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Tag: King Arthur

Nadia Comăneci, The Dark Tower Series, The Theory of Everything, Sadhguru, and Matthew 6:21

Sunday Supplement #139 (January 7th, 2024)

Below is another Sunday Supplement with a quote worth sharing, a book worth reading, a movie worth watching, brainfood worth consuming, and a spiritual passage worth pondering.

Please take something away from these recommendations that enriches your week ahead!

Quote of the Week:

“Enjoy the journey and try to get better every day. And don’t lose the passion and the love for what you do.”

– Nadia Comăneci

Book of the Week:

The Dark Tower Series – Stephen King

If you’re new to my blog, you might not have seen me feature Stephen King before. For those who have read the blog consistently, I apologize for another Stephen King entry.

I’ve featured eight Stephen King books before this, but The Dark Tower Series was the start of my reading King’s works. They are arguably his magnum opus, and many of his other stories tie into the world of The Dark Tower.

Roland Deschain, a member of a knightly order known as “gunslingers” and the last of the line of “Arthur Eld” (his world’s analogue of King Arthur), attempts to seek the Man in Black in a world that has “moved on.”

Roland’s journey crosses over many worlds, including our own. The tale blends dark fantasy, science fiction, western, and horror genres.

There’s no easy way to describe The Dark Tower in short, which is surprisingly one of his lesser-read works. I believe it to be his best writing and can’t recommend it more highly. 

Give the series a try (read at least the first two books). King spent over thirty years completing the series, which should show how important it was to him.

Movie of the Week:

The Theory of Everything

Stephen Hawking was a theoretical physicist, cosmologist, and author who was the director of research at the Centre for Theoretical Cosmology at the University of Cambridge.

The Theory of Everything is a 2014 film that captures Hawking and his wife, Jane Wilde’s relationship, as they met at University in the 1960s through their struggle with Hawking’s diagnosis of motor neuron disease.

Eddie Redmayne and Felicity Jones star as Stephen Hawkins and Jane Wilde. Redmayne won the Oscar for Best Actor, and Jones was nominated for Best Actress.

The film was nominated for three additional Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Writing – Adapted Screenplay.

Anthony McCarten adapted the script from Jane Hawking’s novel Traveling to Infinity: My Life with Stephen. It’s a powerful story and beautifully captured in the 2014 film.

Brainfood of the Week:

Playfulness and Passion | Sadhguru

Sadhguru is an Indian yogi and bestselling author. His YouTube page has over 11 million followers and over 1.5 billion video views.

Sadhguru begins the video by talking about how playfulness can often be frowned upon as childish. He then explains how being too serious makes everything about you.

Approaching problems with a sense of playfulness will also help you not get overwhelmed by the difficulties you encounter. By being playful, you are not becoming entangled in the problem.

At the end of the video, Sadhguru talks about passion and being consumed by it. He discusses how burning passion opens up new possibilities.

I’ve featured Sadhguru in a few previous Sunday Supplements. If you like this video, check the other posts out.

Closing Spiritual Passage:

“For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

– Matthew 6:21

This Bible passage from the Book of Matthew discusses how we shouldn’t store our treasures on earth but should store them in heaven. It then states the verse above.

I believe this verse speaks to the passions and love we have in our lives. 

Whether toward the ones we love or our pursuits of meaningful achievements, the treasures should be in the doing and not tied to the outcomes.

As I’m starting my 2024 journey, I’m focusing on bringing as much love to the people in my life and my passions as possible.

Bring love and passion to the treasures of your life, and have a blessed week ahead!

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Anaïs Nin, The Once and Future King, Arrival, Malavika Varadan, and Proverbs 3:7

Sunday Supplement #11 (July 25th, 2021)

Below is another Sunday Supplement with a quote worth sharing, a book worth reading, a movie worth watching, brainfood worth consuming, and a spiritual passage worth pondering.

I hope you take something away from this post that enriches your week ahead!

Quote of the Week:

“And the day came when the risk to remain in a tight bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom.”

– Anaïs Nin, from her poem “Risk”

Book of the Week:

The Once and Future King – T.H. White

T.H. White’s The Once and Future King is based largely on Sir Thomas Malory’s Le Morte d’Arthur. It recounts many classic elements of Arthurian Legend in easy-to-digest prose, unlike some denser books in the same field. 

The book is separated into four parts and starts with a light-hearted telling of The Sword in the Stone but ends with a more sobering look at Arthur experiencing the downfall of his kingdom at the hands of his son Mordred. 

I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in the stories of King Arthur. It is a long novel, but since it’s broken into four parts, you can take it in sections and go at your own pace. The stories are wonderfully written and provide vivid descriptions with entertainment and depth. The themes and lessons in the book are rooted in the many fantastical adventures and intense challenges the characters encounter.

The multiple points of view and different storylines from various characters add to the complexity of the narrative.  Many of the stories from the book address issues that are still relevant today. It is a complete work in many different ways and is one that gives the reader a pleasurable and thought-provoking read.

Movie of the Week:

Arrival

Twelve alien spaceships appear around the world, but the reason for their arrival is unknown. A linguist, played by Amy Adams, works with the American military to make initial contact with the lifeforms from one of the ships.

Arrival was nominated for eight Academy Awards and won one— Best Achievement in Sound Editing. The year it was up for the Oscars (2017) had many brilliant films, but this one should not be lost in the mix. It is one of the best Cinematic viewings I’ve had to date. The execution of the screenplay on screen provides a beautiful experience.

The film is based on a short story by Ted Chiang. Chiang won four Nebula awards, four Hugo awards, and four Locus awards for his works. If you enjoy the movie, you should check out his short story collections.

It’s not often that a movie surpasses the bar of entertainment and reaches the heights of unique art. Arrival’s themes fit in too well with modern times but give hope to viewers by the end. Communication is one of the themes at the forefront of the narrative, but how it is explored makes the climax of the film profound.

Every element of the movie is executed to the highest degree. The beauty of the story is brought to life through everyone involved in its making. Even if science fiction is not your genre, this film should be on your list.

Brainfood of the Week:

TEDx Talks with Malavika Varadan on Communication

Malavika Varadan is a radio host, musician, and fitness enthusiast. She cultivated a large fan following on her radio show, reaching over 1.6 million people, and has learned many tips on how to engage in conversation in the process. In this episode on TEDx, Varadan goes over different strategies to support effective communication.

Varadan starts with a description of how conversations are like links in a chain. Each conversation we have with someone adds another link. The strength and power of the chain depend on the conversation, and we can create solid or weak bonds depending on how we communicate with others.

The seven tips Varadan provides are valuable tools to help start a conversation with anyone, establish a connection, and ultimately have a new experience.

A lot of polarities occur between people as a result of miscommunication or not communicating at all. Our words can be misinterpreted, or we might not even be able to connect in a conversation. Varadan’s TEDx Talk addresses these issues and helps give solutions for effectively engaging with others.

Closing Spiritual Passage:

“Be not wise in thine own eyes.”

– Proverbs 3:7 (Tanakh)

This passage from the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament is one of my favorite reminders to keep growing and learning. The early books of the Bible can be drastic, but there are a lot of nuggets of wisdom in its pages. 

I like how this quote discusses wisdom and how it shouldn’t be viewed as a personal attribute. It is an example of the continual pursuit of knowledge. I’ve been working on being curious rather than judgmental. The reason for this is because judgment comes from a place of believing you are right. In many cases, we only see the surface of a person or situation and think we know the whole. Curiosity offers a way to learn instead.

I want to continue learning for the rest of my life. I want to continue to be curious when I encounter different people and ideas. Passages like this one are excellent reminders of how to be forever open to growth.

Learn something new, and have a blessed week ahead!

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