Microfiction

(Image Information: It never gets old. #OUDNA; Photo from Instagram,  @ou_football)

Love goes on, forever

It feels good to move back home after two years. It was the last place I saw her alive, the last place I kissed her goodbye, and the last place I would hear her say, “I love you, T—see ya tonight.” Never did I think those words would come back to haunt me. She died that day of a heart attack shortly after arriving at work.

Tonight, the fireflies came out for the first time this summer. As I planted flowers, a grandpa and his granddaughter walked by on their way to fish at the lake. I guess life goes on with or without us. It’s good to be home.

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After this weekend, Sam Ehlinger has now lost to four different OU quarterbacks: Baker Mayfield, Kyler Murray, Jalen Hurts, and this year, Spencer Rattler. #TexasSucks

Author's Notes:

The first short microfiction was just a made up story after watching an episode of Psych where Juliet almost dies after her and Shawn are trying to solve a case against Mr. Yang. A loss of a loved one is something we all go through and sometime a story involving it is a good story. The tweet comes from after this weekend as OU went down and beat Texas in the Red River Rivalry game. To be completely honest, I had absolutely no expectations from our team this year as we are rebuilding but it is good to know that Texas STILL sucks! 

Growth Mindset: SAFM

 

(Image Information: Godfather Baby; https://makeameme.org/meme/if-you-need-c2nbx9)

SAFM:

S - Stop

A - Asking

F - For

M - Money

I made this acronym to motivate myself as I am financially trying to be stable for myself. Getting a job at the pharmacy as a technician was a first step to this acronym. My family was never rich and as a person who learned the value of money early on, I believe it is everyone's own responsibility to financially uphold themselves if possible. 

Reading Notes: Mahabharata Part D

R. K. Narayan, The Mahabharata: Public Domain Edition; http://ouocblog.blogspot.com/2008/12/pde-mahabharata-life-in-forest.html

(Image Information: Indian Fantasy Epic https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-et-mn-india-baahubali-film-2017-story.html)

-Even though Yudhishthira wanted to make a peace agreement, he was worried about the safety of Krishna to arrive at Hastinapura as his emissary. According to Vidura, Krishna wants peace and justice rather than a lavish reception. While Duryodhana plans to take Krishna captive, he rejects Krishna's offer of peace and does not listen to his mother, Gandhari's plea as well. 

-After realizing that Krishna is impossible to take prisoner after he manifested himself in his divine form, Duryodhana gives up trying to capture him. Before he left, Krishna tried to give truth and convince Karna of his parentage and get him to leave Duryodhana, but Karna says no. 

-Before the big battle, Yudhishthira goes to both his teachers, Bhishma and Drona for advice. Bhisma compares the invincible Arjuna to "the destroyer himself at the end of the Yuga." Arjuna is still unable to overcome Bhisma however and after nine days of fighting, the Pandavas visit Bhisma at night to tell him that unless he is killed in the war, the carnage will carry on until the end of the world. 

-When Bhisma is confronted by Sikhandi, he refuses to fight because she is a woman and he abandons all his weapons. Against the rules of war, the Pandavas rain down the unarmed warrior with thousands of arrows until he is covered in them from head to toe. Bhisma does not actually die until much later by his choice and remains laying on the battlefield until the end.

-Drona positions the armies in a formation known only to him, the iron disc of war, which nobody knows how to break open, apart from Arjuna. If only Arjuna can be diverted away from the central battle, Drona promises victory. Arjuna has a 15-year old son, Abhimanyu, who, by listening to his father while still in his mother’s womb, has learned to force an entry into Drona’s battle formation. 

-As Arjuna is called to a diversionary battle far away, Yudhishthira entrusts Abhimanyu with the task of opening a breach in the disc. Abhimanyu succeeds, but when Bhima and Yudhishthira try to follow him into the opening, they are stopped by Jayadratha, a brother-in-law to the Kauravas, and the breach closes behind the young Abhimanyu. He is then killed in bravery.

-Karna possesses a magic lance, the gift of Indra, which will kill any living being but can be used only once. He keeps it until he uses it for Arjuna. Drona continues to challenge the Pandava armies, killing thousands. The Pandavas knows his  weakness, however, which is the love of his only son Ashvatthama.

-After the war, when Krishna exited the chariot, it burst into flames. Only his presence kept the celestial weapons from destroying it earlier. Krishna reveals that the gods allowed this war to relieve Earth of her big burden. Duryodhana was the incarnation of Kali, lord of the 4th age.

Reading Notes: Mahabharata Part C

R. K. Narayan, The Mahabharata: Public Domain Edition; http://ouocblog.blogspot.com/2008/12/pde-mahabharata-life-in-forest.html

(Image Information: Bahubali Movie Review; https://www.indiatvnews.com/entertainment/bollywood/bahubali-movie-review-22546.html)

-As they are living in the forest, Yudhishthira summoned the brahmins to lament his fate and he told the deposed rajah to call upon the sun god.

-Surya then came upon Yudhishthira and gave him a copper pot filled with food for his brothers. The Pandavas had to live there for twelve years and all the food they received were divided into portions separated into some for themselves and the holy men. While they lived in the forest, they visited holy shrines, bathed in holy waters, and even performed their devotions.

-When Krishna came to visit the Pandavas living in the forest, Draupadi wept and begged asking why her husbands were not helping her. Krishna comforted her by saying that Krishna would help the Pandavas and help Draupadi be king once again.

-Before the Pandavas left the forest, Yudhishthira summoned the goddess Durga and promised the goddess of Dharma that the Pandava brethren and Draupadi would remain hidden during the years of their exile.

-The wanderers' weapons were concealed in a tree and together they went toward the city of Virata to conceal themselves. They possibly spent twelve years in the jungle if the  Kauravas discovered their whereabouts. 

-Bhima soon won much renown by reason of his matchless strength. The rajah was very proud of him and did not take him to the apartments of the women where he then wrestled with caged tigers, lions, and bears, and slayed them each one by one with single blows each. 

-The war begins and the drums were sounded. I’m going to have to include an epic battle scene for my next story for sure. Bhishma advanced to make the attack on the Pandava army. He went bravely cutting through the enemy legions.

-Bhisma declared that he would be fighting until the very end. 

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(Image Information: Personal Photo of my cat, Ziggy (September 2019)

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Microfiction: An Unexpected Friendship

 An Unexpected Friendship 

    There once lived a cat and a mouse in a house. They played chase & run every day. The mouse believed the cat wanted to catch and eat him and ran from him every day. What the mouse did not know was that the cat actually considered the mouse a friend. The reason for the chasing was that the cat wanted his owner to see that he hated the mouse and would not try to get another cat to replace him, that could possibly kill the mouse. 

Source: Tom & Jerry

(Old Twitter 140 characters)

    As expected, Kansas State University football team is 1-1 after games against Arkansas State and Oklahoma. 

-The first story is what I believe to be the truth of Tom & Jerry. When you watch the show with that on your mind, it will change your perspective entirely. The second story was a short tweet that is a bit sad. This past week, the OU football team lost to a 0-1 unranked Kansas State for the second year in a row. Kansas State had played Arkansas State, a FBS team, and lost. As a 3rd ranked team in the nation, it was quite an embarrassment for us to lose at home like that. I hope to see improvements from our football team and I still believe! 

(Image Information: Sooners blame no one but themselves; https://www.normantranscript.com/sports/ou_football/ou-football-sooners-blame-no-one-but-themselves-for-upset-loss-to-kansas-state/article_6ca03854-0051-11eb-b121-cbd65a45d9f5.html)

Reading Notes: Mahabharata Part B

 Mahabharata Online: Public Domain Edition; http://ouocblog.blogspot.com/2009/07/mahabharata-online-public-domain-edition.html 

-Due to the fact that Prince Vidura's mother was a slave girl, though he was half brother of King Pandu and of King Dhritarashtra, he could not reign over Hastinapura as king. 

-Suspicious of the cruel plot of Prince Duryodhana, Prince Vidura tells Pandavas and Queen Kunti to be careful of the palace at Varanavata.

-The palace at Varanavata's beauties were indescribable, however, all the furniture and tapestries were soaked in oil and the palace and roof were built only of wood or such other material as would easily burn.

-I like a strong antagonist to a story with an plan evil enough to wipe out the entire protagonist group. 

-Thanks to his wisdom and goodness of his heart, Prince Vidura was not able to keep his nephews the Pandavas from his mind. 

-Prince Vidura came up with a plan and set a very skillful miner to Varanavata to dig an underground passage which led from the floor of the palace into the woods outside. 

-The work was done by night and by day the miner hid his work by covering the mouh of the passage with wooden planks.

-Purochana, the mean captain had no clue that the Pandavas were planning to flee.

-Purochana was also waiting on a moonless night to burn the palace down with the people inside, which somewhat gave a deadline to the miner to finish the passageway.

-When the night came, the Pandavas and Queen Kunti walked through the passage into the forest.

-Wanting revenge, Prince Bhima crawled back to the guardhouse where Purochana the wicked captain lived, and set fire to the house.

-Purochana and the guards were engulfed and perished in the fire. 

-The ending would make a great movie ending as it shows the burned down city and one would think the protagonists are dead, but instead they see in the horizon, a family walking from the forest, alive. 

(Image Information: Forest fire; http://forestfiredetection.com/en/articles-news/38-how-to-escape-in-case-of-forest-fire)