be inverted. And honestly, it’s not too much of a stretch. I mean, look at the lyrics for “Holding Out For A Hero:”

“Racing on the thunder/And rising with the heat/It's gonna take a Superman to sweep me off my feet, yeah”

“I need a hero/I'm holding out for a hero 'til the end of the night/He's gotta be strong, and he's gotta be fast/And he's gotta be fresh from the fight”

Yeah…I think that particular message of the song is supposed to be inverted.

But…there’s something else in this song and in these lyrics—something a bit more ominous. And it gives the “White Knight” thing another meaning: Vecna.

“Up where the mountains meet the heavens above/Out where the lightning splits the sea/I could swear there is someone, somewhere watching me/Through the wind and the chill and the rain/And the storm and the flood”

“I can feel his approach like a fire in my blood”

And the plot thickens.

So, overall, this song being on El’s playlist is…quite interesting. It could have a lot of different meanings—reverting the traditional message of the song while emphasizing the more ominous verses to hint at Vecna’s appearance in S4. All while interweaving lyrical messages with another song that would otherwise be unrelated…man, so cool.

3: “White Rabbit” by Jefferson Airplane

Right, so I’ve already covered the whole “white knight” thing, and that was the main thing that made this song interesting to me, but there’s still other stuff in here that could pertain to El’s life and possibly be foreshadowing…

“One pill makes you larger/And one pill makes you small/And the ones that mother gives you/Don't do anything at all/Go ask Alice/When she's ten feet tall”

A reference to mothers here definitely makes sense if these playlists were supposed to be marketing specifically released before S2. The “ten feet tall line” could be a metaphor for social outcast, which El could definitely resonate with especially in S4. I wonder if the “don’t do anything at all line” could suggest that El was hoping to find a sense of normalcy when she found her mom only to have this not come to be when her mother’s past was revealed (please take this with a grain of salt; I haven’t seen S2 in a couple of months).

“And if you go chasing rabbits/And you know you're going to fall/Tell 'em a hookah-smoking caterpillar/Has given you the call/Call Alice/When she was just small”

Again, I know this playlist was for S2 and the last verse suggests that this song specifically was foreshadowing S2 (although there are other songs here that foreshadow S3-4), but…I think this verse could kind of fit with El’s S4 arc. The “chasing rabbits/going to fall” lines could be a metaphor for how El was trying to chase a “superhero vs monster” identity in S4, only to discover that this method of identification was too extreme and does not fit the human experience, especially hers. Even the “hookah-smoking caterpillar” could be referencing Argyle. And a line about Alice being “small” could be a metaphor for how El feels at the beginning of S4.

“When the men on the chessboard/Get up and tell you where to go/And you've just had some kind of mushroom/And your mind is moving low/Go ask Alice/I think she'll know”

This verse was a bit trickier. “Men on the chessboard/tell you where to go” could apply to all seasons, save the ending of S4, especially with the reference to mushrooms (hallucinogenics, probably representative of when El was drugged when she tried to escape from the lab in S4), so I’m thinking this verse could be about the beginning of S4.

“When logic and proportion/Have fallen sloppy dead/And the White Knight is talking backwards/And the Red Queen's off with her head/Remember what the dormouse said/Feed your head/Feed your head”

And this…this…just…whoa.

Lot going on here.

The main ethos of this verse, I think, is “things are not what they seem.” You see that a bit in the seasons that have already been released, but I think we’ll really start to get into it when S5 comes out…things will really start to go off the rails (in a good way, hopefully, not in a this-show-is-a-trainwreck way). Especially since we have the apocalypse now and especially since we have an established villain that fucks with people’s heads. But anyway, that’s my take for the first two lines. Then we have “White Knight” and “Red Queen…” As I said in my analysis of the last song, I think “White Knight” is referencing Mike. Along with the whole “inverting the meaning” thing I covered in the last song, Mike is a Paladin—we can make some leaps there, and other people have pointed this out. Not only does “talking backwards” imply that Mike was lying in that monologue and that he’s been hiding something (or a lot of things), the association with the next like (“Red Queen”) foreshadowing him being targeted to Vecna (who is very clearly associated with the color red). Fortunately, the “off with her head” part implies that Vecna will be defeated one way or another, so at least we have that going for us. And “feed your head?” Interesting…definitely a Vecna reference.

4: “Barracuda” by Heart

By “Heart,” huh?

This song seems to be another song about Brenner, but I just thought it was pretty interesting how Henry is included in the metaphor as well.

“So this ain't the end, I saw you again, today/I had to turn my heart away/Smiled like the sun, kisses for everyone/And tales, it never fails”

This seems to be referencing the reveal that Brenner isn’t dead, meaning El has to face him again. She is more emotionally prepared and mature than she was at twelve, but it still hurts like hell. Come to think of it, this could probably also be referencing El seeing Henry again after thinking she had permanently blasted him out of her life after he betrayed her. Both Henry and Brenner are smooth talkers, using emotional manipulation to trick El into believing their lies (smiling, kisses and fairy tales, as the lyrics say). But this time, El turns away from them.

“You lying so low in the weeds/I bet you gonna ambush me/You'd have me down, down, down, down on my knees/Now wouldn't you, barracuda? Oh”

Pretty much the same as the last verse: Brenner is an emotional predator, ambushing El, hitting her where it hurts. Henry, biding his time in the lab, uses El to get the Soteria chip out of his neck.

“Back over time we were all trying for free/You met the porpoise and me, uh-huh/No right, no wrong you're selling a song, a name/Whisper game”

And this…I think it’s El, to Brenner, about her and Henry. I think the “porpoise” is Henry, and I thinks this and the last verses align pretty closely with what El feels for Henry and Brenner in the fourth season. El is angry with Henry for manipulating her and knows that he means her and her friends genuine harm, but even angrier at Brenner for manipulating them both. She does not think that Henry is a monster—she knows Brenner is. (And I gotta say, I loved how the topic of personal identity and “superhero vs monster” was given a nuanced angle when it comes to El’s arc.)

“And if the real thing don't do the trick/You better make up something quick/You gonna burn, burn, burn, burn, burn to the wick/Ooh, barracuda, oh yeah”

Oh, yeah. Brenner making up lies, eventually burning down to the wick and coming to a dead end…and that’s where El corners him and gets her closure. Queen

“"Sell me, sell you" the porpoise said/Dive down deep now to save my head, you/I think that you got the blues too”

This…is a little tricky. This is an acknowledgment that both El and Henry were the victims of Brenner’s abuse. “Save my head” is quite an interesting line, considering the fact that the way Henry tortures his victims is by reaching into their head and pulling at their worst traumas. And so that “save my head” line…is it for El? Or is it for Henry? And if it’s for Henry, what does that imply?

“All that night and all the next/Swam without looking back/Made for the western pools, silly, silly fools”

I’m not quite sure about this one, though I know there’s a string to pull on. But “western pools” is definitely a reference to California.

5: “Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now” by Starship, No Protection

This song is most definitely about Mike and El, and…not gonna lie, it was a bit of a downer for my Byler-biased self. Check these lyrics:

“Lookin' in your eyes/I see a paradise/This world that I've found is too good to be true/Standin' here beside you/Want so much to give you/This love in my heart that I'm feeling for you”

“Let 'em say we're crazy/I don't care about that/Put your hand in my hand/Baby, don't ever look back/Let the world around us/Just fall apart/Baby, we can make it/If we're heart to heart”

“And we can build this dream together/Standing strong forever/Nothing's gonna stop us now/And if this world runs out of lovers/We'll still have each other/Nothing's gonna stop us/Nothing's gonna stop us now”

“I'm so glad I found you/I'm not gonna lose you/Whatever it takes/I will stay here with you/Take you to the good times/See you through the bad times/Whatever it takes/Is what I'm gonna do”

“Ooh, all that I need is you/All that I ever need/All that I want to do/Is hold you forever/Forever and ever...”

Yeah, so that’s pretty clearly positively romance-coded. And it’s understandable, given where Mike and El were (both in the show and with the fandom) before S2 came out and during. They were very cute and popular during this era—no use denying it.

That being said…there were some lyrics that caught my eye due to narrative discrepancy.

“Let ‘em say we’re crazy”

I get that this is an objectively romantic line that is used for lots of couples, so it’s understandable that it’s used here, especially with the whole “only love makes you that crazy” line from S2. And “crazy” in regards to love is brought up. But…not with Mike and El. Instead, we get “crazy together,” and Jonathon and Nancy’s implied “crazy love.” And in S3, we are specifically given a bit where Mike tries out the “blank makes you crazy” with El and she doesn’t understand. So…I don’t know. This likely wasn’t intentional. But…it’s definitely a noticeable line.

“Let the world around us/Just fall apart/Baby, we can make it/If we're heart to heart”

First of all…bro, the world did fall apart around you. Unintentional foreshadowing much? Could this be foreshadowing what happened at the end of S4? Because if that’s the case, this line is not romantic.

Also…whoa. “Heart to heart?” That’s definitely a phrase that has been prominent for the past two seasons. But, as I’m sure other people have pointed out…does it really make sense when it comes to Mike and El? Have they ever had a clear, honest heart to heart? A talk where both of them are on the same page, understanding each other and coming out feeling closer? When has that happened? The closest I could get was Mike apologizing to El in the grocery store isle in S3–but wait, El not understanding the “blank” in “blank makes you crazy” leads me to believe that they really weren’t on the same page. Maybe when El says “you were talking about your feelings/heart” before she kisses him at the end of S3–hold up, he still had his eyes open during that kiss and looked confused as hell afterwards. So not even that. Maybe the “mouthbreathers” part in S1? People, I’m genuinely trying find stuff. But Lumax, Jopper, Byler, and Jancy have all given us solid heart to hearts, so when I see “heart to heart,” it’s those couples I will think of.

“And we can build this dream together”

The word “dream” being mentioned is certainly noticeable. Not only is there a “dream” motif in El’s playlist (which I am interpreting to be tied to Henry’s curse, El learning to not identify her life though dreams and fairy tales, and the message of “nothing is as it seems”)…but “dream” used in a romantic context can have a bunch of layers. Yes, our most common association is “it’s a dream to be with you,” meaning “being with you is a dream come true.” But…it’s also used in breakups (hopefully mature, amicable ones? *crossed fingers*).

“Ooh, all that I need is you/All that I ever need”

And this…this is blatantly untrue. As we’ve established, El has not needed Mike for a while now—at least since S2, not the way this song is implying. And with S4 focusing so much on “want vs need” and “I love you because I need you vs I need you because I love you,” these lines become that much more noticeable. It’s like “Holding Out For A Hero” in that sense—as MBB says, El is beginning to realize that she is her own hero, not anyone else’s. Whether this take is a stretch or not, you can’t deny that “need” has been a word that has been brought up an inordinate amount in S4–enough for it to become what appears to be an intentional motif. Maybe this song and “Holding Out For A Hero” were meant to be narratively accurate when these playlists were released, but El’s S4 arc is such that these songs are no longer applicable to her character if their being included on this playlist was unironic. If these songs were put on this playlist with the intention of being inverted…well, that’s a different story.

6: “Team” by Lorde

I think for this song, the title is pretty self-explanatory—there’s a lot of stuff here about the party! But there’s also some other interesting stuff…

“Now bring my boys in/Their skin in craters like the moon/The moon we love like a brother, while he glows through the room”

Aww—this is probably referencing the OG party from El’s POV! Cute and wholesome! “Craters like the moon” could be a metaphor for how the OG party has things that set them apart from “conventional society” but that make them beautiful like craters make the moon beautiful. She loves them all like brothers—sweet!

“Dancin' around the lies we tell/Dancin' around big eyes as well/Even the comatose they don't dance and tell”

Whoa okay; big 180 from the last verse. Lies definitely references the whole love triangle thing El’s been involved in. Lies are a HUGE thing—Mike lying to El, El lying to Mike, Will lying to Mike, all of them withholding crucial information…le drama. Big eyes probably reference Vecna. Eyes are a big motif in S4 especially, what with Vecna sucking people’s eyes into their heads, and also Mike covering his eyes in some way each time he and El have a happy moment—which ties back into the love triangle lies line. A mention of a comatose? Damn, they really were foreshadowing S4. And those lies still (depending on how much you want to link Max’s coma to Mike’s monologue) tie in with this line.

“We live in cities you'll never see on screen/Not very pretty, but we sure know how to run things/Living in ruins of a palace within my dreams/And you know, we're on each other's team”

And we’re back to the happy! Well, kind of. “Cities” could feasibly be a metaphor for Hawkins. But “palace within my dreams?” Oh boy. First of all, another addition to the “dream” motif—what up! Palace…could this be Castle Byers? In which case this would foreshadow the Wonder Twins? Or could “palace” be a metaphor for a romanticized idea of something, an idea that El has deconstructed to become a more authentic version of herself? If that’s the case, this could be referencing the “superhero vs monster” dilemma from S4. But the last line is definitely about the entire party, if not Will specifically.

“I'm kind of over getting told to throw my hands up in the air, so there/So all the cups got broke shards beneath our feet but it wasn't my fault/And everyone's competing for a love they won't receive/'Cause what this palace wants is release”

Okay, I love this. The “over getting told to throw my hands up” line—so true! It’s telling us that El is tired of having her powers dictated by other people as a tool or a weapon—and this tracks! The “broke shards” line could be her realizing that the loss at the end of S4 really wasn’t her fault, and that Brenner wasn’t right about the things he said about her. Oh damn…“a love they won’t receive?” Jeez, be more obvious, would ya? El trying so hard to be “good enough” for Mike’s love at the beginning of S4, but over the course of the season realizing she doesn’t need it—or want it. Realizing that he won’t be able to give her the kind of love she wants as a romantic partner. And the “palace” line tying back into the previous verse, which was about the palace being a metaphor for a romanticized idea of something needing to be deconstructed for the person to move on. “The palace wants release…” El wants clairity and reality now more than she wants a “perfect romance…” Damn, this song is really something else.

“I'm kinda older than I was when I revelled without a care/So there”

WHAT A QUEEN. This is so perfect! El IS older and she HAS changed. She’s not the lost girl in the woods that Mike found, nor the curly-haired kid that Hopper cared for. She is becoming her own person. She loves them, but she no longer needs them to take care of her as she once did. She wants them in her life—she just needs them to understand that she is growing and changing. Hopper has acknowledged that and is accepting that. Mike…well. I hope he gets there, I really do.

7: “Kept Me Crying” by HAIM

I know that, with a lot of these “breakup songs,” it is usually kind of hard to tell whether they’re about Henry, Brenner, or Mike. So I try to make my best guess based on the lyrics—but of course you could interpret them in a different way!

However, this song…

This.

This song is so about Mike it’s not even funny. Or rather, it’s super fucking funny how obviously this is about Mike.

“When you sleep, are you dreaming of me?/Who's to say, but I'm always awake/If you want me, I'm waiting for you/If you call me, I'll pick up/Know I shouldn't, but I can't give up as usual”

These lyrics aren’t as obviously about Mike…but we’re just getting warmed up here. Either way, this reflects pretty well El at the beginning of S4.

“Kept me crying for so long, my tears have dried/When I hear your voice, those tears they come back to mind/So don't call me just to tell me/You don't love me anymore/Still it wrecks me 'cause”

NO WHAT?? “You don’t love me anymore??” That’s literally what she said! It’s not just that—it’s the other lyrics that hint that she’s through with Mike’a bullshit! She knows he isn’t loving her the way she wants to be loved! She’s over it! And she’s getting over him! Her “tears have dried!” Queen!

“I've got to cover, I can't pretend/That I'm anything more to you now/Than someone just hard to forget/And after all these tears/After all my years of trying/I don't wanna hear/That nothing meant anything”

Whoaaaa. S5’s gonna be intense. Is this her calling him out for not only lying in the love monologue, but never loving her romantically at all? Damn, El. Give it to him straight (no pun intended).

“I was your lover/I was your friend/I was your lover/I was your friend”

Awww….is this foreshadowing El and Mike becoming good friends in S5 rather than forced romantic partners? If so, cute and wholesome! Also, Mike confusing platonic love for romantic love?

This song is just…wild. So wild that the Duffers put this song on her playlist. Insane for this.

8: “Monster Lead Me Home” by Sara Hartman

I know how a lot of us (me included sometimes) are fairly certain that these playlists were mostly just for funsies and any foreshadowing is mostly about S2–maybe S3. But this song, to me at least, is very clearly foreshadowing S4. It just fits too well.

“Spin around, round, round me/Collide without a sound/Caught up in your gravity/I don't know how/Run away, way, way from me/The spirit only I can see/I need you now 'cause I don't know how”

I personally think this song is about Brenner. But this verse reminds me a lot of what happened with Angela in Rink ‘O Mania. Maybe “monster” is a general descriptor of the people tormenting El (which would focus mainly on Brenner but have little bits of Henry and Angela)? This verse was a bit more open-ended; the next verses more clearly describe Brenner, in my opinion.

“Monster take me somewhere/Where I can save my breath in the air/We walk in shadow/Monster lead me home/Where there is no place to hide/Stranger on the other side/We walk in shadow”

Ooooh…interesting. I think the “take me somewhere” line is referencing the Nina Project—and is that a mention of breath and breathing I see? Most likely foreshadowing El getting strangled by Henry’s vines…I think the rest of this verse foreshadows El getting taken to the Nina Project, back to Brenner, back to a place where she could not hide from her memories anymore, back to a setting that reminds her of Hawkins Lab, where she was forced search for Henry in the “vale of shadows.”

“Now you surround, round, round me/Didn't think I could be found/Before we tear through the streets/Don't test the ground”

El not expecting Brenner to come back, only to be led straight to him, alive and well. El learning that she deserves better than him, that he manipulated her, that he was the monster, and letting her powers loose, ultimately leaving him to die.

“A long way, way, way from comfort/Keep our back to the cold/I need you now 'cause I don't know how/I don't know what, what”

El far from home needing help with her powers, yes, but mostly needing closure before settling into her identity. Brenner was a father figure, but he caused her more harm than good. Maybe she once needed him in a way, but she no longer does.

9: “Hero” by Lissie

Damn damn DAMN.

This song was fun.

“Who knows what you'll find when you look inside?/Haunted beach, roll the dice/The zombies in the corner aren't amused”

I’m thinking this could loosely be applied to S3, when El went into Billy’s mindscape. After all, “zombies” (the flayed) and “haunted beaches” are mentioned, so my mind went there. A little precursor to El’s S4 journey; her internal struggle with “hero vs monster.”

“Play the part of the blushing bride/Tame the horse and take it for a ride/This thread of consolation comes loose”

“Play the part?” Damn, okay, Milkdud bones. But other than that, I think this is referencing the beginning of S4, where El is trying so hard to fulfill the role she thinks will make her happy (pretending to Mike that everything is great in Lenora), but as the lyrics say, the “thread of consolidation comes loose”—the whole act starts to unravel.

“I could've been a hero, I could've been a zero/Could've been all these things/I could've been nothing, I could've been bluffing/Could've been all these things/And if I am unable, tell him that I'll try/But underneath the table/I will spin the wheel and hope for gold”

Again, showcasing El’s internal struggle with the whole “superhero vs monster” dilemma.

“I've seen the road and I've seen it hide/Out of view, cloaked by night/I want my forty acres in the sun”

Up to this point, El’s road has been hard and painful. She doesn’t want to have to be the superhero anymore (apart from being “her own superhero,” as MBB says). She just wants to rest, to have her “fourth acres in the sun.” Kind of reminds me of that line from Team: “I’m kind of over getting told to put my hands up in the air/so there.”

“Bitter winds come in from the north/My spirit dims, but I feel the force/"No longer in my hands, " I say to you”

This one’s a bit trickier. I can’t figure out for sure what this may mean, but I’m getting the feeling that the “bitter winds” are the events of S5 still to come, the preparation for the biggest battle yet. Also, “feel the force?” Just solidifying the El=Luke parallel.

10: “The Story” Brandi Carlile

I can definitely see this song being foreshadowing for a sort of bittersweet end of S5.

“All of these lines across my face/Tell you the story of who I am/So many stories of where I've been/And how I got to where I am/But these stories don't mean anything/When you've got no one to tell them to/It's true, I was made for you”

Awww, this is so sweet. It’s giving the sense that El’s journey is coming to a close, and she’s really settling into who she is as a person. I love her so much! I think the “made for you” part is a blanket statement about the people she loves, maybe specifically Max. Even if Mike and El do stay together next season (which I highly highly doubt), El’s journey thus far has been so much more than romance, especially with what we’ve been shown in S4. In my opinion, this song is about the people she loves—all of them.

“I climbed across the mountain tops/Swam all across the ocean blue/I crossed all the lines and I broke all the rules/But baby, I broke them all for you/Oh, because even when I was flat broke/You made me feel like a million bucks/You do, and I was made for you”

What I said for the last verse applies to this one to, I think. And “made me feel like a million bucks” could definitely apply to Max! When El is feeling lost and insecure in S3, she goes to Max and Max helps cheer her up and makes her feel better. And “I broke all the rules/but baby, I broke them all for you?” “We make our own rules?” Definitely Max. So SWEET!

“You see the smile that's on my mouth/It's hiding the words that don't come out/And all of my friends who think that I'm blessed/They don't know my head is a mess/No, they don't know who I really am/And they don't know what I've been through like you do/And I was made for you”

The way I see it, Max and Will are the only members of the party to not initially see El as a weapon or a tool. Max encourages El to use her powers for fun things (although spying maybe wasn’t the best call) and shows her Wonder Woman comics to make her feel empowered. Will has gotten to know El as a person without powers and his sister, and jokes about committing fraud in Vegas with her powers. So many people have been treating El like a “superhero,” but it’s really Will and Max (and of course her family but Will and Max specifically) who have been lifting her up in the way she needs.

11: “Jolene” by Dolly Parton

Okay, I know that most of you know this song. You are familiar with what Dolly’s trying to say here:

“Jolene, Jolene, Jolene, Jolene/I'm begging of you please don't take my man/Jolene, Jolene, Jolene, Jolene/Please don't take him just because you can”

“Your beauty is beyond compare/With flaming locks of auburn hair/With ivory skin and eyes of emerald green/Your smile is like a breath of spring/Your voice is soft like summer rain/And I cannot compete with you/Jolene”

“He talks about you in his sleep/And there's nothing I can do to keep/From crying when he calls your name/Jolene”

“And I can easily understand/How you could easily take my man/But you don't know what he means to me/Jolene”

“You could have your choice of men/But I could never love again/He's the only one for me/Jolene”

“I had to have this talk with you/My happiness depends on you/And whatever you decide to do/Jolene”

But here’s the thing: This song might not be as clear-cut as once thought. Bylers will say Jolene is Will. Milkduds (and some members of the ga) will insist this is about Max. Or…this could be about Vecna (I’ll explain)…

Let me rule out the Max theory real quick: If Jolene is supposed to be Max, then why is it the last song on El’s playlist? There are so many songs depicting the positivity of El and Max’s friendship on this playlist before Jolene (such as Buzzcut Season and The Story), so why finish off the playlist with a song about romantic competition? Especially since it is now clear to El that Max is interested in Lucas over Mike. And that tiny bit of jealousy and competitive feelings towards Max that El had in the second season were just that: tiny. Definitely not a big enough plot point to put on the playlist.

So there are the two most likely options. This song has romantic implications, so many people will say it’s about Will—and I think that’s a pretty solid interpretation. With this, lines like “your voice is soft like summer rain” (rain fight) stand out. So yes, this could be about El realizing that Mike has romantic feelings for Will and her grappling with that realization—maybe having a conversation with Will about it. And if we’re running with the theory that Mike is getting Vecna’d (which I think is pretty likely), then the lines “he talks about you in his sleep” (Mike reaching out to Will while getting Vecna’d) stand out to me as well.

But…what if we considered the fact that Jolene may be Vecna? Obviously not with the romantic lens, because ew. But if Mike is the “man” in the song Dolly is talking about, that would mean that El is super distraught that Mike might be taken from her—even though the story is hinting more that she will be the one to break up with him. So what if we consider that Mike is being “taken away” from El by Vecna? Even if it’s not romantic, Mike being about to be killed by Vecna would be a pretty understandable reason for El to be upset and bargaining with “Jolene.” And what if we consider the possibility that Vecna uses a Will illusion to trick Mike into falling into a trap? That might explain the “your smile is like a breath of spring” line—Vecna attempts to sway Mike with something that he wants, but El sees the truth. Anyway, just spitballing with this.

Anyway…that’s it! That’s my analysis of El’s playlist! Like I said before, this is all in good fun. Even though I like some of my theories and believe that there is a possibility they might happen, they are just that: theories! So please take them with a grain of salt. I hope you had as much fun as I did!

With love,

digestionsack

#byler #el hopper #platonic elmike

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dippydots · 3 years

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Edward Hyde is NOT Sick

Something more fluffy :)

Note: This is before the events of Gothic Gang

Henry Jekyll, sat in his comfy chair by the fireplace. The pediatrician heaved a heavy sigh, and proceeded to blow his nose. He was down with a nasty cold, most likely from the workplace. He tossed the soiled tissue into a little waste bin beside the chair. "What's up, Doc?" He felt a chill go down his spine. "What is it now?"

"Heh, your voice sounds funny."

"Says the one who has four voice cracks in every sentence."

"Okay, that's just personal. You're lucky I don't have my own body, or else I'd be all up in your business," the raspy voice inside Henry's head said. Henry looked over at the body length mirror two feet away from him, and a cloudy form replaced his reflection. A thin, young man with large elf-like ears and wiry thin black curls appeared. His yellow snake eyes stared back at Henry. This was Edward Hyde. His nose wrinkled in disgust. "Dear God you look terrible," Edward muttered. Henry chose not to say the first thing on his mind. He instead took the safer option. "I'm sick today," he said flatly. "Oh, that explains why your voice doesn't sound deep anymore. Your nose must be really clogged, and that's saying a lot, cause you have a humongous nose." Henry rolled his eyes. He stood up and walked out of the living room, up the stairs. "Henry, I was joking! Your nose isn't that big! Also, wrong direction."

"What do you mean, wrong direction? I'm going to take a nap," he retorted. "You're supposed to go downstairs to the laboratory," Edward rolled the R in laboratory, "so I can go out."

"Absolutely not. Not when I'm feeling sick."

"But that's you. We're talking about me. I, Edward Hyde, am not sick. You, Henry Jekyll, are. Now go downstairs," he said calmly. Henry ignored him. Edward sighed aggressively. "Fine then. I'll do it myself." Before Henry could do or say anything, his legs suddenly gave out. He looked down and took notice of the fact that his legs were now comically smaller and were forcibily walking him downstairs of their accord. "What on earth are you doing?!" Henry shouted, holding onto the railing of the staircase. "What does it look like? We're going downstairs!" Edward's legs almost tripped, making them almost fall over. "Okay, okay, fine I'm going downstairs, I can walk myself!" he said rather quickly. Soon, the doctor was walking down the stairs normally, and down the basement stairs. Henry had remodeled his basement into a lab once he had finished college. The basement at first was a place where he and his best friend used to play. He remembered that she and he would do science experiments. Now his science experiments gave him a migraine thanks to his constant screeching. Speaking of which...

"FINALLY! I can't wait any longer!" Edward said excitedly as Henry reached for Formula HJ7. He sighed before downing the drug. Henry braced himself for the pain that was Edward taking complete control over his body, as well as his entire being twisting and shrinking down. Henry fell to the ground, his body trembling as the formula coursed through his veins. The pain was over after around two minutes. Edward stood up off the ground, laughing. "I'm fr- ACHOOO!" Edward sneezed. Henry blinked a few times as he watched from the mirror. Edward looked startled. "What was that?!" His voice sounded as if someone was pinching his nose. "Are you alright?" Henry's voice was already back to it's baritone sound. "Of course I am! Why wouldn't-achoo- I be?" Edward asked, an obviously fake smile on his face. "Goodness gracious, you're sick."

"I am not sick." Edward had a few sneezes in a row after saying that. He stumbled backwards a little bit, and he gripped the desk. "Jekyll why is the room tilted?" he asked. "It's because you're sick."

"I'm not sick!"

"I am a doctor, you can't hide these kinds of things from a professional." Edward groaned out of annoyance. "I have plans tonight! It's not cool to stand anyone up!"

"I'm sure whoever you were going to hang out with would understand if you're sick. It's flu season," the doctor said. He sighed. "Fine. I'll stay home."

Edward held up the hem of his pants as he walked up the stairs out of the basement and then up the stairs to 'his bedroom'. He forcefully opened the door and slammed it, ushering a loud noise that made him inhale through his teeth and made his ears go down like a cat. "Why did that hurt so much?!"

"It's because you're sick."

"Shut up."

"You asked, I answered." Edward flopped onto the bed that he never even used. "Why am I even sick?" he asked. "It's because I am, or was. You know how when you got that nasty cut on your arm that one time and how I had it too? If one thing like that happens to one of us, it happens to the both of us."

"Gotcha." Edward shivered. "It's so hot, yet so cold, I hate it," he continued, "how do I stop being sick?"

"Let's see here. Drink fluids; wear lightweight pajamas; turn a fan on, and sleep. We'll feel better in a few days."

"Do I even own pajamas?"

"I...never thought about that," Henry said slowly. Edward slowly got up and staggered over to the dresser. "Do sweats count?"

"Yeah, I suppose." Edward changed into the pjs and turned the overhead fan on. "And what do you even mean by fluids?" Edward asked, going down the stairs again. "Water and soup."

"I don't know how to make that! I only know how to make pancakes!"

"I can give you instructions, it'll be like Ratatouille." Edward entered the kitchen and searched for a pot. "Ok. Tell me what to do."

Henry gave Edward a step by step tutorial on how to make chicken noodle soup, which was finished in around an hour, including eating time. "What now?" Edward asked, putting his used dishes in the dishwasher. "We sleep."

"But it's only 9!"

"Do you want to feel better or not?" Edward sighed. "I do, I do." Edward went upstairs for the last time and got under the covers of his bed. He laid there in silence, drumming his fingers on his chest. Henry had almost dozed off. "Hey, uh, Doc?"

"Yeah?"

"Am I a burden to you?" Edward's voice didn't sound as hoarse and whiny, it was more quiet and solemn.

"No, I don't think so."

"You sure? I know I'm annoying, and I can hardly do anything useful on my own. Like, I just learned how to make soup! I'm supposed to be 22! I don't know about you, but people my age know how to make soup!" He grasped his face in frustration. Henry cleared his throat. "Well, there are actually a lot of people your age who can't even take care of themselves in the slightest. Some even older than you." Edward raised an eyebrow. "Really?"

"Yes, really. Some people who are my age, even." Edward laughed a little. "And you're like, a bazillion years old."

"I'm 34. But that's not the point. The point is that you're actually trying to better yourself, and I'm proud of you for that." Edward smiled a little. "Thanks, Doc." He yawned and closed his eyes. "Good night, Edward," Henry said. "Good night, Dad." Henry paused for a moment. "What did you just call me?"

"Doc. I said 'Doc,' I didn't say nothing weird," Edward quickly said before rolling over onto his side. "Night," he said quietly. Henry smiled slightly. "Good night."

#gothic gang #gg henry jekyll #gg edward hyde #:)

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inflashback · 4 years

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all the ones you want to do 👀

well, here’s everything except the ones i’ve answered, you asked for it

theyre mostly about my youngmabel au, which i will ramblr about for free if anyones interested :’)

What is that one scene that you’ve always wanted to write but can’t be arsed to write all of the set-up and context it would need? (consider this permission to write it and/or share it anyway)

i’ve, for a really really long time, wanted to write like. a scene where laura kinney and henry sutter Talk Their Shit Out, but that would take so so long and i’m not motivated... sorry laura and henry. okay i think the rest of these will b about mabel but. gotta stick with my idiots.

Share a sentence or paragraph from your writing that you’re really proud of (explain why, if you like)

this is from my young mabel story !!

“[Mabel] stops banging her head when she feels a stab of anxiety slash through her stomach. It’s not hers, that much is obvious-- it’s a soft golden feeling, the nerves, the--

The girl in the front of her mind, with hair cut just below her ears. Small scatterings of pimples across her face. She has a smile without sharp teeth; she cracks her knuckles when she’s bored or needs to fidget; she owns a pair of overalls she wears at least twice a week in the summer, when she’s in the mood to run around the fields outside her home, barefoot, with a friend or a girlfriend, when she wants to smoke a cigarette or two (she’d kicked the habit exactly three weeks ago today, she’s really proud of herself and her sister is, too), her sister’s name is Mónica and her name is Anna, Anna, Anna, Anna, Anna--

Anna Limon, Anna Limon, Anna Limon.”

the reverance to which mabel says anna’s name has always Hit Me for personal reasons and this scene i think is good. that is all

What character that you’re writing do you most identify with?

right now? either vera or mabel. vera is... not Right, and not Wanted by the outside world, so she’s angry and stupid to combat it. and mabel just... loves Her Person more than anything in the world, so there’s that.

What character do you have the most fun writing?

again, mabel!! she’s so fun and angry all the time and it’s so freeing to just be able to do whatever the hell you WANT with a character

What do you think are the characteristics of your personal writing style? Would others agree?

Uh!! I think i use a lot of metaphor and write a lot of physical affection :’) i’m not sure if others would agree but that’s pretty basic!!

Is what you like to write the same as what you like to read?

yeah...

Are you more of a drabble or a longfic kind of writer? Pantser or plotter?

i write a lot of drabbles, but my proudest works are my long fic!!! i also plot way too much and i love to do it.

Do you wish you were the other?

i have no idea what this means but... yeah i guess? How would you describe your writing process?

pace around my entire house looping one (1) song thinking of one (1) scene. figure out exactly what it would take to get the characters to that point. write like 2000 words, fall asleep, cant make words for the next three years.

What do you envy in other writers?

oh god, everything. i don’t know how to make my words flow like certain people do, RIVER

Do you want your writing to be famous?

god no. my stories are mine.

Do you share your writing online? (Drop a link!) Do you have projects you’ve kept just for yourself?

yes! here! there’s one story i’ve only shared with two people and that’s my borderline-ridiculous ‘beetlejuice with lab rats and gay shit and werewolves’ au, it’s the most self indulgent thing i’ve ever written and i love it so much.

At what point in writing do you come up with a title?

usually while listening to songs!! fr example my most recent posted fic is a lyric from ‘cop car’ by mitski because the line ‘i get mean when i’m nervous / like a bad dog’ makes me think of mabel, thus that fic came into existence.

Which is harder: titles or summaries (or tags)?

SUMMARIES i hate summaries usually i just paste in whatever i’ve got as the first sentence.

Tried anything new with your writing lately? (style, POV, genre, fandom?)

not really? new fandom but. i got my bread and butter, dude, i don’t feel like branching out. writing’s just a hobby i’m okay at.

Do you think readers perceive your work - or you - differently to you? What do you think would surprise your readers about your writing or your motivations?

i don’t think so !! like some of the stuff is personal and you can’t really understand from an outside POV, but. most of it is just dorky found family stuff!

Do any of your stories have alternative versions? (plotlines that you abandoned, AUs of your own work, different characterisations?) Tell us about them.

oh dear god yes... i mean. obvs river youre asking this youre aware of my aus. but i have a billion aus, theyre my favorite thing to write and ive got at least three for every fandom i’m in. i have an au for my lab rat beetlejuice au, too, which i’ll get around to writing someday.

Is there something you always find yourself repeating in your writing? (favourite verb, something you describe ‘too often’, trope you can’t get enough of?)

ALL I DO IS DESCRIBE PEOPLE’S TEETH AND PHYSICAL AFFECTION. uhh i use the phrase ‘bared their teeth / had far too many teeth / smiled with too many teeth’ a lot, its because i find it the easiest descriptor for monsters and i like to write about monsters.

Tell us the meta about your writing that you really want to ramble to people about (symbolism you’ve included, character or relationship development that you love, hidden references, callbacks or clues for future scenes?)

ohh god okay youngmabel take three. anna wears soft reds and lots of layers-- to contrast mabel, who wears a thin nightgown and has a bright green color palette. this is largely because mabel has been made to show herself to everyone who’s tried to control her (sally, aurora silver, etc) while anna hides in herself. anna specifically wears one of mónica’s old sweaters, because she can hide and protect herself with her family, while mabel cant. also i love mónica im so hype to have her in the series. mabel also repeats things in groups of threes (”hello, hello, hello, anna, hello, hello, hello”) because she’s fae. i love her. ough and i cant wait for the character development you guys rnt ready fr this dumb series

What other medium do you think your story would work well as? (film, webcomic, animated series?)

I WOULD LOVE FR IT TO BE AN ANIMATED SERIES but also it as a film would rock.... yeahhhhh

Do you reread your old works? How do you feel about them?

my xmen ones, yeah. they’re really comforting for me. i feel like i wanna give my kid self a big big hug.

What’s the story idea you’ve had in your head for the longest?

probs the daemons au or the agents of shield / xmen crossover.. those both gave baby abbey a lot of fun hours.

Would you say your writing has changed over time?

yeah! ive gotten better i think

OKAY RAMBLE OVER THANKS RIV

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anastpaul · 6 years

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Saint of the Day – 10 March – St Marie Eugénie de Jésus (1817-1898) aged 80 – Foundress of the Religious of the Assumption – Religious, – born 26 August 1817 at Metz, Moselle, France as Eugenie Milleret de Brou (de Bron) and died on 10 March 1898 at Auteuil, Hauts-de-Seine, France of natural causes. Patronages – the Religious of the Assumption and Students. St Marie Eugénie is also known as Anne-Eugénie Milleret de Brou, Eugénie Milleret de Brou, Eugénie Milleret de Bron, Marie Eugénie Milleret de Brou, Mere Marie Eugénie. She was Beatified on 9 February 1975 by St Pope Paul VI and Canonised by Pope Benedict XVI on 3 June 2007.

Anne Marie Eugenie was born in 1817 in Metz after Napoleon’s complete defeat and the restoration of the Monarchy. She belonged to a non-believing and financially comfortable family and it seemed unlikely that she would trace a new spiritual path across the Church of France.

Her father, follower of Voltaire and a liberal, was making his fortune in the banking world and in politics. Eugenie’s mother provided the sensitive Eugenie with an education, which strengthened her character and gave her a strong sense of duty. Family life developed her intellectual curiosity and a romantic spirit, an interest in social questions and a broad world view.

Like her contemporary, George Sand, Anne Eugenie went to Mass on feast days and received the Sacraments of initiation, as was the custom but without any real commitment. However, her First Communion was a great mystical experience that foretold the secret of her future. She did not grasp its prophetic meaning until much later when she recognised it as her path towards total belonging to Jesus Christ and the Church.

Her youth was happy but not without suffering. She was affected when still a child by the death of an elder brother and a baby sister. Her health was delicate and a fall from a horse left serious consequences. Eugenie was mature for her age and learnt how to hide her feelings and to face up to events. Later, after a prosperous period for her father, she experienced the failure of his banks, the misunderstanding and eventual separation of her parents and the loss of all security. She had to leave her family home and go to Paris while Louis, closest to her in age and faithful companion went to live with their father. Eugenie went to Paris with the mother she adored, only to see her die from cholera after a few hours of illness, leaving her alone at the age of fifteen in a society that was worldly and superficial. Searching in anguish and almost desperate for the truth, she arrived at her conversion thirsty for the Absolute and open to the Transcendent.

When she was nineteen, Anne Eugenie attended the Lenten Conferences at Notre Dame in Paris, preached by the young Abbe Lacordaire (1802–1861), already well-known for his talent as orator. Lacordaire was a former disciple of Lamennais – haunted by the vision of a renewed Church with a special place in the world. He understood his time and wanted to change it. He understood young people, their questions and their desires, their idealism and their ignorance of both Christ and the Church. His words touched Eugenie’s heart, answered her many questions and aroused her generosity.

Fr Lacordaire preaching his Lenten Conferences from the elevated pulpit at Notre-Dame Cathedral, Paris, 1845.

Fr Henri-Dominique Lacordaire OP, at the convent of Sainte-Sabine in Rome, by Théodore Chassériau (1840)

Eugenie envisaged Christ as the universal liberator and His kingdom on earth established as a peaceful and just society. “I was truly converted, she wrote, and I was seized by a longing to devote all my strength or rather all my weakness to the Church which, from that moment, I saw as alone holding the key to the knowledge and achievement of all that is good.”

Just at this time, another preacher, also a former disciple of Lamennais, appeared on the scene. In the confessional, Father Combalot recognised that he had encountered a chosen soul who was designated to be the foundress of the Congregation he had dreamt of for a long time. He persuaded Eugenie to undertake his work by insisting that this Congregation was willed by God who had chosen her to establish it. He convinced her that only by education could she evangelise minds, make families truly Christian and thus transform the society of her time. Anne Eugenie accepted the project as God’s will for her and allowed herself to be guided by the Abbe Combalot.

At twenty-two, Marie Eugenie became foundress of the Religious of the Assumption, dedicated to consecrate their whole life and strength to extending the Kingdom of Christ in themselves and in the world. In 1839, Mademoiselle Eugenie Milleret, with two other young women, began a life of prayer and study in a flat at rue Ferou near the church of St Sulpice in Paris. In 1841, under the patronage of Madame de Chateaubriand, Lacordaire, Montalembert and their friends, the sisters opened their first school. In a relatively short time there were sixteen sisters of four nationalities in the community.

Marie Eugenie and the first sisters wanted to link the ancient and the new – to unite the past treasures of the Church’s spirituality and wisdom with a type of religious life and education able to satisfy the demands of modern minds. It was a matter of respecting the values of the period and at the same time, making the Gospel values penetrate the rising culture of a new industrial and scientific era. The spirituality of the Congregation, centred on Christ and the Incarnation, was both deeply contemplative and dedicated to apostolic action. It was a life given to the search for God and the love and service of others.

Marie Eugenie’s long life covered almost the whole of the 19th century. She loved her times passionately and took an active part in their history. Progressively, she channelled all her energy and gifts in tending and extending the Congregation, which became her life work. God gave her sisters and many friends. One of the first sisters was Irish, a mystic and her intimate friend whom she called at the end of her life, “half of myself.” Kate O’Neill, called Mother Therese Emmanuel in religion, is considered as a co-foundress. Father Emmanuel d’Alzon, became Marie Eugenie’s spiritual director soon after the foundation, was a father, brother or friend according to the seasons. In 1845, he founded the Augustinians of the Assumption and the two founders helped each other in a multitude of ways over a period of forty years. Both had a gift for friendship and they inspired many lay people to work with them and the Church. Together, as they followed Christ and laboured with Him, the religious and laity traced the path of the Assumption and took their place in the great cloud of witnesses.

In the last years of her life, Mother Marie Eugenie experienced a progressive physical weakening, which she lived in silence and humility – a life totally centred on Christ. She received the Eucharist for the last time on 9 March 1898 and on the 10th, she gently passed to the Lord. She was beatified by Pope Paul VI on 9 February 1975 in Rome.

Today, the Religious of the Assumption are present in 34 countries – 8 in Europe, 5 in Asia, 10 in America and 11 in Africa. Almost 1,200 sisters form 170 communities throughout the world.

The Lay Assumption – Assumption Together – made up of Friends of the Assumption and Communities or Fraternities of the Assumption, are numerous – thousands of Friends and hundreds of Lay Assumption committed to live according to the Way of Life….Vatican.va

(via Saint of the Day - 10 March - St Marie Eugénie de Jésus (1817-1898))

#stmarieeugeniedejesus #march10stmarieeugeniedejesus #catholic #catholicism

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queen-of-the-merry-men · 6 years

Text

Around the Block (Glass Believer Fic)

A/N: So @findingtallahassee has written me a lot of prompts in the past and I wanted to write something for one of her OTPs. So here’s a short Glass Believer Hyperion Heights AU I thought of awhile ago where Henry is Jacinda’s Swift driver and she needs him to drive her around the block to calm her newborn. @trueloveismagic might be interested too.

------------------

It was getting late when Henry dropped off his latest Swift customer. As he watched the tipsy couple stumble out of his backseat he silently debated whether or not he should call it a night. It was 3am and the late-night crowd was waning but so was his bank account the last time he checked. Pulling, away from the curb he decided that it was time to head home. He’d clock in early tomorrow to make up his losses but for tonight he was done.

He barely driven a block when he got another ping on his Swift app. Groaning, he reluctantly took a look.

A new fare, less than two blocks away and he was the only one in a 10-minute radius. Twisting his lips indecisively, he wondered if it would be worth it to cart another drunk frat boy back to his apartment for the night. After a moment of hesitation he decided to accept. Rent was due soon, anyway.

He drove to address praying to god that whoever got in his backseat wasn’t the chatty type. It was far too late to pretend as if he was interested in anything other sleep this night.

His eyes widened when he pulled up to the curb and saw a woman dressed in blue plaid pajamas waiting on the street. Her lopsided ponytail swung back and forth as she jostled the car seat under her arm, attempting to stifle the long winded yawn he saw fly from her mouth. Before he even rolled down the window he could hear the unmistakable cry of an infant reach his ears.

“My name’s Henry,” he said, uncertainly. “I’m your Swift driver.”

“Oh thank god,” she sighed, reaching for the door handle.

Henry watched, his eyebrows knit together curiously, as she shoved the car seat with her wailing baby in the back before climbing in the front seat and letting out a tired breath.

“So... where are you headed?” he asked, raising his voice over the sound of her baby.

She shrugged. “Nowhere in particular.”

“Excuse me?”

The woman vaguely, gestured toward the road. “Just... drive around the block a few times, please.”

A confused chuckle fell from the back of Henry’s throat, as he shook his head at her. “Yeah... that’s not how this works.”

The mother bowed her head, letting out a tired moan before turning to him with desperate brown eyes. “Listen Henry... do you see that precious ball of joy back there?”

He nodded.

“That is my two-month old daughter, Lucy,” she explained. “I named her that because she is the light of my life... but that screeching sound that she’s making right now? Well, it was the first thing I heard when she was born and the only thing I’ve heard since. I have been up since 6am yesterday, trying to get her to stop and failing miserably.”

“Okay...”

“The only two breaks I’ve gotten,” she said, talking over him, “were on the cab ride home from the hospital and on the hour-long trip to visit my step sister. Apparently the only thing that soothes is the steady rumbling of a car engine so I... am... begging... you... please just take me around the block. Because I am about to lose my mind.”

Henry stared at her. On closer look he noticed the dark circles under her eyes and the spit up on her shoulder, both of them actually. All that combined with the wavering desperation in her voice as she begged him to drive her around the block painted a very visceral picture.

“Okay,” he acquiesced. “I will take around the block a few times. We’ll see how it goes.”

She shut her eyes gratefully. “Thank you. I will give you the best tip of your life, I promise.”

He doubted it, but as he pulled away from the curb with a crying infant and an exhausted mother as his passengers he couldn’t help but feel as though he’d been right to take the fare.

To her credit, the woman was right. They’d barely gone around the block once before Lucy began to settle. By their third time around, she’d gone completely silent and he was sure that she was sound asleep. He gave her two more laps to be sure, and pulled up to their building on the fifth, keeping an eye on her through the rear view mirror.

“Well, I’ll admit that worked better than I expected,” he said, cheerfully putting the car in park. “Think she’ll stay asleep for long?”

Realizing that he was getting only snores in response, his eyes whipped toward his passenger seat, where he saw Lucy’s mother out cold with her head against the window.

“Oh..no, no,” he said, gently shaking her shoulder. “Hey, wake up.”

Double checking her reservation, he starting calling out to her by name. “Jacinda... Jacinda it’s time to wake up.”

For all his efforts, Jacinda remained dead to the world and Henry dropped his head to the steering wheel and groaned. God, this was the night that would never end.

As if things couldn’t get any worse, the cackling beginnings of a cry began to rise from the back seat. Lifting his head from the steering wheel he looked back, worried, as Lucy started to cry again. Jacinda stirred in the front seat and though he knew it was probably the quickest way to get her out of his car, a part of Henry hesitated to let Jacinda wake up to a crying baby.

“Damn it,” he muttered under his breath.

Rolling, his eyes he climbed into the backseat, placing a hand on Lucy’s stomach as she started to squirm. “Hey don’t cry,” he pleaded, in his calmest voice.

Lucy’s face turned red, as she outright ignored him and started to wail once again.

Henry grit his teeth, unsure of what to do next. He wondered if he should take her out of the car seat. Jacinda probably wouldn’t be too fond of that idea.

Lucy let out another wail and Henry reached for her seat belt buckle. Screw it. Maybe he was just tired but if her mother had the audacity to slip into a coma in his front seat, he should be able to comfort the baby anyway he saw fit.

Cradling her in arms, he tried to bounce Lucy to calm her down. It was ineffective. She squirmed and cried in his arms as he tried to remember what his mother had done when he was a baby. She said he used to read to him and tell him stories. Unfortunately, there was only one that he could think of at the moment.

“Okay Lucy,” he muttered. “The publishers didn’t like this one but maybe you will.”

He started telling her the warped fairy tale he’d been working on the past few years. One filled with redemption and curses, old feuds and two battling mothers. He whispered to her stories of a cursed town filled with miserable characters who had no idea who they were and the young boy who worked to save them. It was a long, twisted, confusing tale (according to the publishers) but Lucy seemed to enjoy it. Listening to him speak, her cries softened and eventually went silent. Her eyes didn’t shut but instead remained focused on him. He’d never had such an attentive audience.

Telling stories to her he didn’t even notice how much time slipped by.

---------

Sleep and rest. Jacinda had long forgotten what they felt like. Every since her daughter was born it’d been a 20 minute nap there and 10 minute break here. She hadn’t truly rested in weeks.

Perhaps that’s why she slept so soundly in Henry’s car. If she’d known it would be the last proper sleep she’d get for the next few weeks, maybe she would’ve felt less guilty but as it was she’d count falling asleep in her Swift driver’s car and leaving her baby to the whims of a stranger as one of her lowest parenting moments.

When she woke up, the first thing she noticed was how rested she’d felt. Her bones no longer ached and her head no longer felt heavy with sleep deprivation. For the first time in weeks her mind was clear was as the sky. That’s probably how the panic moved in so quickly.

Squinting, against the glare from the windshield, she noticed that the sun had started to rise and illuminate the street.

Wait... the street?

She abruptly sat forward in her seat and was jerked back by the seat belt across her chest. What hell? Her head whipped around, as she took in her surroundings. Was she in somebody’s... car?

“Don’t panic.”

She whipped her eyes to the back seat where she saw Henry sitting with her daughter in his arms.

“You’re safe,” he said.

One look at him, and everything came back. He was the Swift driver she’d ordered.

“What the hell are you doing?” she hissed, frightened. “Why do you have my baby?”

“Because I figured leaving her alone in the car would be reckless endangerment,” he deadpanned. “You fell asleep.”

“I realize that,” she said, embarrassment rising in her cheeks as she glared at him. “Why didn’t you wake me?”

“I tried,” he laughed. “After the first ten minutes I thought you were legally dead. You were out cold.”

“Oh my god,” she whispered, shutting her eyes and running her hand over her head. Did she really just fall asleep in a stranger’s car with her infant daughter? “Lucy...”

“Is fine,” said Henry. “We’ve really gotten to know each other these past two hours.”

Two hours? “Oh my god!” She jerked away her seatbelt and rushed out of the car. Opening the door to the backseat she held out her arms for her daughter. “Give her to me!”

Henry immediately passed over the baby, and Jacinda sobbed with relief, pulling her close. “Oh my god, baby I am so sorry.”

She looked her over, relieved that her daughter seemed no worse for wear. In fact, she seemed calmer than ever. Not a hint of tears in her eyes.

Henry climbed out of the backseat, pulling Lucy’s car seat with him. He looked her up and down. “I take it you don’t have much help.”

She looked at him, confused. “What?”

“No offense... but you slept like someone who’s doing it all on their own.”

She hesitated, before reluctantly nodding. “It’s just me. I have a roommate who helps as much as she can but she’s visiting her mom this week.”

Henry nodded understandingly, passing her the car seat. “Sounds rough.”

She kept herself from agreeing. She made a promise to herself when Lucy was born to never speak of her as if she was burden. Growing up that was all she’d heard from her stepmother and she didn’t want her daughter to feel the way she had. Instead she just nodded.

“It’s worth it,” she said, looking down at her daughter. “Every minute.”

“I bet,” he mumbled, dropping his gaze. “Listen if you ever need another ride around the block, call me.” He passed her a drab business card. “Hyperion Heights is kind of my territory.”

She let out a small awkward laugh as she took it from him. Henry Mills, FICTION WRITER.

“Fiction writer?” she noticed. “Anything I would know about?”

Henry shrugged his shoulders, opening the door to the driver’s seat. “Ask Lucy. She’s heard all my stories.”

They said goodbye with a nod and a small wave, Henry watching the two of them through his rearview mirror as he drove away, the picture of them sticking in his mind all the way home. After a quick shower, he’d collapse in bed wondering in she’d ever call him again.

When he woke up he’d check his Swift App to find the best tip of his life and a five star rating.

#glass believer #light believer #hyperion heights au #jacinda vidrio #henry mills #lucy mills #ouat #glass believer fic

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mcdougallunitedinpride · 6 years

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Talk to Me (Christmas Sermon)

Talk to Me

Christmas Sermon

by Gary Simpson

John 1:1-14 (KJV) In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.

There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe. He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light.

That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. He came unto his own, and his own received him not. But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

Bible commentator MacGregor, who wrote the Moffatt Bible Commentary on the book of John comments, “No book in the New Testament has provoked conclusions more diverse than” John’s Gospel.(1) Because I like to search for meaningful applications, not controversy, there are parts of the Gospel of John that I like to avoid, because of the controversy that can come with them. The lectionary schedule, however, does not always let us run away from what is uncomfortable and I think that is generally a good thing. We need to get comfortable with what makes us uncomfortable. Perhaps, that is part of what Christmas means. We learn to be comfortable with family, friends and acquaintances, including those who make us uncomfortable.

The book of John is believed to be the last Gospel written.(2) By the time John was written, the young Christian church had second and third generation believers. John’s Gospel provides more information about Jesus, probably in an attempt to deal with apostasy.(3) The unifying purpose of the Gospel appears to be encouraging people to believe that Jesus is the Son, who came from God.(4)

The term word or logos had a special meaning to Jewish people and to Greeks. Plato considered logos to refer to the “divine mind.”(5) From about 400 to 500 years before Christ, a Greek Philosopher Heraclitus believed that the Logos of God dwelling in people is what gave people a sense of right and wrong. From his perspective, “The Logos was nothing less than the mind of God controlling the world and everyone in it.”(6) John’s message is that in Jesus the Logos, the “illuminating, controlling, sustaining mind of God”, came to earth.(7)

There is a meaning in Greek that gives a slightly different sense. In Greek, we are told, “‘The Word was born flesh.’”(8)

The incarnate word of God or the logos of God shows two insights into John’s theology:

• John believed Jesus was the culmination of the redemption of humanity.

• John thought Jesus was eternal and existed before creation.(9)

Anglican priest, Mund Thompson notes, “‘the word became flesh and pitched his tent among us’. In the Hebrew Scriptures, as the children of Israel were in the desert, “God travelled with them”.(10) As in the wilderness, “in Jesus God pitches his tent amidst our tents and travels with us as we journey through life. God gets involved in our mess.”(11) The old respected Bible commentator, Matthew Henry, comments that Jesus “did not dwell among us as in a palace, but as in a tent”, that Jesus dwelt with us in common circumstances, such as “shepherds that dwell in tents”.(12) I find it interesting that Matthew Henry said Christ dwelt with us like shepherds. A passage in Genesis tells us that the Egyptians considered shepherds to be an abomination.(13) The Egyptians viewed shepherds with contempt and disdain and basically ridiculed shepherds.(14) In many respects, the Messiah took upon Himself the contempt, disdain and hatred experienced by members of oppressed minority groups, because, in part, as a Jewish man, He was a member of a minority group in the Roman Empire.

In this section of John Chapter 1, we see some foreshadowing of what will take place in Jesus' ministry. To a person who was not familiar with Jesus, this is a hint that later in the Gospel people will reject Jesus' ministry, that Jesus will be rejected by His own people.

This sounds like a rather ugly verse to be considering at Christmas. Jesus is rejected by His family. We are supposed to be celebrating Jesus' birth, with the exciting expectation of peace and joy. And the Gospel of John comes along and throws ice cold water on our celebration by letting us know that the eternal Jesus, the creator of the world and the creator of life, will be well received by some people, but his very own people will reject Him.

Good news, life impacting messages do not need to be long dissertations. The core of the good news can be said in fifteen words. The Word became a human being and, full of grace and truth, lived among us (NLT). Those are fifteen words that changed lives and impacted the history of the world. Compare that with some of the famous and influential speeches given in the last two hundred years. My computer program gives me the following word counts:

Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address - about 270 words.

Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech - about 1,600 words.

Lyndon Johnson’s “The American Promise” speech - about 3,700 words.

Winston Churchill’s “This was Their Finest Hour” speech - about 4,400 words.

The Gospel of John summarizes social justice, human dreams, a promise and the hour of spiritual liberation in just 15 words.

Paul Decker tells an interesting story in a sermon that he gave. He says a man found a new physician for his 90 year-old mother, because her family doctor died. The physician examined his mother, turning to the son, he proceeded to discuss the mother’s health. I wish I was as brave as this 90 year-old lady. She interrupted the doctor, asking, “Doctor, do you do crossword puzzles?”

The physician responded, “Yes.”

She followed with a second question. “Do you do them with pencil or pen?”

The physician answered, “With a pencil.”

She responded, “I do mine with a pen, so you can talk to me.”(15)

I am going to take Paul Decerk’s story in a direction that he did not take.

After Moses leads the children of Israel out of slavery in Egypt, the law is given to the children of Israel at Sinai. According to the narrative in Deuteronomy, God engraved, with God’s finger, the commandments on stone.(16) The Word was made stone and we got the law. Those stone tablets, containing the 10 commandments, are meaningful, but for many the words on stone were hard and cold and did not adequately show the love of God. At Bethlehem, the Word was made flesh and we got grace. In John’s Christmas story, the Word was made flesh, was made into a warm human body in Jesus. In the Christmas story, God is not aloof. The incarnate God does not talk to another, while ignoring us. Christ walked with humanity, lived with humanity, worked with humanity and talked to humanity.

At Bethlehem, the Word was made flesh and grace abounded. For many people, we are the only Bible they will read. To them, we are the Word of God surrounded by human flesh, the Word made warm, compassionate and caring. The Christmas story challenges us to, in a small way, be like the living Word. We do that when we empower family, friends, colleagues, and the oppressed and impoverished by walking with them and talking with them, instead of just talking about them. So in the spirit of a 90 year-old lady and in the Spirit of God, respect, honor, love and empower people - talk to people.

End Notes

(1)G.H.C. MacGregor. The Moffatt New Testament Commentary: The Gospel of John. (Seattle: SOURCE Digital Pub., 2018, First published in 1929), ebook.

(2)Kenneth L. Barker and John R. Kohlenberger, III, eds. NIV Bible Commentary: Vol 2: New Testament. (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan Pub., 1994), 290.

(3)Barker and Kohlenberger, III. (1994), 290.

(4)Barker and Kohlenberger, III. (1994), 292.

(5)Quest Study Bible (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan Pub. House, 1994), 1466.

(6)William Barclay. The New Daily Study Bible: The Gospel of John. Vol. 1 (Edinburgh: Andrew Press, 2001), ebook.

(7)Barclay. (2001), ebook.

(8)J. Vernon McGee. Thru the Bible with J. Vernon McGee. (Pasadena, California: Thru the Bible Radio, 1998), ebook.

(9)Lane T. Dennis, et. al., eds. ESV Study Bible. (Wheaton, Illinois: Crossway, 2008), 2019.

(10)Mund Cargill Thompson. “Slapped in the Face with Love.” Sermon Central. 24 Dec 2017, 13 Dec 2018. <https://www.sermoncentral.com/sermons/slapped-in-the-face-with-love-fr-mund-cargill-thompson-sermon-on-christmas-227395?ref=SermonSerps>.

(11)Thompson. (2017). <https://www.sermoncentral.com/sermons/slapped-in-the-face-with-love-fr-mund-cargill-thompson-sermon-on-christmas-227395?ref=SermonSerps>.

(12)Matthew Henry. “Matthew Henry Commentary on the Whole Bible (Complete).” Bible Study Tools. n.d., 17 Dec 2018. <https://www.biblestudytools.com/commentaries/matthew-henry-complete/john/1.html>.

(13)Genesis 46:34.

(14)Henry. <https://www.biblestudytools.com/commentaries/matthew-henry-complete/genesis/46.html>.

(15)Paul Decker. “What Did He Say?” Sermon Central. 18 Jun 2002, 14 Dec 2018.

<https://www.sermoncentral.com/sermons/what-did-he-say-paul-decker-sermon-on-divinity-of-christ-47672?ref=SermonSerps>.

(16)Deuteronomy 9:10 (KJV) And the Lord delivered unto me two tables of stone written with the finger of God; and on them was written according to all the words, which the Lord spake with you in the mount out of the midst of the fire in the day of the assembly.

#LGBT #LGBTQ #Christmas #Christian #reflection #sermon

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riverdamien · 3 years

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Freedom Is My Goal!

Freedom is Our Goal!

St. Andrew Kim and the Korean Martyrs

"No one after lighting a lamp covers it with a jar or puts it under a bed, but puts it on a stand so that those who enter may see the light. For nothing is hidden that will not be made known and come to light. . . Luke 8: 16-17".

"Though the forces of evil infecting whole nations and peoples are often hidden, complex, and elusive, we are called, as Christians, to unmask and expel them in the Name of the God of Love. . . .

As long as national security is our primary concern and national survival more important than preserving life on this planet, we continue to live in the house of fear. Ultimately, we must choose between security—individual, social, or national— and freedom.

Freedom is the true human goal. Life is only true if it is free. An obsessive concern for security freezes us; it leads us to rigidity, fixation, and eventually death. The more preoccupied we are with security the more visible the force of death becomes, whether in the form of a pistol beside our bed, a rifle in our house, or a Trident submarine in our port. . . .

We must find a way to go beyond our national security obsession and reach out and foster life for all people, whatever their nationality, race, or religion." Fr. Henri Nouwen

----------------

Fr. Henri struggled for freedom throughout his life. He was a gay man, in the Roman Catholic Church, and called by God to the priesthood. So throughout his ministry, his call and his struggle with his sexuality were in conflict, and even though he chose his call he struggled for freedom. Towards the end of his life in service to the disabled, he found freedom.

Nouen's quote illustrates the struggles we all wrestle with throughout our lives.

As a young minister, at a time when I believed my denomination was coming to openness around sexuality, I approached my District Superintendent with my own struggle, and all hell broke loose.

I was sent to two psychologists, who after listening to me, gave me a horrible label from the DSM 3, (homosexuality or the questioning of one's sexuality was considered a dysfunctional diagnosis). I was sent to a "mental health facility" for those who needed to be "straightened" out. I stayed a week and ran as far as I could to Hollywood.

From this experience, I never trusted psychology again, and with my street kids, not at all.

I work with a psychiatrist who spent a number of years in Africa and "they" too learned not to trust labeling individuals with a diagnosis.

When one labels another, they set in the back of their mind a view that determines they are treated.

In our society, we do that. Due to all the literature, and social media influence we all tend to become armchair therapists, who label others. It is fun and interesting to do. Professionals do the same, from their cultural point of view. We are simply human beings.

I can not tell you how many diagnoses have been thrown at me. People get angry and use a diagnosis or tell them they need to see a psychiatrist as revenge or a way of pushing people away.

I have been asked to review the cases of adolescents over 18 on the street, and I strongly refuse to place any label on anyone and insist on the removal of negative diagnoses. The reality is street youth live in a different world, and many diagnoses do not fit. And when people are using the DSMV to diagnose others, I get nervous, very nervous, and sometimes respond in a negative manner, and hate myself afterward.

Let's watch whatwe say about one another, and be a lamp on the hill reflecting the light.

Bishop John Shelby Spong has died, at 90. Reading his writings, and one other minister brought me back to the ministry. In particular, his writings saved my faith in Jesus.

One particular quote that I memorized stays with me, and saved my ass:

"Whatever it was that people experience in Jesus has today come to be identified with medieval doctrines based on premodern assumptions that are no longer believable. That identification means that serious theological discussion seems to accomplish little more than to erect a division between the shouters and the disinterested.

Jesus becomes the captive of the hysterically religious, the chronically fearful, the insecure, and even the neurotic among us, or he becomes little more than a fading memory, the symbol of an age that is no more and a nostalgic reminder of our believing past. To me, neither option is worth pursuing.

Yet even understanding these things, I am still attracted to this Jesus and I will pursue him both relentlessly and passionately. I will not surrender the truth I believe I find in him either to those who seek to defend the indefensible or to those who want to be freed finally from premodern ideas that no longer make sense."

I pursue Jesus "relentlessly and passionately, and freedom is my goal which will not be fulfilled until I enter Galilee following Jesus.

And so in the invitation to Holy Communion all are invited to the Jesus of freedom, and the Jesus of love of all:

"Sisters and Brothers this is the joyful feast of the people of God! They will come from east and west, from north and south, from the highways and the byways, from wealth and from poverty, from the Tenderloin and Market Street, from the benches of Golden Gate Park and the Castro, and sit at Table in the grace-filled reign of God. We are told in the Scriptures that when the risen Lord was at table with the disciples, He took the bread and blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. Then their eye were opened and they recognized him. This is the Lord's table, mysterious in its grace and transparent in its hospitality, caring not for gender, race, class, sexual orientation, faith tradition, or marital status, exclusive only in its fierce commitment to all people. We are invited to share the feast prepared by the One who loves us without condition"

Deo Gratias! Thanks be to God!

===========================

Fr. C. River Damien Sims, D.Min., D.S.T.

P.O. Box 642656

San Francisco, CA 94164

www. temenos.org

415-305-2124

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winterbaby89 · 7 years

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Dark Hook Comes to Storybrooke - Chapter Two

A Captain Swan, Season 1 Canon Divergence Collaboration by: @hollyethecurious, and @winterbaby89

Beta’d by: @ilovemesomekillianjones

Amazing Artwork by: @xhookswenchx

Rated M for language and dark themes (and maybe (probably) some sexy times… later ;o)

Summary: Moments before the Evil Queen’s Dark Curse whisks our beloved fairytale characters to Storybrooke, Captain Hook finally gets his revenge on the Crocodile. Twenty-eight years later, Killian Jones awakes in Storybrooke expecting just another ordinary day, that is until a number of abnormal occurrences disrupts his otherwise scheduled life. The greatest of which is a new face in town. A young woman by the name of Emma. Emma. What a lovely name…

Disclaimer: Canon dialogue and scenes from various episodes will appear within this fic. To Adam, Eddie, and the OUAT writers goes all the credit.

Line breaks indicate change in POV or Scene.

Also available on ao3, my fic page, and Hollye′s fic page And if you want to catch up on the last chapter.

This work is no longer available on FF.net. Unfortunately the site does not allow authors to co-publish collaborative works.

Chapter Two

His hands wouldn’t stop shaking. Hands. Plural. As in, he had two of them again. How?

Was it a side effect of Regina’s curse or from his being...

The Dark One.

The bloody Dark One.

I’m the bloody Dark One!

It had all come back in a rush. Fast and sporadic flashes of memories - his memories - that told the story of his long life. A life that spanned centuries, and yet the truth of it had hit him in an instant. The truth of who he truly was.

Killian Jones.

Orphan.

Slave.

Lieutenant.

Pirate.

Captain Hook.

Dark One.

Killian shuddered at that final memory, and then panic seized him once again. He spun around surveying the room, expecting the Crocodile to manifest himself at any moment with his mocking and jeering. But he hadn’t appeared. Not in the bar. Not on the long walk home. Not even now as Killian paced the length of his manor.

Why?

‘This new realm is a land without magic’, he remembered suddenly. Regina’s words, just before she’d solicited him to kill her mother, echoing in his ear.

A Land Without Magic.

‘Where The Dark One will be stripped of his power.’

For the first time in what seemed like hours Killian took a deep, steadying breath. The Dark One had no power in this land. He had no power in this land. Even still, Killian could feel the rage, the anguish, and the all encompassing darkness he’d felt in that clearing. The memory of their collective presence haunting him more severely than any of his other demons ever had.

And even if they now lay dormant within him, it didn’t change one other fact… he was still Captain Hook. A villain in his own right. A scourge and a scoundrel out for only one thing. Revenge.

Killian pressed his fingers onto the now vacant space on his forearm. Milah.

Revenge had been his, but at what cost?

He’d become the very thing he hated the most. The very thing she hated most. Rumplestiltskin may not have been The Dark One when they’d been together, but Killian had seen it in her eyes when he’d told her of his run in with her husband turned Dark One on the docks; the loathing at what he’d become coursing through her.

For centuries Killian had justified his own depravity and darkness because it was all in pursuit of avenging her. He believed that she’d understand, would offer him absolution for his actions because the ends would justify the means. But now…

Now all he felt was shame. Shame at what he’d become, and thankful to all the gods that she had not lived to see how far he’d fallen in his quest for vengeance. And not just Milah, but Liam as well.

Liam.

Killian clasped at the chain hanging from his neck, but knew it would not hold what he sought. Liam’s ring. What had become of it? What had become of all his possessions? His hook, his coat, his sword, his…

Dagger.

The Dark One dagger.

It had been in his hand when the curse hit, and even though he knew it no longer had the power to control him (at least, that is, as long as Regina’s curse and the lack of magic in this land kept The Dark Ones at bay) he in no way wanted it in anyone else’s possession other than his own.

Killian tore the manor apart in his search, upending rooms he had no memory of ever even entering before. Memories of his cursed life interspersed with his real life. Bloody hell, leave it to Regina to over complicate matters. As if three hundred years of his own memories weren’t enough for his mind to contend with, now he had twenty-eight years of practically the same day recurring over and over again in his head. The only detail making the days distinct from one another was Henry.

Henry. He knew.

The lad knew about the curse. He’d mentioned it before, his suspicions that the stories in the book his teacher had given him were true. Killian had recognized it as a coping mechanism, a way for the lad to try and escape the reality of his unhappy life. A way to ground himself to something more hopeful.

Killian now understood why Henry Mills had come to mean so much to him. He was a lost boy, just like Killian.

On some level Killian had recognized that trait in Henry, even as he had forgotten his true self. It’s probably what had prompted him to suggest that the boy seek out information about his birth parents in the first place. Of course, he never considered that Henry would actually run off in search of the woman who’d given birth to him. But seek her out, the lad had, and her presence in Storybrooke had already begun to change things.

The mystery of why her name broke the spell he had been under notwithstanding, Killian knew he’d only just scratched the surface of the intrigue Emma Swan possessed. But he couldn’t focus on that now. On her. He had a dagger to find and a secret to keep.

As Emma dressed the next morning, and thought about stopping at the diner for breakfast, she heard a knock on the door. Answering it revealed Regina with a basket of apples in hand, and a fake smile plastered on her face. Great, I have to deal with her crap before I’ve even had the chance to drink my first cup of coffee? Just great. Before Emma could manage a polite hello, Regina thrust an apple toward her and started in on some random spiel.

“Did you know the honeycrisp tree is the most vigorous and hardy of all apple trees? It can survive temperatures as low as 40 below and keep growing. It can weather any storm. I have one that I've tended to since I was a little girl, and to this day I have yet to taste anything more delicious than the fruit it offers.”

“Thanks,” Emma responded dubiously as she took the proffered apple Regina extended to her, still clutching her cup in her right hand.

“I'm sure you'll enjoy them on your drive home.” Regina tried to hand over the full basket of apples, but Emma took a half step backward, refusing to reach out for it.

“Actually, I'm gonna stay for a while.”

A brief flicker of anger and agitation crossed Regina’s face at Emma’s declaration and refusal before she schooled her features into a mask of pleasant nonchalance. “I'm not sure that's such a good idea. Henry has enough issues. He doesn't need you confusing him.”

“All due respect, Madam Mayor, the fact that you have now threatened me twice in the last twelve hours makes me want to stay more.”

“Since when were apples a threat?”

“I can read between the lines. Sorry. I just want to make sure Henry's okay.”

“He's fine, dear. Any problems he has are being taken care of.”

A concern for Henry’s well being swelled within her chest at Regina’s words, prompting her to ask, “What does that mean?”

“It means I have him in therapy. It's all under control. Take my advice, Ms. Swan, only one of us knows what's best for Henry.”

That’s right, Emma thought. She remembered meeting Henry’s therapist the other night when she brought him back to Storybrooke, he was the kind man that had given her directions to Regina’s place. She remembered as a sense of relief flooded through her that Regina wasn’t referring to something more sinister. Great I’m starting to think like Henry, she’s not the Evil Queen, just a concerned parent, most likely a bad parent, but concerned nonetheless.

“Yeah, I'm starting to think you're right about that.” Emma didn’t miss the glare Regina sent her way at that comment.

“It's time for you to go.”

“Or what?” Emma challenged.

“Don't underestimate me, Ms. Swan. You have no idea what I'm capable of.” Considering that the end of the disturbing conversation, Emma shut the door without another word to Regina, and locked it before going back to getting ready for the day.

Thirty minutes later, Emma found herself perched at the counter in Granny’s diner. Perusing the menu, she debated what to order, when Ruby set down a hot chocolate with cinnamon and whipped cream in front of her.

“Here you go.”

“Thank you, but I didn’t order that.”

“Yeah, I know. You have an admirer.” At that comment, Emma turned and tried to tamp down the hope that it might be from a certain blue eyed gentleman who had haunted her dreams the night before, only to see Sheriff Humbert. Her disappointment swelled within her as she picked up the cocoa and approached his table, intending to let the poor man down gently.

“Ah, so you decided to stay.”

Was it really that much of a surprise to him? “Observant, important for a cop.”

“It's good news for our tourist business. It's bad for our local signage.” Graham looked a little uncomfortable with the awkward pause as his joke fell flat. “It's... it's a joke. Because you ran over our sign.”

The only immediate response she can muster is to roll her eyes at his terrible attempt at a joke. “Look, the cocoa was a nice gesture, and I am impressed that you guessed that I like cinnamon on my chocolate, 'cause most people don't, but I am not here to flirt, so thank you, but, no thank you.” Gently placing the cup on the table, she considers whether or not she would have accepted it from a different, accented man.

“I didn't send it.”

“I did. I like cinnamon, too.”

Her head shot towards the front table by the window at the sound of Henry’s voice. How did I not see him there earlier? “Don't you have school?”

“Duh. I'm ten. Walk me.”

He’s definitely my kid with that eyeroll. Without so much as another look at the sheriff, Emma placed a hand on Henry’s shoulder and began steering him out the door towards the bus stop.

Killian stopped abruptly in the back hallway of the diner as he watched the Swan girl and Henry make their way out of the diner and along the sidewalk that led to the bus stop. He was going to have to come up with some sort of excuse for avoiding Henry, as he was not quite ready to bring himself to lie to the boy by keeping up with his cursed facade in the lad’s presence. For now, he had a more pressing issue at hand; one he hoped the good Sheriff might be able to assist him with.

Killian prided himself on possessing a stealth that served him well in keeping people on their toes, or catching them off guard with his approach, but he’d never been able to get a jump on the Sheriff. The man somehow always knew when Killian, or anyone else, was approaching him, he seemed to have a sixth sense about him. In light of Killian’s regained memories he wondered just who Graham was back in their realm, and what the man would say if he knew that it was the infamous Captain Hook, or The Dark One for that matter, that was making himself welcome in his booth.

“Good morning, Mr. Jones. Something I can assist you with?” the Sheriff questioned, his disdain only slightly veiled in his tone.

“Actually, Sheriff. I’ve come to do my civic duty as a responsible citizen and business owner,” Killian replied as he placed a hand gun on the table between them, causing the Sheriff to tense momentarily before Killian could add, “I found it at the docks. Thought it best to turn it in to the proper authorities.”

The truth was Killian had found it during the search of his home overnight. Guns, knives, legal documents, and all manner of possessions had been uncovered. While not completely inconsistent with his nature, the items weren’t altogether authentic to who he was, cursed or otherwise, either, and no dagger had been found among them. It was only after he’d felt certain that no location within his home had been overlooked that Killian began to consider where within the town he might continue his search.

The stash of weapons he’d found concealed in various rooms had led him to the idea that the dagger may lay unclaimed within the Sheriff’s station. Not wanting to tip the lawman’s suspicions any further than they would be prone to, Killian had devised the ruse of turning over the firearm in hopes of naturally opening up the opportunity to question Graham about unclaimed blades.

“You found it?” Graham questioned suspiciously.

“Aye.”

“At the docks?”

“Aye.”

“And you’re just turning it in?”

“Would you rather I not?” Killian quipped inquiringly. “Too much paperwork involved, or are you running out of room to store unclaimed weapons at the Sheriff’s station?”

“We don’t have any unclaimed weapons at the station,” Graham admitted, unaware that he’d just provided the pirate with the very information he sought.

Damn! Killian cursed to himself. He’d have to continue his search elsewhere.

“Right. Well, first time for everything I suppose. I’ll leave you to it then, Sheriff.”

Killian exited the booth and took purposeful strides toward the door. He ran through his mental list of potential locations the dagger could be hiding, as he made his way to the sidewalk a flash of blonde curls and red leather caught his eye. He watched Emma make her way through the door that led up to Dr. Hopper’s office, or according to Henry, Jiminy Cricket’s office, and was once again struck by the urgent pull he felt toward the beguiling woman.

Shaking off such fanciful notions he turned himself towards the docks. He had a dagger to find and a day of searching through warehouses, offices, and his beloved Jolly Roger ahead of him.

Emma lounged on her bed at the B&B as she scoured the files that Dr. Hopper had given her about Henry. So far nothing was jumping out at her, but she wasn’t completely sure what she was looking for. She wasn’t a therapist, and until about three days ago she hadn’t considered herself a parent either. Not that she did even now that Henry was in her life.

A sharp knock at the door added to her current disgruntled state. When she found Sheriff Humbert on the other side she couldn’t help the sarcastic greeting that fell from her lips.

“Hey there. If you're concerned about the Do not disturb signs, don't worry, I've left them alone.”

“Actually, I'm here about Dr. Archibald Hopper. He mentioned you got into a bit of a row with him earlier?”

“No,” Emma clipped firmly as she placed her hands on her hips in annoyance.

“I was shocked, too, given your shy, delicate sensibilities,” Graham mocked, earning him an eyeroll. “He says you demanded to see Henry's files and when he refused, you came back and stole them.”

“He gave them to me.”

“Alas, he's telling a different tale. May I check your room, or must I get a search warrant?”

Unbelievable. Emma turned and allowed Graham to enter. There was no point in delaying the inevitable.

“Is this what you're looking for?” she asked, gesturing to the numerous papers scattered across the bed.

“Well, you're very accommodating,” Graham needled as he picked up a few papers before delivering the news Emma had been waiting for, even as she reeled at the outrageousness of it all. “I'm afraid, Ms. Swan, you're under arrest. Again.”

“You know I'm being set up, don't you?” It was more a statement than a question as Graham affixed cuffs to her wrists.

“And who, may I ask, is setting you up?”

Emma continued to proclaim her innocence, casting accusations at Regina all the way from the B&B to the Sheriff Station. She questioned Graham about Regina’s hold and influence on the town even as he booked her.

“Regina may be a touch intimidating, but I don't think she'd go as far as a frame job,” Graham argued.

“How far would she go? What does she have her hands in?”

“Well, she's the Mayor. She has her hands in everything.”

“Including the police force?” Emma accused.

“Hey,” an excited voice echoed from the hallway.

“Henry, what are you doing here?” Graham asked.

“His mother told him what happened,” Mary Margaret supplied, having accompanied Henry to the station from school.

“Of course she did,” Emma exasperated as she stared pointedly at Graham before addressing her son with a bit of trepidation. “Henry, I don't know what she said-”

“You're a genius,” Henry interrupted.

“What?”

“I know what you were up to. You were gathering intel for Operation Cobra,” Henry speculated with hushed excitement.

“I'm sorry. I'm a bit lost,” Graham confessed.

“It's need-to-know, sheriff,” Henry said dismissively, “and all you need to know is that Ms. Blanchard's gonna bail her out.”

“You are? Why?” Emma questioned incredulously.

“I, uh, trust you,” the petite woman stated skittishly.

Looking between Henry’s smug face and Mary Margaret’s quiet understanding Emma felt her need for retribution spike as she turned to Graham with her hands out in front of her.

“Well, if you would uncuff me, I have something to do.”

Killian aimlessly wandered along the streets of Storybrooke, having had no success in locating the dagger. Though, he had uncovered more intriguing items that would require his attention and focus once the bloody damned blade was back in his possession.

He was starting to wonder if the infernal thing had come over in the curse at all. For all he knew, it remained in the Enchanted Forest sealed away in the vault he had emerged from after the Crocodile’s death. The only way Killian could be truly sure was to either keep searching and find the bloody thing or march into the Mayor’s office and ask Her Majesty. The latter option was not one he was willing to entertain, so he continued his trek as he ticked off all the locations he’d already explored.

Not in the manor, not at the Sheriff’s station, no sign of it in any of my usual hiding places within the Jolly. The warehouses and dock offices were a bust as well. Perhaps I should… what is that blasted noise!

The sound of a motor cut through Killian’s internal mutterings as he realized he was just across the street from the Town Hall. His curiosity piqued at the unusual sound, Killian made his way towards the building’s courtyard to investigate, but then quickly had to find a place to tuck himself away as he saw the Evil Queen exit the building.

“What the hell are you doing?!” the mayor exclaimed as she rushed across the courtyard towards the racket that continued to permeate the area.

A racket, that Killian could now see was being caused by the lovely Emma. She was wielding a chainsaw, ruthlessly plundering the Mayor’s prized apple tree as she made a quip about picking apples. Now, more than just Killian’s curiosity was piqued at the sight before him.

“You're out of your mind.”

“No, you are, if you think a shoddy frame job's enough to scare me off.”

Frame job? What else have I missed? Killian wondered.

“You're gonna have to do better than that. You come after me one more time, I'm coming back for the rest of this tree. Because, sister, you have no idea what I'm capable of.”

Killian watched as Swan violently tossed the chainsaw aside and challenged, “Your move,” before stomping away. A fresh appreciation for the tough lass washed over him. So, she and the Queen are at odds, then? Not surprising, he supposed, Regina’s at odds with everyone in this accursed town.

Just as Killian was preparing to extricate himself from the dark cluster of shrubbery he’d hidden away in, Sheriff Humbert pulled up in his police cruiser, no doubt having received a complaint about the noise of the chainsaw. Killian decided to remain tucked away for their exchange. Treasure and priceless commodities came in many forms, none more valuable in his experience than good, old fashioned gossip. Information that one could use against one’s enemies was a prize worth harboring in the bushes for.

Killian patiently listened as Regina expressed her desire to once again have Swan arrested, only to have the Sheriff question the effectiveness of such an action, even as he inferred his suspicions that Emma had, indeed, been set-up for her earlier transgressions.

“I think your schoolboy crush is clouding your judgment,” Regina barbed accusingly at the Sheriff.

The accusation caused a spark of rage to ignite in Killian’s chest, he bit back a growl that threatened to reverberate from within. Taken aback by having such a fierce response to the implication that Graham may harbor feelings for the same woman who had so ensnared him, Killian nearly missed the remainder of their exchange.

“You want me to arrest her again, I will,” Graham complied.

“Good.”

“But she's gonna keep coming at you, and I know you, you're gonna keep going at her, and you will do whatever it takes to get her out of here and you may succeed-”

“No, I will succeed. He's my son. It's what's best for him.”

Killian could barely contain the scathing retort that burned his throat, knowing now just how manipulative and cruel the woman had been in regards to the boy.

“I know that's what you believe,” Graham stated sympathetically, “but if this escalates, it seems to me the only one who will get hurt is Henry.”

Killian watched as Graham departed, leaving both he and Regina to stew in their thoughts of how the repercussions of Emma’s presence in Storybrooke would ultimately affect the boy. Even with the gut-wrenching realization of his true self, and the knowledge of what lay dormant just beneath his surface, Killian could not bring himself to resent Henry for bringing his birth mother there, and ultimately waking him from his cursed state. She was changing things, and Killian believed that such changes would only benefit Henry. It was apparent, however, that Her Majesty did not share this sentiment.

“There has got to be a way of getting rid of that woman without Henry blaming me,” Regina muttered to herself, as she passed Killian’s hiding spot. “If ever there was a time I needed my powers… wait-”

Killian’s attention sharpened at Regina’s mention of her powers. I thought this was a land without magic?

“Perhaps that little imp had something stashed away. Somehow my curse failed to bring him over, but perhaps there is something in the pawn shop that could be of use.” Regina’s speculations prompted her to abandon her immediate concerns for the mangled tree, and Killian watched as she rushed back into her office building - presumably to grab her purse and keys.

The Crocodile. Regina didn’t realize the truth of just why the curse had failed to deliver Rumplestiltskin to this land. But she believed something useful of his might be hidden away within the abandoned pawn shop?

Killian began to wonder whether or not a certain item he’d been in search of might be located there as well. He was at a disadvantage, seeing as he was on foot and Regina would have her car to get her there ahead of him, so Killian wasted no time in making his way back towards Main Street, hoping against hope that her search would not lead to the dagger before he arrived.

Chapter Three

Tagging some lovelies that have asked to be tagged, as well as some we believe might enjoy. Please let us know if you do, or don’t wish to be tagged.

@abeylin1982 @aprilqueen84 @artistic-writer @ashar663 @captain-k-jones @captain-swan-coffee @downeystarkjr @florenzu @freakassbuthunter @gingerchangeling @golfgirld @greenleaf777 @ilovemesomekillianjones @jennjenn615 @kmomof4 @laschatzi @leiaswanjoneskid @like-waves-on-the-beach @rookiehookie @seriouslyhooked @teamhook @ultraluckycatnd @xhookswenchx @yayimallamaagain

#cs ff #cs canon divergence #cursed killian #dark hook #season 1 #cs fanfic #Captain Swan #dark hook comes to storybrooke #winterbaby89writes #words by hollye #cs fan fic #cs fan fiction #captain swan fic #cs #captain swan fanfiction

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taiwanpuppetryproudthunderbolt · 5 years

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interview 15

Richard Chamberlain - How he keeps the Faith in his Private Life

"Fame isn't the answer. The answer is allowing yourself to be who you are."

"I'm not interested in being a multimillionaire; I want to do the kind of work that interests me. When I was beginning, I wanted to do everything: films, TV, modern things, period things, classics, musical theatre, I wanted to make records and I also wanted to paint. I'm a medium with occasional goods. I took dance lessons, and I have discovered that you can't do everything, but I've done a lot of it."

In a company town, Hollywood, where a favorite indoor sport is to trash everyone, its almost impossible to find anyone with a sour word to mutter about Richard Chamberlain.

The erstwhile Dr. Kildare, perhaps unintentionally, has made a secondary career of winning friends. He is Mr. Nice Guy wherever you turn.

He is therefore going against casting in his current role of Father Ralph in the ABC-TV mini-series, The Thorn Birds. For those unfamiliar with the best-selling Colleen McCullough's supernovel, Fr. Ralph does just about everything a priest isn't supposed to from having money of his own - courtesy of the character played by Barbara Stanwyck - to not being obedient or chaste.

In fact, there are those who might consider him a bit of a rotter. Not so Richard. We're sitting in his offices at The Burbank Studios just a few months after he has finished production on this massive film. He is about to don another hat: that of executive producer on a TV movie for CBS, hence the office setting complete with a round black glass conference table and comfortable chairs. Only successful executive producers rate such perks. But enough business talk. We are here to discuss The Thorn Birds, how he feels about yet another blockbuster following his so-successful Shogun and his real life.

First of all, Richard doesn't believe that Father Ralph behaved in such a reprehensive manner. "He followed his destiny," he states. "That process brought him to a kind of humility he never would have found otherwise. He needed to do that. He needed to fall from grace. I'm not saying all priests do; Ralph was too in love with the image of a perfect priest, with the glamour," he explains.

Those sentences give one a clear indication of what makes Richard Chamberlain tick. He's a perfectionist, although certainly not a bore - far from it - but he does get inside the character he plays. That's what makes him such an outstanding actor.

For this part, he researched Catholicism with Father Terry Sweeney, a Jesuit priest. He visited a Jesuit novitiate and stayed over with the young novices. "I had never before been involved with organized religion, and I got the feeling of what it's like to be part of a group of people who put the love of God and humanity before personal happiness. It is unusual and rare. The novitiates I met are in the process of doing that," he learned.

The painstaking research aside, working in TheThorn Birds was a grueling six-month assignment. A large portion of the nine hours was filmed in the Simi Valley, north of Los Angeles, where an exact copy of the Australian Drogheda landscape has been built. And it was hot. Richard's priestly garb, donned in layers, must have been well nigh unbearable.

With a boyish grin, he acknowledges that it wasn't an actor's dream come true, commenting that the plastic collar cut into his neck a lot. Just another of the ordeals that an actor goes through for the sake of a great role.

And a great plum it is. "I wanted it when I first read the book four years ago. I salivated over the part; it was such a wonderful love story. I chased after the part for years. I told my agents I wanted to do it; at that time, it was to be a feature movie and it went through the hands of numerous producers. They had Robert Redford at the top of all their lists. So I waited it out, like I did with Shogun. When they realized it couldn't be a film and Warner Bros. decided on a mini-series, then I knew I was in a good position. The producers - David Wolper and Stan Margulies - wanted me - and it became a dream come true," he says comfortably.

The dream realized, Richard was in the same position as all other actors when a role is complete: he was out of a job. "I have the actor's habit of thinking once a job is over I'll never be hired again. I can get very anxious about not working. It doesn't go into anxiety attacks, but there is a sense of fickleness about the business. If I allow myself, I can worry a lot."

He didn't allow himself to this time. Instead he took off for two and a half weeks to his little house in Hawaii. He has what he describes as, "a place on the beach in the toolies where there is nothing to do except eat." Or so he says. It doesn't show on his trim waistline two weeks after he has returned.

"I had forgotten what it was like to spend a day doing nothing. I kept saying I must be doing something wrong, this can't be right. I had a vague guilty feeling. So I just lay there on the beach and I didn't do anything," he laughs. "I find it an incredibly healing experience to go there. It's a wonderful change from the madness around here," he motions to indicate Hollywood. "I'd like to go there more often. As it is, I get there twice a year if I'm lucky."

The house has a live-in caretaker who looks after the property while its famous owner is gone. It is also rented out, through an agent, so the tenants never know that they're sleeping in Richard Chamberlain's bed. Pity.

It would appear that Richard is indeed the golden boy we all envy, whose life has been comparatively uncluttered with the "stuff" that make most of us miserable. And looking at him, handsome, trim, relaxed, just a few flecks of gray in the beard and mustache he has grown for his next part, he reflects total peace and tranquility. He's sipping a cup of herb tea from a delicate Japanese cup, NOT imported from Japan as were many of his household furnishings. Shogun did leave an impression on him.

He admits of being happier with his life as it is today than in previous years.

"As I look back, one of my big motivations for working so hard in this business in the early times was to find for myself a kind of self-worth which I imagined I would see reflected from the world when I became famous. It didn't work." He laughs shortly. "Being well-known has worked in other ways, but it didn't make me particularly happy. When I first realized that wasn't gonna work, I found other ways to work on myself, through Gestalt therapy, and working with Dr. Brugh Joy (a world-renowned metaphysician who gave up his medical practice to work with groups at his establishment in California's Lucerne Valley. Richard brought the film rights to Dr. Joy's book, Joy's Way, three years ago, and has a contract to produce and star in the story for CBS. He hopes to get it under way later this year.)

"Fame isn't the answer. The answer is allowing yourself to be who you are. I grew up at a time when certain values were deeply impressed upon children: in school and at home. There was a certain image to be maintained and a certain goal to be achieved."

One must bear in mind that Richard was born and raised in the rarefied atmosphere of Beverly Hills, where most of his friends at school were super-rich. His own father was a first salesman for a market fixture company, and then took over the firm. But he still wasn't raised in an atmosphere of wealth.

He became interested in acting while he was in college, but recalls, "My family wasn't enthused about my going into show business. They'd seen me in some college productions," he laughs. "I did want to go to college, but in my senior year I made a decision to take the gamble and get into acting. They didn't say 'don't do it'; they were supportive and they helped me, even though they didn't say 'Oh boy, this is terrific'."

His career proceeded normally: he studied with noted acting coach Jeff Corey, he got minor roles in a dozen TV shows, and in 1961 he got really lucky with Dr. Kildare. By the time that show had finished its run - there were 132 one-hour shows between 1961 and '65 and 57 half-hour episodes the following year - Richard Chamberlain was a big star. So big, he wondered if he'd live down his reputation of being the noble young doctor who did everything including make house calls.

He did what was then considered a rash step: he moved to England and worked in repertory. "I went to England because I felt it the best place to go and study. I had this real powerful hunch that I should go there and study. I was attracted to British theatre and I had amazing luck."

Indeed. He got raves for his role in a six-part adaptation of Henry James' Portrait of a Lady on the BBC. He appeared in Hamlet, The Madwoman of Chaillot, Julius Ceasar, and played composer Peter Tchaikovsky in the Music Lovers opposite Glenda Jackson. There was more Shakespeare, other classics, and when he played Aramis in two versions of The Three Musketeers followed by Cyrano de Bergerac, no one made anymore jokes about the boyish Dr. Kildare. Richard Chamberlain had arrived, as a serious actor of the theater and films. Deservedly so.

He is, of course, delighted that he listened to that powerful hunch, as he terms it. "I always try to listen to my inner voice. That seems to be one of life's most ironic essences: that very soft little voice of intuition is so easy to ignore, yet it's so often accurate. I always choose my roles intuitively. They appeal to me for reasons I couldn't say. I always have an answer as to why I choose a role, but the answer really is that it has a magnetic quality. Now, as a producer, I know that I read scripts looking for ways to make scenes work, and ideas that come up seemingly from nowhere. They just spring into my mind. It's not an intellectual process. Oh, it is to some extent, but it is largely emotional and intuitive."

As noted, here is a man who is comfortable with himself and he doesn't have to prove anything anymore. He's done that. So, when asked how he can top the role of Father Ralph, he says easily, "I don't think in terms of topping things. Everything is different and real to me. My next movie, titled By Reason of Insanity is for my own production company. I play a man named John Balt, who murdered his wife, spent years in an institution in therapy and is now back in society as a contributing member. In fact, he wrote his own life story, which this is. This story goes into areas I've never touched upon, so it's a vast challenge.”

"After Shogun and Thorn Birds, I find my interests are turning back to more ordinary parts - not that the John Balt story is ordinary, it isn't. He's an ordinary man who gets caught in an incredible vortex. Yes, I have leaned towards larger-than-life roles and that might have something to do with the fact that I have a very romantic nature. I didn't find life terribly interesting when I was a little kid. I hated school and I didn't like sports. I didn't like anything that anyone else liked. I felt out of it. It isn't that I didn't have friends. I did. And I had a pretty good time, but I was always fascinated by adventure movies. Especially Errol Flynn. But the other night when I couldn't sleep I turned on an old Errol Flynn movie and it was boring. It didn't hold up. The Three Musketeers and that kind of swashbuckling does, but not the one that I saw," he mock mourns.

Every actor has a dream role, and Richard has played such variegated parts - has he played it already or is his dream part still in the future?

"I think John Balt is as fascinating a part as I'll ever get. What are dream roles? Roles that call for words like depth and complexity, people who want things passionately and have to overcome tremendous obstacles to get them. My theory about John is that he wanted wholeness in his life that he unconsciously felt wasn't there. I think murdering his wife was unnecessary, but who am I to say that? He was living a life complying to images. He had an image of manhood, an image of the writer, of the husband and father, and he never said 'Who am I, what kind of man am I, what kind of father, do I love my children?'"

"Who am I?" Richard repeats the question. "I'm beginning to get answers at long last. What I am is an ever-changing alive being, who is not an image, who is not consistent, and I'm beginning to allow myself to BE instead of trying to be consistent and trying to comply to images. Images such an American hang-up. And so here I am in a business where images are more powerful than almost anyplace else except sports. I have found that I have warmth and lovingness and creativity. I might have doubted that before. I'm much more comfortable with people, much more willing to speak my mind. I don't have to try to manipulate people into liking me. I don't. I thought that I did." He is very thoughtful now and seems to enjoy looking within.

What are his long-range goals these days after 20-plus years of a good and rewarding career?

"I've done some satisfying work in the theatre, and I'd like to do more but I find it difficult to find the time. I want to continue along the lines I've been pursuing. I really like what I've been doing. I like my mobility in TV, I want more emphasis in films. I think I'm ready for that."

"And I like my life. I've finally created a home that I really love. I've had several houses, but I just remodeled this one - in a quiet canyon street, and it's just perfect for me. It's slightly Oriental, slightly Japanese. I brought back a lot of stuff from Shogun."

And who lives in this perfect house?

Just Richard Chamberlain and his pals. "I have two dogs," he says with all the love in the world in his voice. "Two Dalmatians: Jessie the Bandit Queen and Billy Boy."

And what does Jessie steal to merit that colorful name?

"My heart," he says in a tone that any animal-lover can recognize.

And so, then, one knows that Richard Chamberlain, a really happy man, does indeed have it all.

http://www.richard-chamberlain.co.uk/online.htm

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interview 32

Dick Diagnoses Dick His candid answers to 55 probing questions

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mebwalker · 5 years

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Dorimène, Le Mariage forcé (théâtre.documentation)

Le Mariage forcé

Les Plaisirs de l’Île enchantée (The Pleasures of the Enchanted Island), Versailles

Molière’s contribution

a comédie-ballet

Molière and Lully’s Le Mariage forcé (The Forced Marriage), is a farce and a comédie-ballet, in prose. It was first performed on 29 January 1664 in the Queen Mother’s apartments, at the Louvre. On 15 February 1664, it was performed at the Théâtre du Palais-Royal, where it proved less popular. It closed after 12 performances. It was performed again on 12 May 1664 during festivities known as Les Plaisirs de l’Île enchantée, The Pleasures of the Enchanted Island. Louis XIV wanted to show Versailles at an early date. He had hired architect Louis Le Vau, landscape architect André le Nôtre, and the painter-decorator Charles Le Brun. These gentlemen had built Nicolas Fouquet‘s castle at Vaux-le-Vicomte. Molière’s La Princesse d’Élide and Tartuffe also premièred during Les Plaisirs de l’Île enchantée, on 8 May 1664. In its original form, The Forced Marriage was a three-act comédie-ballet, by Molière and Lully It did not use figures from a mythology in which it differed from earlier comédies-ballets. At Versailles, King Louis XIV and other aristocrats performed in the comedy. In 1664, Louis was very much in love with Louise de La Vallière who lived at Versailles, in the small castle used as a hunting-lodge by the very private Louis XIII.

Molière transformed Le Mariage forcé into a one-act play in 1668, which is Le Mariage forcé as we know it. However, it was reborn as a comédie-ballet in 1672. Lully having broken with Molière, the music was composed by Marc-Antoine Charpentier.

In his Preface to the Forced Marriage, Henri van Laun provides information concerning the posterity of the play. Sganarelle is Sir Toby Doubtful in Love’s Contrivance, a play by Mrs. Carroll, born Susanna Centlivre (c. 1667–1670 – 1 December 1723).

Panurge by Albrecht Dürer (BnF)

Origins

other

Gallic

Rabelais

pedants & philosophy: Aristotle and Pyrrho (doubt)

Although Molière drew some of his material from Spanish author Lope de Vega’s Intermède du sacristain [sacristan] Soguizo, and Giordano Bruno’s[1] Candelaio, or The Candle Bearer, entitled Boniface et le Pédant in French, Le Mariage forcé belongs mainly to a French tradition.

The Forced Marriage is rooted primarily in Rabelais‘ Gargantua and Pantagruel, the Third of Five Books [EBook #1200]. Molière’s Sganarelle reminds us of Panurge, as featured in Chapter Three of the Third Book (of Five) of Gargantua and Pantagruel.

How Panurge asketh counsel of Pantagruel whether he should marry, yea, or no.

Affinities between Molière and Rabelais leap off the page, and so does Pantagruel’s advice to Panurge. Pantagruel urges Panurge not to marry, which is Géronimo’s initial response, until he learns that Sganarelle has obtained permission to marry Dorimène from Alcantor, her father. In the Third Book, Panurge has decided to marry, but revisits his decision. In Rabelais’ Third Book, Panurge also seeks the advice of Trouillogan, the model for Molière’s Marphurius, a Pyrrhonian philosopher, and a pedant. He prefigures The Learned Ladies, or Femmes savantes‘ Trissotin and Vadius. The mouton de Panurge is featured in the fourth of five books constituting Pantagruel and Gargantua. A mouton de Panurge, “describes an individual that will blindly follow others regardless of the consequences.” (See Panurge, Wiki2.org.) We cannot exclude Sganarelle.

Molière’s Mariage Forcé also has affinities with Guez de Balzac’s Socrate chrétien. Théophile de Viau’s Fragments d’une histoire comique, Dorimond’s L’École des cocus (the School for Cuckolds), and Charles Sorel’s Polyandre (see polyandry, Wiki2.org). These are 17th-century French authors.[2]

Gravure Lalauze (théâtre.documention)

Le Mariage forcé (théâtre.documentation)

Gravure Edmond Hédouin

Moreau le Jeune

DRAMATIS PERSONÆ.

SGANARELLE. (Molière) GÉRONIMO. ALCANTOR, father to Dorimène. ALCIDAS, brother to Dorimène. LYCASTE, in love with Dorimène. PANCRACE, an Aristotelian Philosopher. MARPHURIUS, a Pyrrhonian Philosopher. DORIMÈNE, a young coquette betrothed to Sganarelle. Two GIPSIES. The Scene is in a Public Place.

The Plot

Dorimène surprises us

la race des Sganarelles

Scene One of Le Mariage Forcé, Sganarelle, Molière’s mask, wants to know from his friend Géronimo whether he should marry. Sganarelle has already sought and obtained from Dorimène’s father, Alcantor, permission to marry Dorimène. Alcantor has agreed. In his mind, the mind of a pater familias, le Seigneur Sganarelle, a well-to-do 53-year-old gentleman, is a perfect match for his daughter.

However, Dorimène surprises us. One would expect her to oppose her tyrannical father, but she differs from other ingénues, forced to marry or be thrown in a convent. Young Dorimène is une mondaine who thinks a marriage to Sganarelle will allow her to escape her father. When she and Sganarelle meet in Scene II, she makes it clear that she wishes to be free. In fact, as we will see later, she has a lover, Lycaste, who cannot understand why she is marrying Sganarelle. She reassures Lycaste. Sganarelle is an older gentleman who has no more than six months “in his belly.” She wants to be a widow, the privileged women of 17th-century France. Widows were free to marry whom they pleased, or not to marry. Le Misanthrope‘s Célimène is a widow.

Yet, although arrangements are being made for Dorimène to marry Sganarelle that very day, Sganarelle would like to discuss marriage with his friend Géronimo, which should have happened earlier. When Géronimo learns that the bride-to-be is the lovely Dorimène and that she is not opposing Alcantor, her father, Géronimo has little left to do than exclaim:

Mariez-vous promptement; je ne dis plus rien. Géronimo to Sganarelle (Scene I, p. 9) [Make haste and get married.] Géronimo to Sganarelle (Scene Four, p. 227)

The most amusing lines of Scene One are Sganarelle’s:

Outre la joie que j’aurai de posséder une belle femme, qui me fera mille caresses; qui me dorlotera, et me viendra frotter, lorsque je serai las; outre cette joie, dis-je, je considère, qu’en demeurant comme je suis, je laisse périr dans le monde la race [3] des Sganarelles; et qu’en me mariant, je pourrai me voir revivre en d’autres moi-mêmes… [4] Sganarelle à Géronimo (Scene I, p. 8) [Besides the pleasures I shall have in possessing a wife to fondle me when I am tired; besides this pleasure, I consider that, by remaining as I am, I suffer the race of the Sganarelles to become extinct ; whilst, by marrying, I may see myself reproduced, and shall have the joy of seeing children sprung from me… Sganarelle to Géronimo (Scene Two, p. 226)

Marriage and Marriage

Matters change. Sganarelle believed he would own Dorimène:

Hé bien, ma belle, c’est maintenant que nous allons être heureux l’un et l’autre. Vous ne serez plus en droit de me rien refuser; … Sganarelle à Dorimène (Scène II, pp. 9-10) [Well, my dear, both of us are going to be happy now. You will no longer have a right to refuse me anything; and I can do with you just as I please, without any one being shocked. You will be mine from head to foot, and I shall be master of everything, of your little sparkling eyes, your little roguish nose, your tempting lips, your lovely ears, your pretty little chin, your little round breasts, your … ] Sganarelle to Dorimène (Scene Four, pp. 227-228)

Dorimène, however, wants to escape her father’s tyranny and would not accept to marry a tyrannical Sganarelle’s. Two contrary discourses are juxtaposed. The second all be erases the first. Sganarelle realizes that he has made a mistake.

Tout à fait aise, je vous jure: car enfin la sévérité de mon père m’a tenue jusques ici dans une sujétion la plus fâcheuse du monde. Il y a je ne sais combien que j’enrage du peu de liberté, qu’il me donne; et j’ai cent fois souhaité qu’il me mariât, pour sortir promptement de la contrainte, où j’étais avec lui, et me voir en état de faire ce que je voudrai. Dorimène à Sganarelle (Scene II, p. 10) [Immensely glad, I assure you. For, indeed, my father’s severity has kept me hitherto in the most grievous subjection. I have been raging, I do not know how long, at the scanty liberty he allows me ; I have wished a hundred times that he would get me a husband, so that I might quickly escape from the durance in which I have been kept by him, and be able to do as I pleased. Dorimène to Sganarelle (Scene Four, pp. 228-229)

The Dream

In Scene Three (FR), Géronimo returns. He has found a jeweler who has a beautiful diamond for sale. Sganarelle is no longer so eager to marry. He would like to confide that he has had a dream:

Avant que de passer plus avant, je voudrais bien agiter à fond cette matière; et que l’on m’expliquât un songe que j’ai fait cette nuit, et qui vient tout à l’heure de me revenir dans l’esprit. Sganarelle à Géronimo (Scene III, p. 11) [Before going farther I wish to sift this matter to the bottom, and to have interpreted to me a dream which I had last night, and which just recurred to me.] Sganarelle to Géronimo (Scene Five, p. 229)

Dreams are mentioned in Rabelais.

Trouillogan by Gustave Doré (BnF)

Pancrace and Marphurius (Trouillogan)

Parbleu, de la langue que j’ai dans la bouche; je crois que je n’irai pas emprunter celle de mon voisin. Sganarelle à Pancrace (Scene IV, p. 15) [Zounds! The tongue I have in my mouth.] Sganarelle to Pancrace (Scene Six, p. 232)

So, as of “Zounds,” matters truly deteriorate. Sganarelle leaves. (I am not discussing the quotations in Latin.)

Sganarelle then visits another neighbour, a Pyrrhonian skeptic. This character reflects Sganarelle’s uncertainty and adds to his distress. Doubt has entered Sganarelle’s mind. correct Sganarelle. “[I]t seems to me,” (il me semble que) says Sganarelle, but “me” expresses uncertainty. “Nous devons douter de tout” (we must doubt everything), says Marphurius. Sganarelle is so frustrated that he ends up hitting Marphurius with a stick. Marphurius is defenceless. Sganarelle turns himself into a skeptic, mocking Marphurius:

Corrigez, s’il vous plaît, cette manière de parler. Il faut douter de toutes choses; et vous ne devez pas dire que je vous ai battu; mais qu’il vous semble que je vous ai battu. Sganarelle à Marphurius (Scène V, p. 22) [Pray, correct this manner of speaking. We are to doubt everything; and you ought not to say that I have beaten you, but that it seems I have beaten you.] Sganarelle to Marphurius (Scene Ten, p. 238)

Marphurius is Rabelais’ Trouillogan. He doubts everything (Chapter 3.XXXV)

How the philosopher Trouillogan handleth the difficulty of marriage.

Le Mariage Forcé was a comédie-ballet, with music by Jean-Baptiste Lully. Unlike other comédies-ballets, Le Mariage forcé did not use characters inhabiting mythologies. In Scene Twelve, Sganarelle asks three Égyptiennes (Gypsies) whether he will be cuckolded.

Cuckoldry and Widowhood

In Scene Twelve, Lycaste, who loves Dorimène, wonders why she is marrying Sganarelle. She reassures him. Not only will she be free, but she expects Sganarelle to die within a few months. She looks forward to widowhood. In 17th-century France, widowhood freed women who have married against their will.

Je vous le garantis défunt dans le temps que je dis; et je n’aurai pas longuement à demander pour moi au Ciel, l’heureux état de veuve. Dorimène à Lycaste (Scene XII, p. 25) [I guarantee that he is dead in the time I say. I shall not long have to pray Heaven for the happy state of widowhood.] Dorimène to Lycaste (Scene Twelve, p. 240)

Sganarelle has heard everything. Lycaste gets away as does Dom Juan. Dom Juan invites his father to sit down and Lycaste’s politeness leaves Sganarelle speechless. It is formulaic.

Agréez, Monsieur, que je vous félicite de votre mariage, et vous présente en même temps mes très humbles services. Je vous assure que vous épousez là une très honnête personne. Lycaste à Sganarelle (Scene VII, p. 25) [Allow me, sir, to congratulate you on your marriage, and at the same time to offer you my most humble services. Let me tell you that the lady, whom you are marrying, possesses great merits…] Lycaste to Sganarelle (Scene Twelve, p. 240)

Lycaste then goes away, having silenced Sganarelle.

A Forced Marriage

The remaining scenes feature Dorimène’s family. Alcantor will not allow Sganarelle to roll back his promise to marry Dorimène.

Seigneur Alcantor, j’ai demandé votre fille en mariage, il est vrai; et vous me l’avez accordée: mais je me trouve un peu avancé en âge pour elle; et je considère que je ne suis point du tout son fait. Sganarelle à Alcantor (Scene VIII, p. 27) [Mr. Alcantor, it is true I asked your daughter in marriage, and you granted my request; but I find that I am rather old ; I think that I am by no means a proper match for her.] Sganarelle to Alcantor (Scene Fourteen, p. 241) Vous vous êtes engagé avec moi, pour épouser ma fille; et tout est préparé pour cela. Mais puisque vous voulez retirer votre parole, je vais voir ce qu’il y a à faire; et vous aurez bientôt de mes nouvelles. Alcantor à Sganarelle (Scene VIII, p. 28) [You gave me your word that you would marry my daughter, and everything is prepared for the wedding; but since you wish to withdraw, I shall go and see what can be done in the matter; you shall hear from me presently.] Alcantor to Sganarelle (Scene Fourteen, p. 242)

During Scene IX, Sganarelle refuses to fight Alcidas, Dorimène’s brother, who has brought swords. In the end, Sganarelle is compelled to marry.

Hé bien! j’épouserai, j’épouserai… Sganarelle à Alcidas (Scene IX, p. 30) Well then, I will marry, I will marry! Sganarelle to Alcidas (Scene Fourteen, p. 244)

Sganarelle (www.cosmovisions.coms.com)

Sganarelle (Wikipedia)

Conclusion

The Forced Marriage turns matters upside down. We are therefore reminded of Mikhail Bakhtin Rabelais and His World: carnival and grotesque. We are also reminded of the comic playwrights. However, we are not dealing with Rabelais’ giants, except metaphorically.

Sganarelle makes wedding arrangements before seeking advice from Géronimo, or taking matters into consideration.

An older gentleman is forced to marry.

Dorimène is pleased to marry a senex iratus. She will be a widow.

Sganarelle is a cocu (cuckolded) before he marries.

Our philosophers have long left reality. Molière has created Les Femmes savantes‘ Trissotin and Vadius.

However, floating just below the surface of this play is the farcical trompeur trompé, the deceiver deceived. How can Lycaste ever trust Dorimène? The extremely polite manner he uses to greet Sganarelle could be read as a criticism of Dorimène’s ploy. It is “affected.” As for Dorimène, she is her own senex iratus and will not change. Besides, destiny rules. She should be prepared to love the husband she has married and to give birth to a petit Sganarelle.

The play also features pedants. Pancrace’s pursuit of a correct term, forme or figure, for the shape of hats is trivial. As for Marphurius, he is Rabelais Trouillogan (See Chapter 3, XXXVI) in Gutenberg’s [EBook #1200])

I am leaving behind the comédie-ballet, as written and composed in 1664. This post is already too long. But it is interesting to know that at Versailles, the King and aristocrats played roles in the comédie-ballet.

Sources and Resources

Le Mariage forcé is a toutmolière.net publication

Le Mariage forcé, Notice, toutmolière.net

The Forced Marriage is an Internet Archive publication

Pantagruel and his son Gargantua is Gutenberg’s [EBook #1200]

Trouillogan is featured in Chapter 3, XXXVI in Gutenberg’s [EBook #1200]

Molière21

Mikhail Bakhtin, Rabelais and his World (1965)

____________________

[1] Giordano Bruno was tortured and burned at the stake by the Inquisition. Among other notions, Bruno perceived the plurality of worlds, as would French philosophe Fontenelle, a century later. [2] Maurice Rat, ed., Œuvres complètes de Molière (Paris: Gallimard, collection La Pléiade, 1956), pp. 878-884. [3] In the French language race means race, breed, and, occasionally, line. [4] Cf. Rabelais.

Love to everyone 💕 I apologize for spending a rather long time writing this post.

Baroque Music – Bourrée du Mariage Forcé (Jean-Baptiste Lully)

youtube

Bibliothèque nationale de France

Molière’s “Forced Marriage,” “Le Mariage forcé” Le Mariage forcé Les Plaisirs de l'Île enchantée (The Pleasures of the Enchanted Island),

#Carnivalesque #François Rabelais #Le Mariage forcé #Les Plaisirs de l&039;Île enchantée #Lully #Molière #Panurge #Sganarelle #The Forced Marriage #Widowhood

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cabiba · 6 years

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AIPAC: American Israeli Public Affairs Committee

“Every time anyone says that Israel is our only friend in the Middle East, I can’t help but think that before Israel, we had no enemies in the Middle East.”

— Fr. John Sheehan, S. J.

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The cry of “persecution,” has always been used to cover the crimes of the only people on earth whose very religion teaches them that murder and enslavement and cheating of all other peoples is a sacred right.

— Elizabeth Dilling, “The Jewish Religion and it’s Influence Today“

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“Mr. Forrestal next tried to strengthen the hand of the State Department, in its resistance to the President [Truman], by a memorandum (January 21, 1948) in which he analyzed the dangers to American national security flowing from this entanglement: ‘It is doubtful if there is any segment of our foreign relations of greater importance or of greater danger…to the security of the United States than our relations in the Middle East.’…The Zionists demanded the submission of American state policy and offered in return a four year tenure of the presidency to the highest bidder…”

Douglass Reed in “Controversy of Zion,” p 299

“The very word “secrecy” is repugnant in a free and open society, and we are as a people, inherently and historically, opposed to secret societies, secret oaths, and secret proceedings. For we are opposed around the world by a monolithic and ruthless conspiracy that relies primarily on covert means for expanding its sphere of influence. It depends on infiltration instead of invasion, on subversion instead of elections, on intimidation instead of free choice. It is a system which has conscripted vast human and material resources into the building of a tightly knit, highly efficient machine that combines military, diplomatic, intelligence, economic, scientific, and political operations. Its preparations are concealed, not published, its mistakes are buried, not headlined, its dissenters are silenced, not praised, no expenditure is questioned, no secret is revealed… I am asking your help in the tremendous task of informing and alerting the American people.”

— President John F. Kennedy, 1961, assassinated 1963.

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— Thomas H. Moorer (1912 – 2004) Admiral US Navy & Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff during a interview on August 24, 1983. From Andrew Hurley’s book “One Nation Under Israel” p.124.

“I fear the Jewish banks with their craftiness and tortuous tricks will entirely control the exuberant riches of America. And use it to systematically corrupt modern civilization. The Jews will not hesitate to plunge the whole of Christendom into wars and chaos that the earth should become their inheritance.”

— Otto von Bismarck

[“Jewish banks” is usually replaced with “foreign bankers” for PC purposes]

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— James A. Garfield, 20th U.S. president, two weeks before he was assassinated in 1881.

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“If the American people ever allow private banks to control the issue of their money, first by inflation and then by deflation, the banks and corporations that will grow up around them, will deprive the people of their property until their children will wake up homeless on the continent their fathers conquered.”

— Thomas Jefferson

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— James Madison (attributed)

It doesn’t require a majority to prevail, but rather an irate, tireless minority keen to set brush fires to people’s minds.

Sam Adams (1722 – 1803)

“The consolidation of the states into one vast republic, sure to be aggressive abroad and despotic at home, will be the certain precursor of the ruin of all that has proceeded it.”

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… No, instead of wishing, like the young man, to tear away the veil from divinity, I wish to tear the veil from human twaddle and from the conceited self-complacency with which men try to convince themselves and others that man really wants to know the truth.

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— Martin Luther, “On the Jews and Their Lies,” 1543

The Jewish nation dares to display an irreconcilable hatred toward all nations, and revolts against all masters; always superstitious, always greedy for the well-being enjoyed by others, always barbarous — cringing in misfortune and insolent in prosperity.

— Voltaire, Essai sur les Moeurs et l’Esprit des Nations (1753), Introduction, XLII: Des Juifs depuis Saul

… [Jews] are, all of them, born with raging fanaticism in their hearts, just as the Bretons and the Germans are born with blond hair. I would not be in the least bit surprised if these people would not some day become deadly to the human race.

— Voltaire, Lettres de Memmius a Ciceron (1771)

“The Jew alone regards his race as superior to humanity, and looks forward not to its ultimate union with other races, but to its triumph over them all and to its final ascendancy under the leadership of a tribal Messiah.”

— Goldwin Smith, Oxford University, 1881

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– Comment left on one of my videos at Youtube before they deleted my account (SymAmineC8H11N).

“All that is necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing.”

— Edmund Burke (attributed)

“Tolerance is the virtue of men who no longer believe in anything.”

— G. K. Chesterton

“There are a thousand hacking at the branches of evil to one who is striking at the root…”

— Henry David Thoreau

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“These hopes were frustrated by the gradual gains in power of the more irresponsible and socialistic elements of the population, guided by the Jews and other anti-Russian races. A table made in April 1918 by Robert Wilton, the correspondent of the London Times in Russia, shows that at that time there were 384 “commissars” including 2 Negroes, 13 Russians, 15 Chinamen, 22 Armenians and more than 300 Jews. Of the latter number, 264 had come to Russia from the United States since the downfall of the Imperial government.”“It is probably unwise to say this loudly in the United States, but the Bolshevik movement is and has been since its beginning guided and controlled by Russian Jews of the greasiest type, who have been in the United States and there absorbed every one of the worst phases of our civilization without having the least understanding of what we really mean by liberty.”

— Captain Montgomery Schyler, speaking of events following the decline of the First Provisional Government (the Bolshevik Jew revolution in Russia) in a Report of the American Expeditionary forces to Siberia, on March 1, 1919.

“Western man towers over the rest of the world in ways so large as to be almost inexpressible. It’s Western exploration, science, and conquest that have revealed the world to itself. Other races feel like subjects of Western power long after colonialism, imperialism, and slavery have disappeared. The charge of racism puzzles whites who feel not hostility, but only baffled good will, because they don’t grasp what it really means: humiliation. The white man presents an image of superiority even when he isn’t conscious of it. And superiority excites envy. Destroying white civilization is the inmost desire of the league of designated victims we call ‘minorities.'”

— Joe Sobran (well-respected conservative writer who suffered constant attacks on his character because of what he dared say about Israel)

“The inferior races hate the white race precisely because of its superiority. It is galling to the lower races to be reminded of their inferiority, and white superiority instills in them a burning desire to tear down whites and their creations in order to make themselves whites’ ‘equal’. This is not all, however, for tearing down whites removes a burr from their consciousness — that of being reminded of their inferiority — and indeed is an act of revenge for such reminding. Accordingly, when whites are so stupid as to treat the lower races as equals, this but whets the appetite of those races to see whites destroyed, for they see vulnerability in this stupidity, and thus an opportunity for inserting their grappling hooks into the edifice of white civilization.”

— JBR Yant, Mortal Words v 11

“I have given my life to try to alleviate the sufferings of Africa. There is something that all white men who have lived here like I must learn and know: that these individuals are a sub-race. They have neither the intellectual, mental, or emotional abilities to equate or to share equally with white men in any function of our civilization. I have given my life to try to bring them the advantages which our civilization must offer, but I have become well aware that we must retain this status: the superior and they the inferior. For whenever a white man seeks to live among them as their equals they will either destroy him or devour him. And they will destroy all of his work. Let white men from anywhere in the world, who would come to Africa, remember that you must continually retain this status; you the master and they the inferior like children that you would help or teach. Never fraternize with them as equals. Never accept them as your social equals or they will devour you. They will destroy you.”

— Dr. Albert Schweitzer in “Afrikanische Geschichten” (African Notebook), original German edition, 1938, deleted from American reprints.

“I will say, then, that I am not, nor ever have been, in favor of bringing about in any way the social and political equality of the white and black races—that I am not, nor ever have been, in favor of making voters or jurors of Negroes, nor of qualifying them to hold office, nor to intermarry with white people; and I will say in addition to this, that there is a physical difference between the white and black races which I believe will forever forbid the two races living together on terms of social and political equality. And inasmuch as they cannot so live, while they do remain together there must be the position of superior and inferior, and I, as much as any other man, am in favor of having the superior position assigned to the white race.”

— Abraham Lincoln, fourth debate with democrat Steven Douglas in Charleston, Illinois, 1858

“Homosexuality is not a civil right. Its rise almost always is accompanied, as in the Weimar Republic, with a decay of society and a collapse of its basic cinder block, the family.”“Homosexuality involves sexual acts most men consider not only immoral, but filthy. The reason public men rarely say aloud what most say privately is they are fearful of being branded “bigots” by an intolerant liberal orthodoxy that holds, against all evidence and experience, that homosexuality is a normal, healthy lifestyle.”

— Pat Buchanan, September 3, 1989

“Capitol Hill is Israeli-occupied territory”“Congress has become “a Parliament of Whores incapable of standing up for U.S. national interests if AIPAC (the American Israel Public Affairs Committee) is on the other end of the line.”

— Pat Buchanan, St. Louis Dispatch 10/20/90

“Global elites view the West as the main obstacle to a future world government. Multiculturalism is a tool used by such elites to dismantle White Western civilization.”

— Pat Buchanan, in a speech in Falls Church, Va. 2004

“America was founded by men who understood that the threat of domestic tyranny is as great as any threat from abroad. If we want to be worthy of their legacy, we must resist the rush toward ever-increasing state control of our society. Otherwise, our own government will become a greater threat to our freedoms than any foreign terrorist.”

— Texas Congressman Ron Paul in “Freedom vs Security: A False Choice,” May 31, 2004

“The politician who betrays his country as a whole by pandering to a minority group because it appears to hold the balance of power is of all creatures the most pitiful.”

— Carleton Putnam

“I have already said that we are not hostile to the United States. We are against the [U.S. Government] system, which makes other nations slaves of the United States, or forces them to mortgage their political and economic freedom. This system is totally in control of the American-Jews, whose first priority is Israel, not the United States. It is clear that the American people are themselves the slaves of the Jews and are forced to live according to the principles and laws laid by them. So, the punishment should reach Israel. In fact, it is Israel, which is giving a blood bath to innocent Muslims and the U.S. is not uttering a single word.”

— Osama Bin Laden (the real one) in an interview published on September 28, 2001 by the Karachi-based Pakistani daily newspaper, “Ummat.” This interview was completely kept from the American public at the time by our Zionist Jew-controlled media, telling us that it might contain “embedded secret codes to terrorists.” Public action site

“So don’t be shocked when our grandkids bury much of this generation as traitors to the nation, … , leaving the country vulnerable to unchecked, unchallenged parasites.”

— Kevin Tillman (brother of NFL player turned soldier, Pat Tillman, killed in Afghanistan by “friendly fire”) in his powerful essay, “After Pat’s Birthday.”

“A healthy body will destroy harmful germs. Only a fool would willingly sabotage the natural function of his body and call it ‘anti-germism.’ A wise person will do everything he can to support the fight against dangerous parasites.”

— W. F. Hermans

“People may dismiss what I say as the rantings of an angry old man, but given what is taking place today regarding the war in the Middle East and everything that may happen, my suggestion is that–while there is time–people turn off the Britney Spears, the Desperate Housewives and the football games and listen, listen carefully to what happened, as it is likely to happen again, because, as the old saying goes, ‘a leopard does not change its spots.’”

— Phil Tourney, Survivor of the Israeli attack on the USS Liberty

“I’ve checked out the six volumes of Churchill’s Second World War and the statement is quite correct – not a single mention of Nazi ‘gas chambers,’ a ‘genocide’ of the Jews, or of ’six million’ Jewish victims of the war.

Eisenhower’s Crusade in Europe is a book of 559 pages; Churchill’s Second World War totals 4,448 pages; and De Gaulle’s three-volume Mémoires de guerre is 2,054 pages.

In this mass of writing, which altogether totals 7,061 pages (not including the introductory parts), published from 1948 to 1959, one will find no mention either of Nazi ‘gas chambers,’ a ‘genocide’ of the Jews, or of ’six million’ Jewish victims of the war.”

— Richard Lynn, Professor Emeritus University of Ulster, December 5, 2005

“Do I “deny the Holocaust”? No! No indeed. I hope the holocaust is not denied and never forgotten. I hope the holocaust is remembered as the greatest propaganda effort and hate campaign ever waged against a civilized people. We must never forget. We must look at the despoliation of our people and our culture and ask: Why do the heavens not darken? We have lost the will and courage to defend ourselves. The time has come to commit the new blasphemy. It is time to deny the gods of the New World Order.”

— Tom Blair, ‘The New Blasphemy’

“The alleged Hitlerite gas chamber and the alleged genocide of the Jews form one and the same historical lie, which opened the way to a gigantic political, financial fraud, whose principal beneficiaries are the State of Israel and international Zionism, and whose principal victims are the people of Germany – but not their rulers – and the entire Palestinian people.”

— Robert Faurisson

“Why should we worry about Islamists commandeering airplanes when we have Israelis commandeering our entire government?”

— Mary O’Brien, American citizen, NY

“‘Conspiracy stuff’ is now shorthand for unspeakable truth.”

— Gore Vidal

“During times of universal deceit, telling the truth becomes a revolutionary act.”

— George Orwell

“When Jews step forward as innocence itself then the danger is great.”

— Friedrich Nietzsche, “The Will to Power,” section 199.

“All truth passes through three stages: First, it is ridiculed; second, it is violently opposed; and third, it is accepted as self-evident.”

— Arthur Schopenhauer

“Every time new and promising opportunities for meddling have arisen,” he brought out, “the Jew has been immediately involved. He has demonstrated an uncanny ability to sniff out like a bloodhound anything which was dangerous to him. Having found it, he uses all his cunning to get at it, to divert it, to change its nature, or, at least, to deflect its point from its goal.Schopenhauer called the Jew ‘the dregs of mankind,’ ‘a beast,’ ‘

the great master of the lie

.’ How does the Jew respond? He establishes a Schopenhauer Society.”

— Dietrich Eckart

#quotes

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