riverviewlogs | monthly mingle: FAJRO & LUNAR NEW YEAR

monthly mingle: FAJRO & LUNAR NEW YEAR

who: everyone in Riverview!
what: monthly mingle: fajro & lunar new year
when: The month of February.
where: Anywhere around the city.
warnings: please put any necessary warnings in the subject lines

fajro & lunar new year

In the days leading up to February 1st, residents new and old will notice preparations beginning, a flurry of activity getting the city ready for the upcoming celebration: Fajro and the Lunar New Year. This is a combination of various traditions from several different universes, all of which involve cleaning house, physically and metaphorically, in preparation for the upcoming spring and summer months. The traditions associated with these celebrations involve getting rid of clutter and unnecessary junk that is then burned in large bonfires along the beaches, clearing the air of lingering resentments and old wounds with magical penalties for those who choose not to share, and a broad sampling of Lunar New Year traditions from a variety of cultures.

an opportunity to shed negative energy

There's nothing that's more detrimental to the forming of a good, solid community than lingering resentment and anger - this is something that most residents of the Quarantine tend to agree on. In recognition of that fact, Fajro is geared toward cleaning out the negativity, getting rid of clutter and trash in the home, body, and mind. Residents do spring cleaning in their homes and businesses and either give away or burn the things that they don't need and that are only serving to add an extra burden. Likewise, residents are encouraged to clear the air with friends, family, coworkers, and anyone else interacted with on a frequent basis. The second half of the month is taken up with the Lunar New Year, which is an almost universal tradition in this reality, and focuses on letting go of negative energy and welcoming positive energy into life going into the new year.

i.cleaning house

The first thing that most residents do during the month of Fajro is cleaning house. This means going through all the junk in the house, all the little things that clutter up a place, and clearing them out. A commonly-heard saying in the Quarantine during Fajro cleanup is "does this bring me joy?", a proverb that encapsulates the meaning of the tradition - to shed the parts of the past that bring pain or add to a person's burden, and keep only what brings joy into each person's life. The rest is either thrown away and burned, or donated to bring joy to someone else's life.

After the cleaning is complete, residents carry what they no longer want or need to the beaches of the river, where bonfires are set up each night for two weeks, in order to burn the excess and let the ash float down the river, a symbolic city-wide purging of bad memories, pain, and burdens.

ii. clearing the air

Another tradition in the Quarantine during Fajro is to clear the air with friends, family, acquaintances, coworkers, teammates, or anyone else that takes up space in a person's life. Every relationship comes with some amount of resentment, and the residents of the Quarantine take pride in being able to shed that resentment every year, to start fresh on relationships, building them into something newer and healthier. However, with every wave of new people that arrive during a year, there's a common pattern - those who haven't yet fully come to accept this particular tradition may avoid airing their grievances. Whether it's because they don't care to understand what they're feeling, don't acknowledge the resentment, want to appear strong and unaffected, or just because they don't like confrontation, there are any number of reasons people might choose to keep their hurts and resentments to themselves.

Of course, that doesn't really lend itself to clearing the air, so several of the higher-ups at Gramarye Magic Research came to a quick and easy solution in the form of a magically-infused mist that falls over the city on the morning of February 1st, which will burn off by the evening of February 3rd. Anyone who inhales the mist or absorbs it through their skin by going outdoors or being close to doors, windows, or air vents, during the first few days of February will find themselves thinking more often of the things that have hurt them, the resentments they've built up, and the desire to talk about them, to excise them. Starting on February 15th, any character who has been exposed to the mist and who has still kept their grievances bottled up will find themselves...afflicted with something very uncomfortable to remind them of how unhealthy it is to keep things to oneself and let them fester.

Afflictions can vary in scope depending on how thoroughly the character was exposed to the mist, how intense their feelings of resentment lie, and most of all, player preference. They are primarily physical effects that can range from mildly embarrassing to extremely uncomfortable. Whether it's the addition of a tail or horns, skin that changes color depending on the character's mood, loss of a sense, or any other physical effect, the sky's the limit. Afflictions should be something the character finds uncomfortable, and will last until February 28th or until the character clears the air, whichever comes first. Talking to a third party about their feelings of resentment will provide a temporary relief from the symptoms of the affliction, but the only way to permanently remove it is to talk directly to the source of the problems. If a character carries feelings of resentment toward someone who is not in the game, having a deep conversation with someone in the Quarantine will permanently clear or preempt the affliction.

iii. lunar new year

Originally, Fajro was celebrated all on its own in the Quarantine, but over the years, the traditions have evolved - the major change that's happened in the past decade or so is the addition of an entire other set of traditions surrounding the Lunar New Year, the celebration of which has proved to be a pretty universal constant across many different planets and in many different universes. Lunar New Year is celebrated with special food, activities, and street markets that pop up across the Quarantine throughout the month of February.

This year, the patron animal of the Lunar New Year is the dog, so residents are encouraged to bring their canines out with them to be spoiled, dressed up, and primped.

Thank you to Mari and Anna for suggesting the celebration and submitting the activities and images for this prompt!

hound town

Anyone wandering the city will find it beautifully decorated with beautiful red lanterns, and paper or cloth dog effigies. There are lots of stalls selling adorable themed dog clothing. At night, the red lanterns light up the streets, bathing them in a warm orange-red glow each night.

The entire city looks festive, and residents can be seen wearing red and gold or dog-themed clothing, strolling through the night markets with their pet dogs, sharing drinks of warm alcohol or other warm beverages. Booths selling a small toy called a jegi can be found very commonly, along with instructions on how to play the traditional Lunar New Year game, jegichagi (video), which involves kicking the jegi to keep it from falling to the ground, with the winner being the one to keep it up for the longest number of kicks.

Other booths are selling a wide variety of dog-themed items, red lanterns for residents to carry around on sticks, and giving away some very special red lanterns that the sellers will advise residents to hang onto for later in the season...

wish lanterns

Toward the end of the festival, the special red lanterns that residents received will start to glow, displaying a set of instructions outlined in magical light on the shade - residents are encouraged to take the lanterns down to the beaches by the Fajro bonfires on the last night of the celebration, and whisper to them a wish. Once the wish has been whispered to the lantern, it will lift into the air, hanging there for a few moments with all the other lanterns. For a few moments, the night sky will be alight with bobbing lanterns.

And then they will all pop into an explosion of colorful confetti, showering the crowd below. Anyone standing in the crowd who gets showered with confetti will feel a glowing wave of positive energy sweep through them.

street food and games

Street food is very popular in Riverview, and special food for the Lunar New Year is no exception, and considering how many different cultures and alternate realities have some version of a celebration for the Lunar New Year, there are a ton of seasonal snacks that are being sold from carts and featured in restaurants throughout the city. While you can find just about anything that's ever been associated with the Lunar New Year, some of the most popular dishes are sliced rice cake soup, savory pancakes, a cooked vegetarian salad, stuffed sticky rice cakes, and beautiful candy boxes that are usually given as gifts or brought to Lunar New Year parties. Besides these treats, tiny citrus fruits ranging from mandarin oranges to tangerines to any alien variety of small citrus.

And for people who bring their dogs along, many stalls are giving away complimentary biscuits for them, with the option to buy boxes or gift packs of the biscuits to take home.

visual inspiration

click on thumbnails for larger view

Credit: image i: Roman Ignatowski; image ii: Jan Vavrusa; image iii: Federico Belingheri; image iv: Yuechi Lee

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[ John wished he had faith like that. He had traditions, and an amount of faith in his upbringing, but it was nothing like this, blind and easy. And through the years, the heartache and the disillusions led John to lose most of his childhood beliefs. ]

That's lucky. To have this kind of faith, I mean.

[ John was probably way too practical for faith, these days. He holds out a hand, smiling. ]

John Proudstar.

Edited (icoNNN ) 2018-02-12 10:54 (UTC)

I suppose it is. Sometimes, it's simply necessary.

[ Athelstan says simply. He's found that despite what people end up believing in it almost always seems to come down to what it is they need in life. He'd needed faith even when his mind was divided. ]

Nice to meet you. [ Athelstan gives him a warm smile as he shakes his hand. ]

Proudstar is an interesting name.

You make it sound so simple.

[ It's no judgment, nor is it angry. John smiles, shrugging gently. Necessity had him retreat in his own loneliness, trusting only a handful of people, and never an unknown entity. ]

May I ask - do you believe in destiny?

[ A random question for some, but very much related to faith, for John. He liked the idea of free will. ]

Thank you. It's Apache - [ He pauses. Isn't sure Athelstan would know what John's tribe name is. ] Native American.

It was for me. [ Athelstan knows that it's not for everyone. ] It's not so simple any longer. [ After living with Vikings, he'd already had struggles with his faith after years and seeing signs of both his God and of the Norse gods.

Now he is here and there is all the more to conflict his soul. ]

It depends on what you mean by destiny.

[ Athelstan has had many conversations on that particular subject lately and it has had the realization that destiny and fate mean many different things to different people and he has yet to settle on his own definition of it.

In truth, Athelstan doesn't really know what Native American is either, or what is America is. Those are long after his time but he can understand it must be an identity. ]

Where I am from people use their father's name, usually. [ He does not, barely remembering his father's name and all. He had been left to a monastery at a young age because his parents had had too many children and couldn't afford to feed another. Even if he rightly remembered he would probably choose not to use it, a monk hadn't had much need in any case. ]

I mean - that our stories, individually and together - are already written, that we're just following a path already decided for us.

[ Looking up at the lanterns again, John crosses his arms over his chest. There were beliefs, traditions, back home, that he refused to follow, too adamant on his own independence, on making his own choices. He couldn't accept that he didn't get to make his own decisions. Especially with recent events, and some of the people he's recently met.

John chuckles at the thought. ]

I think my mom would have been pretty angry at my dad if he'd asked for me to have his first name. She already kept on blaming him for having two boys and her household being overrun. [ When he speaks, it's fond - remembering vaguely his mom's constant teasing. ]

No, I don't believe in that. The Lord gave men free will for a reason, even if He has a plan for us, it is our choice whether or not to follow the right path.

[ The words destiny and fate are ones that he feels conflicted about but conflict is nothing new to Athelstan. ]

Is having two boys not an honor for a family? [ The more sons, the better where he is from. ]

Right, yeah. [ Follow the right path or not. It feels more complicated than that, but even when the path forks, there are better ways than others, if you ask John.

Lorna picked the wrong path.

The rest makes John raise an eyebrow, turning back towards Athelstan. ]

There is no more honor in having girls than boys. Are women lesser, where you come from?

[ Because John is bulletproof and all that good stuff, but he knows plenty of women that are extremely intimidating, strong, capable, and much more. ]

Among the Vikings, women are often shieldmaidens and very strong and independent, but where I was from, England it was not the same. But even among Vikings, there was always a great honor and desire for many strong sons but no man seemed to scorn having a daughter.

[ Before being enslaved by Vikings and meeting Lagertha his thoughts on women might have been different even if he had always respected him, but even in Wessex, Judith had been strong and fierce in her own ways too. ]

Where I come from, women are just as strong as men. And I think we've reached a point where most parents don't really care what sex their child is, as long as it's healthy.

[ It's just - different. They weren't treated equally in most places, still,
but John knew too many women that were capable of anything and everything, he knew better.]

My mother loved us dearly. I think she just would have loved to have a daughter, too.

I do not think that is a bad way to see it.

[ Athelstan says simply. Things and traditions of thought were just different in the 8th century to say the very least. ]

It is good that she did love you. Children should have that. [ Athelstan smiles. The monks had always been kind to him but sometimes he did hold a bit of jealousy of others who had fond memories of parents. ]

Do you have any children?

[ John nods, not saying anything for a moment as he takes in their surroundings, the people and their wishes looking up, lanterns exploding in showers of confetti, carrying hopes and dreams in the wind.

He pushes his hands in the pockets of his jacket, shaking his head with a wistful smile. ]

No, I don't. [ Considering how his world is going, he can't imagine children to be in his future. But then again, neither did Lorna. ] Do you?

[ Athelstan is still mostly studying John as they talk. People are generally more interesting than anything else, their motivations, their beliefs. It's his curiosity of such things that has saved his life many times over even if it is a source of personal agony as well. ]

I do not. [ Well, he does but he is not aware, having left England before the knowledge could have been learned. ] Sometimes, I wish for a family but for a monk...even one who lives among Vikings it is not to be. I have cared for my friend's children like they were my own, though.

[ Oh, that would explain the faith thing, if Athelstan is a monk. Makes sense, too, and John nods, understanding that feeling all too well. ]

Yeah, I take care of refugees, back home. A lot of kids, and teens, that don't fit anywhere else than with us. I've got a lot of responsibilities, but their safety is the most important to me.

[ Sentinel Services don't discriminate, between kids and adults, as their treatment of Lauren and Andy was anything to judge by. And John would die before he let them take more kids from the Underground to experiment on.

For Sonya's memory, and for Gus's. ]

By all means, no one to have kids with, so there's that.

[ He smiles, shrugging as he looks over at his companion. It's not entirely a lie, after all. ]

[ Athelstan smiles. It appears that despite how many centuries might have divided them that they do have quite a bit in common. Faith or not, John is clearly a good man. ]

Really? [ He laughs, but it's not mocking. ] I would have expected you have had plenty of options where you come from.

[ Such things aren't odd to talk about where he's from, or rude. ]

[ John chuckles, brushing stray strands of hair behind his ear. ]

I've been focusing on work, honestly. And it's a bit more complicated than just deciding I want to have a child. I don't know how it is where you come from, but for us, it's all about finding the right person, first.

[ So sure, he hasn't been celibate, or anything - not that he'd seen that much action, either. But that didn't equal the commitment a kid required. ]

There's a part of me that thinks I might have found her, though.

Many believe that having children is more important than the right person.

[ Athelstan frowns then, thinking of how Ragnar had asked Odin for more sons and then through infidelity the request seemed to be answered but it had come at a great price and a large detriment to the happiness of many and the ripple effects still seemed to pass through decades and even here they can be felt. ]

I am not sure that that way is the correct way.

[ But John's second comment has Athelstan smiling. ]

If you have, then you must do everything you can to make sure you do not lose her.

So having children is not considered a commitment, where you come from? Back home, it's - you don't have a kid for the sake of having a kid. They're meant to show the ultimate commitment between two people who mean to be taking care of the kids together for the rest of their lives.

[ But John knows all too well that some cultures view things differently. That not so long ago, having several children to continue the family legacy mattered more than the women who bore them.

John chuckles, running a hand through his hair. ]

Yeah. I'm... coming to this conclusion, too. I have no idea how.

I am not sure how it would not still be a commitment. When you have a child, you must provide for it and care for it, that is true regardless of whether you had a child with the right person. It was important to have children, it was a point of honor but also survival. Although, some, like my parents had more children then they could afford and they give them to monasteries to serve the Lord.

[ At least he finds this is something that the Vikings had not been guilty of, though, he supposed his parents could have allowed him to starve to death rather than sell him to a monastery but all the same... ]

Have you told this woman how you feel?

Yes, a commitment to the child, of course. But at home it's also a commitment to each other. The parents.

[ As he suspected, it was a matter of survival, for Athelstan. Keeping the legacy going. ]

I, um - [ John lets out a chuckle, slightly embarrassed, digging his fingers in the back of his neck for a second before answering. ] No. Not yet. It's... complicated.

It is not the same in my world, I think. But, even if one parent were to leave completely, there is a community of people around to help. At least, in my time with the Vikings. It was somewhat different in England but not very. Children were always a matter of survival and pride for the most part.

[ Athelstan smiles a little. Of course, there is love but if that was the only reason he is not sure anyone would have been up for the burden. ]

It is best not to let things be too complicated to be honest lest twenty years pass you by unawares.

Yeah, it's sadly not that easy, at home. The communities are too big. There are systems in place would the parents not be around, but it's... not great, for the kids.

[ He's been lucky, with that. Looking at Lorna, who didn't know her dad, Marcos, who'd been kicked out, or Clarice, bouncing from home to home until she found one that'd accept who she was... he'd been lucky.

Athelstan's next word do bring out a sharp laugh from John. ]

Yeah, I - I appreciate that. I don't know how to uncomplicate things, but I think... I think she and I might be okay.

I see. The world changes. It's hard to know if it is for the best.

[ It's a thoughtful comment and there's a slight shrug after it. It's yet another thing he'll spend probably far too much time contemplating. ]

You think?

Ain't that the truth.

[ The kind of thing John thinks about way too often.

He smiles, nodding. ]

Yeah. Things are different, here, and I can... I think we can make things work. Or at least, talk about them, which is a pretty big change from where we were before.

[ Athelstan smiles and he finds the other's words encouraging in a way. There is a lot that is different here, for Athelstan as well. it's not just the world that is different but perhaps he has changed too and it has changed Ragnar in small ways. It has certainly changed them and their friendship. ]

It is a good thing, then. I hope that it will work out well for you. It feels that this place sometimes pushes us to do what it is that we should have done already.

Well, I hope it helps me do what I should. And keeps on helping you, too, Athelstan. Thanks for the chat, by all means. It's been very interesting.

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monthly mingle: FAJRO & LUNAR NEW YEAR

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