Growth Mindset Challenge: Success Acronym

"Success" by Nick Youngson. Source.

Struggle
Until you
Choose to
Change your
Every
Shabby
Strive

I came up with this acronym because I think the key to success is effort. If you want to succeed in life, you can't achieve it by passively going through all the steps. However, a lot of people don't realize this. I've had classmates who didn't do well on a midterm because they assumed going to lecture was all they needed to do well on it. And this trend is prevalent all around our society in all aspects of life. Commercials for fad diets and websites that promise easy learning a second language pander to people who look for an easy way out.

What we forget is that success takes sacrifice. If you want to lose weight, you have to skip the junk food. If you want to learn, you have to take time away from watching TV or playing games to sit down and study. If we don't have the determination to sacrifice, every hurdle will feel impossible.

I learned this the hard way when my high school prom was set the night before my AP Psychology exam. There was no way I could be well rested to take the morning exam after staying for the 2 am after prom. I had to choose. Success means different things for everyone. Someone who wants to create lasting memories would value going to prom with their friends more than the AP test. Someone who had a specific academic plan that required passing the AP test would stay home.

If we want to succeed, we must put our best effort in every moment. Otherwise, all of our hard work will be for naught.

Feedback Thoughts

Like many people, I have struggled with receiving feedback. I took any negative feedback on my work as a direct attack on me as a person. However, I brushed off any positive input to the side. I never saw it as a compliment to me as a person. This double-standard affected me, and it was only later that I realized that my merits are just as significant to pay attention to as my faults. The two articles I read reinforced this thought-process.

One of the articles I read was Sabina Nawaz's article, "Silence the Critical Voices in Your Head." Nawaz brought up that it is crucial to write down both positive and negative feedback, so we know what we need to continue as well as what we need to change. As it is now, we give ourselves too little credit for our merits. We brush off compliments without realizing that every skill we have contributes. To counteract this thought, we need to focus more on positive feedback and turn those compliments into improvement working tools.

John Spencer's article, "Seven Ways to Crush Self-Doubt in Creative Work," also brought up how the way we shrink from making mistakes is unnatural. If babies were self-conscious of how clumsy they are compared to adults, functional humans would cease to exist. We need to shift from the thought process that the worst thing we can do is make a mistake or turn in an imperfect project. The worst thing we can do is nothing. While this mindset is hard to grasp with the standardized testing and continual grading, we need to remind ourselves that by comparing ourselves to others, we are only hindering ourselves.

Cheezburger Generated Image. Source.

Topic Brainstorm

Most of my storybook ideas stem from my own reaction to reading some stories as I get older. When I was little, I ate up fairy tales, but eventually, I realized some fairy tales have some toxic messages or other messed up factors to them I mean, deals that sell your firstborn child are pretty messed up (I'm looking at you Rumplestilkskin.)

Story Judge

One of my storybook ideas is fairy tale characters coming into court. I thought this up because fairy tales rarely have logic, so by writing an incredulous judge dealing with magical nonsense could create a comedic effect. One idea I had was a Rumplestilkskin and the Queen having a custody trial . I imagined the judge would be flabbergasted. (You mean to tell me you sold your baby for a creepy man to spin straw into gold??). Overall, I've thought of multiple potential stories that could go into this topic.

The Rumplestilkskin custody case

Cinderella vs Stepfamily in a Child Welfare Case

Jack and the Beanstalk with Home Burglary.

The Little Mermaid and Invalid Contracts with Minors

Loki and the Idiot Gods of Asgard

I've always been a fan of trickster mythology, and I imagine Loki in Asgard to be a sarcastic hipster surrounded by a bunch of airheads.

Loki's sarcastic suggestions are taken seriously by whiny gods, and he has to fix their messes. The stories I may use include Fortification of Asgard, The Kidnapping of Idun, The Creation of Thor's Hammer and The Death of Baldur

With the Fortification of Asgard, I imagined Loki calling out the gods on not wanting to be fair to the smith, only for everyone to decide that being unfair is a great idea. Later on, Loki gets blamed when the smith figures out how to build the wall in a short amount of time. Skip forward, Loki has obtained a horse. People are like, "Loki, did you buy a horse"

And Loki, of course, says, "No, I totally turned myself into a mare and slept with the smith's horse. This is our child." Only for everyone to believe him. and Loki is just like, I'm surrounded by idiots

Paris Tuileries Garden Facepalm Statue by Photographer Alex E. Proimos. Source: Wikimedia Commons.

Therapists for Fairy tale people

I'm interested in psychology, and I've recognized that some stories I've read have some toxic messages embedded in them. One idea I have for a storybook are characters going to therapy and dealing with the psychological issues a real person would face after going through a fairy tale ordeal. Some ideas I have include:

Hera realizes that Zeus is a cheater and she needs to leave him rather than punish the mortal women who are coerced into sleeping with Zeus (Let's face it, gods can punish divine retribution are infinitely worse than a sleazy boss making inappropriate advances).

Cinderella dealing with self-esteem issues and anxiety in her transition from family slave to queen.

Hansel and Gretel dealing with the fact that they killed a cannibal witch who wanted to eat them.

Fairy Godmother's Dating Service

In a lot of fairy tales, true love is the main part of a happily ever after. After decades of work, the fairy godmother has decided that if her actions help people fall in love, she may as well get paid to do it. Young ladies around the kingdom set up an appointment with the Fairy Godmother to meet their dream prince. (Some conditions might include being put in a coma, family separation and or abuse, being cursed, etc.)

I imagine that certain packages, such as the sleeping princess might be offered. (Different prices based on if you want the regular Sleeping Beauty 100 year coma or the deluxe Snow White 1 week coma).

Week 2 Story: The Girl and the Basilisk

Once upon a time, there was a young King who fell in love with a servant-girl. However, when the King proclaimed that we would marry the servant-girl, his royal advisors insisted that the King marry a noble. Eventually, the King agreed and abandoned his lover in favor of a princess.

The King and his new Queen were happy, more so when the Queen became pregnant. However, the broken-hearted servant-girl grew jealous and turned to Black magic. In her rage, she cursed the unborn royal to become a basilisk.

When the young prince was born with scales and feathers, the King and Queen were horrified. They sought a cure, but only an act of true love would break the spell. Hopeless of any such love to exist for a monster, the King and Queen sent their child away. With some kindness, the prince was sent to live at the Spring palace, enchanted to have blooming flowers all year-round.

As the years passed, the prince grew in isolation. As the curse transformed his body further, his few servants fled in fear. And so the blooming gardens of the Spring Palace became overgrown with weeds.

In a nearby town, a young girl named Mary lived with her mother on a small farm. One day, Mary's mother was due to travel to the neighboring city. Mary did not want her mother to leave, but when asked if she would like anything from the town, Mary said she wanted roses.

However, a storm delayed Mary's mother for weeks. By the time she arrived at the town, winter was already here. The mother searched across the city, but no store had roses. Any hope of finding roses was futile until she heard of a basilisk's castle that grew flowers all year. Mary's mother did not believe in monsters such as basilisks, but she decided to visit the castle in the hope that she would find even one rose. As Mary's mother approached ornate gates, she was shocked to see not only roses but every kind of flower imaginable in a garden. As she went to pick the roses, a shadow fell over her. Mary's mother turned and saw the castle's basilisk, with the face of a rooster and body of a serpent. 

Mary's mother was sure that she would be killed and crouched in fear. However, when she heard the monster spoke with a soft, mellow voice, her fear lay forgotten.

"Hello? Are you the new gardener? That's good because the garden has become quite messy since the old one left."

"No...I am not the new gardener."

"Then what are you doing with my roses?"

"I'm sorry! I just...my daughter, I promised to give her roses and didn't want to disappoint her."

"Your daughter wanted roses? Does she like them very much? I like them too."

And so the conversation continued, with the basilisk asking questions about daily human life and why didn't humans grow out their claws (they are nails, and longer nails are inconvenient) and what games do human children play (every kind they can think of). The basilisk decided.

"You will be my new gardener."

"What? I can't. My daughter needs me at home."

"Then your daughter can come to work with you."

"Why? What do you plan on doing with us?"

The basilisk eyes widened. "Oh-no-no-no-no. I'm not going to hurt you. I like you, and I think I will like your daughter too. And my gardens need a gardener. So do you promise? If you say yes, I will let you leave this place. If you say no...if you say no...you will have to stay with me until you agree." The basilisk looked proud of his cleverness.

The mother was suddenly reminded of Mary whenever she tried to squeeze out another hour before bedtime or asked for just one more cookie. This basilisk may look monstrous, but he was more child-like than malicious. So she decided.

"I promise."

After the strange encounter, Mary's mother returned home to her daughter. Mary was overjoyed until her mother explained the deal with the basilisk. However, Mary agreed that they needed to keep their promise, and so the next day, Mary and her mother met the basilisk again. After introducing the basilisk and Mary to each other, Mary's mother started to weed the gardens. The basilisk and Mary were left to look at one another.

The basilisk squinted his eyes at Mary. "I've never seen a human child before."

"I've never seen a basilisk before," Mary scrunched her face. "Why aren't you hurting us?"

"Why would I?"

Mary considered that argument before she said, "Okay. Do you want to be friends with me?"

"Friends?"

"You're scary, but you're not mean. I know the difference now. What's your name? I'm Mary."

"I don't have..."

"You don't have a name? Then...how about Florian?"

"Florian?"

"Your garden's full of flowers, so you should have a flowery name."

"Florian. I like it."

After they met, Mary and Florian became thick as thieves. They spent every day playing or learning together while Mary's mother restored the gardens.

As the years passed, Florian and Mary grew closer with hopes that their carefree days would never end. However, soon, Florian became ill. His feathers and scales fell from his withering skin. Mary, determined not to abandon her friend, nursed him as best she could. Until one day, Florian didn't wake up, no matter how Mary tried to rouse him.

Her eyes burned. "Florian please, come back to me. I don't want you to leave! You're my best friend, and I...I love you." But Florian did not respond.

Mary held Florian's talon and cried. As her tears fell, Florian's body began to glow and shift into a young human man's. Florian's eyes opened.

"Mary, why are you crying? What happened to me? I'm human?"

"It's okay. You're healthy again, Nothing else matters."

"But...I don't know how to be human."

"It's okay. We'll figure it out, together."

Author's Note:

This story is based on "The Three Roses." I wanted the basilisk and Mary to spend more time together, so I had them meet when they were young. However, a young girl going to stay at a monster castle alone is a creepy setup, so I adjusted it to where Mary's mother was on the castle grounds. I thought up the gardener position because a monster's castle would cause any servants to run in fear. 

The most important question I had when I read "The Three Roses" was how the basilisk came to be cursed. I decided to create a storyline where a scorned lover curses her ex's son with a curse that could only be reversed by true love. The basilisk's monster appearance would frighten off anyone who came in close. It was only when Mary's mother encountered the basilisk that an outsider learns that the basilisk has an innocent, kind nature. 

I changed the curse from Mary cutting off the basilisk's head to him getting sick because I love the true love will break the spell plot. Mary's growing affection for Florian reversed the curse slowly. The transformation to human puts a lot of stress on Florian's body because his very DNA is changing. His failing health made Mary afraid she would lose Florian. As Mary realized her feelings, the curse was broken. 

By the point where Florian is cured, I had hit the maximum word limit. Rather than writing in a rushed in happily ever after, I decided to leave the story on a hopeful note that Mary and Florian will face anything together.

Bibliography:

"The Three Roses" from The Key of Gold: Czech Folk Tales (1922) by Josef Baudis. Web Source.

Image Information: Basilisk by Friedrich Johann Justin Bertuch (1747-1822). Source: Wikimedia Commons.

Reading Notes: Week 2 Anthology

Out of the stories in the anthology, I decided to retell "The Three Roses," which is a fairy tale found in Josef Baudis' 1922 book, The Key of Gold: Czech Folk Tales. This story, while not my favorite out of the anthology choices, made me think of so many ideas I would want to use in my retelling. For this week, I decided to format my notes with the problems I saw in the story and the changes I would make in my retelling.

Plot Holes I found and My Retelling Solutions:

Why did the mother have to resort to stealing the roses? Why couldn't she buy them at a store?

There are no roses at the store. Maybe the mother had to go on a long trip and was delayed until winter, so she had no opportunity to buy roses for her daughter. Because she doesn't want to disappoint Mary, the mother decides to steal from the Basilisk.

How did the mother find the castle?

A little boy mentioned how he saw roses at the monster's castle. The mother doesn't believe in monsters but decides to go there in case the roses are real.

Why does the Basilisk want to meet Mary?

The Basilisk is lonely, and he wants to know what kind of young lady would ask for lowers instead of silk and jewels.

Why doesn't the mother try to protect her daughter from living with a monster? Why is Mary so casual about being told to live with the Basilisk?

The mother lied to the Basilisk and brought the roses home to her daughter. The daughter loves the roses. The Basilisk tracks the scent of the roses to the cottage and tells the mother that she made a deal with him. Mary is understandably frightened to see a monster at her house and that he has come for her. However, she notices that the Basilisk is not trying to eat them. She asks the Basilisk if he will hurt her or her mother. The Basilisk swears a magical oath that he will not harm them upon his life. Mary agrees to go with the Basilisk.

Why does the Basilisk threaten the girl to cut off his head? What is the nature of this curse? Why was the Basilisk cursed?

The Basilisk is a prince who was cursed to become a monster body and spirit. His body changed instantly, but slowly, the curse is stripping him of his humanity. He accidentally loses control and bites Mary's arm. He dies because he swore on his life to not hurt Mary. Mary cries over the Basilisk's body, and her blood and tears break the curse.

Mary and the Basilisk have no chemistry.

Have Mary stay with the Basilisk for longer than three days. They tell stories to each other, and Mary slowly sees that the Basilisk is lonely and wants a friend. Over time, she enjoys being with the Basilisk very much.

Basilisk by Friedrich Johann Justin Bertuch (1747-1822). Source: Wikimedia Commons

Week 2 Reading Overview

When I looked through the different units offered in this course, I was excited about many. One of which is the Cupid and Psyche unit. One of my friends took a class about love in literature, and she ranted to me about how amazing the myth of Eros and Psyche is. I am excited to read a version of the tale and see why my friend liked it so much. I also know some of the myths featured in Ovid II, such as the myth of Hades and Persephone. I'm filled to the brim with inspiration for ways I can retell it. I am also looking forward to the King Arthur unit because the stories of Camelot and Excalibur have been with me since childhood. Another group of stories I am familiar with is the Grimm fairy tale collection. I'm happy to have a chance to retell some of these classics.

Some units aren't very familiar to me. Arabian Nights and Beowulf were both featured in my English literature class, but we only read excerpts. The Monkey King is not a story I am familiar with, but I know stories based off of it. Any anime fan knows about the Dragon Ball series. However, many may not know that Dragon Ball has roots from the 16th-century Chinese novel Journey to the West, sometimes called The Monkey King. Dragon Ball's protagonist Son Goku is even named after the Monkey King's original Chinese name, Sun Wukong.

I am also curious about the Native American units that featured trickster-heroes Raven and Coyote. I've always been a fan of the "trickster" deities in mythology. Godly figures such as Prometheus, Loki, and Hermes have been more enjoyable to read about due to their dual nature in mythology. Traditionally, worshippers portray tricksters, to some degree, as the bad guy to discourage wild behavior, but in more modern views, they are convenient scapegoats for their pantheon. The image below is Loki's depiction is one manuscript, which shows the more malign aspect of Loki's character by appearance.

Loki from Norse mythology
Image from the 18th-Century Icelandic manuscript SÁM 66, written by Jakob Sigurðsson.
Source: Wikimedia Commons

One myth this showcases this is the myth about the fortification of Asgard. In it, giant smith says he will build Asgard a defensive wall in return for the Sun, the Moon, and the goddess Freya's hand in marriage. The gods object to his terms, but when Loki thinks of a plan to get the wall without paying the smith, the gods agree to it. However, when things don't work out according to plan, the gods blame Loki. They rebuke Loki's trickster nature but go with it when it is convenient. The two-faced nature of the other gods eclipses Loki's trickster character because Loki is honest about his duplicity. This human-like theme in trickster-featured myths is more enjoyable to me compared to a good versus evil story. Because of this, I am excited to see a portrayal depict a trickster with heroic traits.

Outside of this course, a couple of stories I think everyone should know are the Japanese fairy tale of Princess Kaguya and the Cinderella-esque Russian Tale The Feather of Finist the Falcon.

My Reading Overview Plan of the Semester:

Choose from CLASSICAL and/or BIBLICAL units for Weeks 3 and 4.

Week 3: Cupid and Psyche
Week 4: Ovid II

Choose from MIDDLE EASTERN and/or INDIAN units for Weeks 5 and 6.

Week 5: Arabian Nights
Week 6: Turkish Fairy Tales

Choose from ASIAN and/or AFRICAN units for Weeks 7 and 9. [Week 8 is review week.]

Week 7: The Monkey King
Week 9: Japanese Fairy Tales (Ozaki)

Choose from NATIVE AMERICAN units for Weeks 10 and 11.

Week 10: British North America
Week 11: Alaska

Choose from BRITISH and/or CELTIC units for Weeks 12 and 13.

Week 12: King Arthur
Week 13: Beowulf

Choose from EUROPEAN units for Weeks 14 and 15.

Week 14: Brothers Grimm (Hunt)
Week 15: Brothers Grimm (Crane)