In reply to Oak (msg # 157):

"Not really.  It is used in this spell to gain attention.  And since you can manage five pounds, the next day will be ten pounds each leg."

I nod, and bow respectfully.

"Hai, Sensei..."

In reply to Oak (msg # 159):

Despite the singing, you last four minutes with ten pounds on each leg.  Its painfully hard for the first week.  Then you get two pound stones on each finger.

After six weeks, of hard work, you can do the gestures while carrying seventy pounds of stone for ten minutes.

She looks skeptical.

"You are barely ready. You may continue to train, or you can try now."

I consider thoughtfully.

"If I do not succeed, let it not be due to my lack of diligence.  It is better to properly prepare..."

In reply to Oak (msg # 161):

Four more weeks, and then you test your skill.  It works.

You have gained 1@3 Dance of Sleep, and 1@4 Supernatural Endurance while Singing, and +2 Stamina and +1 Strength.

I bow respectfully.

"Arigato, Sensei."

"I feel that my stamina and strength have increased.  Does this training path have uses beyond Dance of Sleep, such as for Martial Arts, or for the Way of the Fan?"

"You know how to cause sleep by the touch of your hand.  Is such skill available to one such as I?"

In reply to Oak (msg # 163):

"All training may offer insights into other training.  However, with the Way of the Fan, such insights would be few and hard to find.  But with Martial Arts the insights come easier.  As to teaching that skill, I do not think so.  It is a part of the Use of Godly Authority, and you have rejected that path."

I nod in agreement.

"What kinds of martial arts do you know?"

In reply to Oak (msg # 165):

"I have studied with Doctor Akihyama, and have learned this...

 Kansetzu-waza: this is the submission techniques. It is also called "joint key"
Shime-waza: this is a choking technique used to submit an opponent

Also, I have learned to strike, to distract, to deflect with the fan."

I consider thoughtfully, and nod.

"Given what I know now, what is best to learn first?"

In reply to Oak (msg # 167):

"Shime-waza.  It is simpler.  From there,  you will build up to joint locks."

I nod, and bow respectfully.

"Hai, Sensei."

In reply to Oak (msg # 169):

You have been practising for several weeks, and you feel a strain in your legs as you hold the joint lock position.  Do you stop and take a break, or do you push on?

I pray, employing 1@2 Supernatural Endurance.

If and when that gives out, I then ask the Sensei how best to proceed...

In reply to Oak (msg # 171):

After it gives out, you ask, and she speaks.

"You must listen to your body.  Part of what you do here is to learn to hear what your body is actually saying. That way you can learn when to push harder, and when to rest.  There are many astonishing deeds that martial artists have done, but there are many ways for them to injure themselves.

Some might teach you to just push through it, and there is value in such training, but it is not the training that I or my sister will give you.  The gods of thunder and strength are more likely to teach you that."

I nod at her exhortation to listen to your body, as it aligns with my own perspective.

"If one learns how to listen well enough to what a body is actually saying, can that be used to heal?"

In reply to Oak (msg # 173):

She pauses, looks interested, and considers.

"I do not know."

I ponder thoughtfully.

"Do you know how to improve one's perceptiveness?  How can I further develop that ability or skill?"

In reply to Oak (msg # 175):

She thinks for a little bit, and then leaves. She comes back an hour later with a simple example of calligraphy, a pot of ink made of graphite, a hosofude, or a slender brush of bamboo.

"I chose wolfhair as most conducive to helping you notice things.  This paper is mulberry paper. It absorbs the ink well.  Now, do as the master calligrapher here has down.  He expresses the notion of noticing something."

To you its just a bunch of lines.

She looks at it, and you hear a plop next to you, and you realize she's crying.  After that, she vanishes.

OOC: Where did the teardrop fall?  Is it still there (on a rock or a leaf or the mulberry paper), or did it immediately soak into the soil?

I pray for wisdom and awareness, that He would open my heart to perceive all things from His perspective.

Then I thoughtfully regard the calligraphy.

I have some exposure to Chinese characters, which are used for a subset of Japanese characters.  However, my experience is mainly in reading them.

I also have a background in computer graphics and algorithms.

Therefore, I examine the calligraphy carefully, observing the texture of the brush strokes to determine how they are drawn individually and how they overlap.  From the former, I hope to deduce the direction of each brush stroke.  From the latter, I hope to deduce the order of each brush stroke, since the earlier strokes will be under the later strokes.

Then I get a stick of similar size as the slender bamboo brush, and begin practicing the characters on the ground.

Once I eventually get the hang of it, I will consider actually using the brush and ink and paper...

In reply to Oak (msg # 177):

You look down and see a tiny flowering cherry tree where the teardrop would have fell.

You work hard and carefully at it, bringing together all your different skills, and yet somehow, the end result is lacking the elegance and beauty of the original.

Caligraphy 1@3.

Still, when you are done, you are surprised to see a good part of the day has gone, and Princess K is standing to your left.

"A creditable first attempt. Diligence and dedication.  But you take such time between strokes here and here for the ink to fully dry. And here is tension from the stress you put yourself under."

She hands you another sheet to copy from and another sheet to write on.

I incline my head respectfully.

"Arigato, Sensei.  You honor my unworthy efforts.  But I have a question..."

"I know little of calligraphy, but even if through diligence and dedication I am able to master the mechanics... what then?"

"Would I not have merely mastered the ability to create the external likeness, but with no understanding of the essence?"

"If I am to produce something greater than an empty shell, I must know the meaning.  What does the writing signify?  What is the artist trying to convey?"

"It may well be that I have not yet progressed in my mastery of mechanics to be ready for such instruction.  But, if you deem me worthy, I would like to know."

In reply to Oak (msg # 179):

"Indeed, you see well. For now, you need more skill with the basics of the tools before I can teach you the meanings of things."

I nod respectfully.

"Hai, Sensei."

Before starting the next drawing, I pray for wisdom and discernment to perceive clearly not only the details of what is before me and how to proceed, but also the meaning behind it...

In reply to Oak (msg # 181):

Things seem as if they are starting well, but somehow you got off course, and attempts to correct it make it worse.

You get another sheet of paper given you.