And now, for a brief interlude.

On the fighters' email list for my shire, one of the guys likes to throw out ponderables, to generate discussion. (We love you, William, thanks for doing this!) His most recent question to the list was about Heroes, both from history or modern life, both for the fighting field and for other pursuits.

I penned a response that I feel pretty good about. And since I'm woefully behind in my journal correspondence, this makes a nice copy/paste moment to share with you all.
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Outside the example Wilhelm mentioned, of the heroes who rescue in extraordinary ways, (citing our rescue on the way home from Estrella this year), I've often thought of my heroes as "the one who goes that step further, without seeking personal gain, and with graciousness."

I've witnessed some people "go that step further" in service or in their arts or in their prowess... but with the intent that they *wanted* someone to laud them for their efforts. These folks sadden me, because they haven't grasped the joy of the task itself. These are not my heroes.

Whereas, I've seen some people "go that step further" for just the joy of the work, for the joy of a job well done, or just for the passion itself. These folks often are "my heroes" because they inspire me to be like them, to do like they do, to pursue passion for the rightness of the pursuit.

I have some artistic heroes, where their art itself is astonishing, and then their gentle nature and humble demeanor puts all the sparkle on having witnessed their work. These artistic heroes are the ones I most enjoy asking about their process because they shine when they tell the tales of their pursuit.

There are some fighter heroes in my life, where watching them strive for personal best is already inspiring, and then I'm impressed to hear their genuine concern for others and for sharing community with other fighters. These martial heroes are the ones I have in my head for my own model, as I plot and plan my own way to quietly pick up a sword and learn to "be like them" for my own internal reasons.

And there are some service heroes I hold dear, where when I see how they work, how they interact, and how they bring light to the world around them, I want to learn to be like them.

To me, the hero reminds me of a famous quote: The hero "...is patient, kind, is not boastful or arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice in wrongdoing, but rejoices in the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things."
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On the adventure front: I'm well, thanks for asking. I'm definitely busy, which explains my absence. Notable recent achievements: I've just published my first monthly issue of my Barony's newsletter, of which I'm proud of my work, and thankful for several friends who endured my slightly manic and bouncy "grand tour" as I flipped page by page through the newsletter and pointed out my favorite features. You have to like the friends who let you point out the cuteness of a font, or the adorable ornaments on the page.

Um, projects in the works: Right now, I'm consumed with website updates for: the theatre, the royal scribe inventories and heraldic supplemental records for events, the shire, the barony, and the university chapter under the barony. In hands-on projects: Painted fabric for new SCA outfits. In the queue: some spinning, some braiding, and some scribal work. In the back of my head: some research.

And in real life: I made walking-once-a-week stick for a couple of months now, and I've branched out into a 2nd exercise activity per week for several weeks. One week, it was shared exercise time with my roomie, which was quite fun to go walking with her at the park near our apartment. Another week, it was a rousing game of Quiddich with friends. Variety seems to be sticking as the 2nd-habit-of-the-week. Next up: More personal exercise time.

Well, gotta run. I'll try to stop by and seeing you some more soon!

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P.S. I think I *totally* want to take this challenge: http://www.artsandsciences50.org/