Snow Melt

Maps

10 Nur 164 B.E. – Thursday, June 14, 2007

I encountered an intriguing poem while reading this week’s Poetry Newsletter. The poem "Making Maps"   [E] by ridinghhood-p.boutilier concerned a person’s mid-life map. This poem is written in lune, 5/3/5 syllables, which is a form I’ve never ran across before. There are actually two forms of lunes, the first form is written in syllables of 5/3/5, the second form, uses a word count of 3/5/3.

Lune 1

Guides to the future
yesterday’s
desires rearranged.

Lune 2

Piece by piece
the map I can’t read
crumbles to dust.

Maps are interesting subjects for me. I’m directionally challenged, which is a politically correct way of saying I have no sense of direction. If the sun didn’t rise in the east I’d never know which direction was west. As it is, in order for me to read a map; I have to pull over to the side of the road, get out, spread the map on the hood of the car so that it faces the direction indicated, and then figure out where I am. Needless to say, it makes going anywhere difficult and adventurous.

Speaking of maps and newsletters the Fantasy Newsletter had an interesting subject The Hero’s Journey: The Road of Trials. This is a road that, I strongly suspect, has no map because if it did the hero would never learn anything from failure and then would not succeed in his or her quest. The editor of this week’s edition gives some intriguing and helpful questions to answer when creating a hero and the hero’s journey. Those questions are

Given this person's background and experience, what kinds of trials or ordeals make sense for him or her? What would be truly challenging for this person?

What does the person fear and how will this fear be represented to him or her?

What does the person consider to be obstacles to progress or growth?

Does the person have some personality or character traits that will be mirrored back to him or her in a challenging way?

What strategies, skills, insights, known or unknown strengths or talents, etc, does the person use or develop to survive or resolve these trials?

What assistance, seen or unseen does the person have or receive to deal with these trials?

All thought provoking questions; a map to creating a hero and a story. I’ve tried writing character sketches and usually end up not using them. Normally I write characters, without too much of a formal sketch. However, since I am a glutton for punishment I think I’ll try creating a character and a story in a later entry using those questions.

The Spiritual Newsletter also brought maps to my mind. The subject of this week’s edition is time and getting one’s spiritual house in order. OK, anyone reading this entry may ask, “What do maps have to do with getting your spiritual house in order?” A great deal! Our religious and/or spiritual path (in some cases they are the same) gives each of us a roadmap to heaven, paradise or whatever we want to call life in the next world. If one follows that map (given that one can read it) then we arrive in the next world, at least, partially ready.

In many cases, the problem is reading the map. This is where one turns either to prayer and meditation on the sacred scriptures (one’s spiritual map), or to a spiritual leader. The thing is, we are each responsible for ourselves and no one else. When a person’s body dies and the soul arrives in the next world, in paradise, that person must answer for him or herself, any spiritual leader can’t answer for any other the person standing before the throne of God.