Tech Tip: Theme

The theme I chose for my storybook is "notebook". I think it's fitting since my storybook is about school. I might end up changing it later, but I think this one fits for now.

Tech Tip: Google Site Title

On my storybook site I decided to suppress the sitemap link and the search box. I think it looks better without them, so it's not so cluttered. I also suppressed the page title on the first page because I didn't really see the need for one. I left the site title to the left because it didn't look good when I centered it.

Tech Tip: Website

Here is my newly created storybook website. My storybook is going to be a over a flight university where all mythological creatures come to learn about their abilities and how to manage them.

Storybook

Week 4 Storytelling: Brothers

Minister: "We are gathered here today to pay our respects to our friend, our brother, Blake. Blake was a bright young man, taken from us too soon. He is survived by his brother, Adam."

Adam: "I never thought I would be attending my younger brother's funeral. He was so young. He had so much life to live."

Sam: "I know cousin, it's not right. Who would've thought the youngest of eight cousins would be the first to pass on."

Adam: "There were so many things I needed to say. The last time we talked I accused him of something terrible and told him I never wanted to see him again. How can I move on knowing the last thing I said to him was that I hated him and I never wanted to see him again."

Sam: "I'm sure he knew you didn't mean what you said. We all get angry and say things just to spite. Your brother knew how much you care about him."

Adam: "Normally I would agree Sam, but this time was different."

Sam: "What do you mean?"

Adam: "I accused him of something so awful. I can't believe it ever crossed my mind that he would do something like that, I know better."

Sam: "Well, what did you claim he did?"

Adam: "It all started when I came home from work one night and I found Jillian laying in the kitchen floor unconscious. Her clothes were ripped and torn, and she was covered in bruises and blood. It looked like a pack of wolves had trampled her. I immediately began shaking her, trying to wake her up. When she finally came to she told me that Blake, my baby brother, had raped her and beat her. She begged me not to say anything to him. She said he promised that if she spoke a word he would come back, and next time she wouldn't live to tell the tale. I was enraged! Of course I was going to say something, I was going to kill him for doing such a terrible thing to my wife. All I could see was red, and all I could think about were all of the ways I was going to abuse him. The more I pondered the events that had taken place, the more irate I became. I couldn't believe that my own flesh and blood, that I had so graciously accepted into my home would do something so atrocious. He was still living with us at the time because he was in between jobs and couldn't afford a place of his own. I waited until he got home and then I lit into him. We argued, threw punches and I even threatened to kill him. No matter what I said though, he wouldn't admit to what he had done. I finally told him I never wanted to see him again and if I did he'd wish I hadn't. It wasn't until a few years later that I caught Jillian with another man, and finally learned the web of lies she had spun. She admitted to fabricating the story about Blake raping and beating her. She said that she tempted him, but he rejected her. That angered her so she self inflicted her injuries and blamed them on Blake so that I would get rid of him."

Sam: "I cannot believe someone that claims to love you would do something so low."

Adam: "At that point my feelings towards her were numb. All I could think about was how terrible I was to my baby brother, and by now he would probably never forgive me. I tried looking for him, but he had fallen of the map. I never imagined the next time I would see him would be in a casket."

Sam: "I know it's hard, but you have to forgive yourself and trust that he knows you love him. We aren't promised tomorrow. That's why you have to live everyday like its your last. You have to say and do the things you want while you still can. Life's too short to sweat the small stuff, and it's all small stuff!"

(Brothers)

Author's Note: This week I read about Ancient Egypt. One of the stories I read was about two brothers. In the story the younger brother lives with his older brother and his older brother's wife. One day she comes on to him, but he rejects her. She then fabricates a story claiming that the younger brother raped and beat her. The older brother tries to kill the younger brother until her learns the truth. I switched up the ending and made it where the younger brother died before the older brother could make amends. I also made the story more modern, made the setting his funeral, and ended the story with a life lesson. I chose the picture not because it was apart of the original story, but because I thought it was a good representation of brotherly love. When I first started writing my story for this week, I didn't know where I was going to go with it. When I got to the end of my story I decided to give some advice that I think we all need to hear every now and then. Sometimes the best stories are the ones that you don't have a plan for, you can let your imagination write the story. 

Bibliography: This story is based on readings from Egyptian Myth and Legend by Donald Mackenzie (1907).

Week 4 Reading Diary, continued: Ancient Egypt

Egyptian Myth and Legend by Donald Mackenzie

The Two Brothers

• There were two brothers
• The older brother was married and had a house
• The younger brother lived with him and plowed the land, drove the oxen and harvested the grain
• The wife tempted the younger brother but he declined and was angered by her attempt
• The wife told the older brother that the younger brother beat her and forced himself on her
• The older brother plotted to kill his younger brother
• The younger brother revealed the truth
• The older brother returned home and cast his wife to the dogs
• The younger brother lived in solitude and eventually found a wife
• The king sent for the younger brothers wife
• She reveled his secrets and he was killed
• The older brother found his soul and returned it to his body
• They travel to find his wife, he is a bull
• His wife asks to kill the bull
• Two drops of blood from the bull make two trees
• The wife wants the trees cut down
• A wood chip from the trees enters her mouth and she becomes pregnant with a son
• When the pharaoh dies the son takes over (the younger brother)
• When he died his older brother stood in his place

The Book of Thoth

• N wants the Book of Thoth, if he reads it he can do anything
• He pays the priest 100 pieces of silver to know where it is
• The priest tells him and he goes to find it
• He found the book and read from it and everything the priest said was true
• His wife also read from it
• On their journey home they all three were killed, Thoth's vengeance
• N was buried with the Book of Thoth

The Tale of King Rhampsinitus

• The king built a chamber to hold his riches
• When the builder died he told his sons of a secret entrance into the chamber
• The sons began stealing riches from the chamber
• One was finally caught in a trap and he made the other cut off his head to hide his identity
• His body was hung for all to see and his mother begged him to steal it back
• He tricked the guards and stole the body
• The kings daughter tricked him into revealing his secrets
• The king offered a pardon and reward if the robber would reveal himself
• He went before the king and the king gave him his daughter in marriage

(Thoth, from Luxor)

Week 4 Reading Diary: Ancient Egypt

Egyptian Myth and Legend by Donald Mackenzie

• In the beginning there was nothing but water, Nu
• Nu created Ra, the sun god
• Ra was ruler of the gods, divine father, creator
• Ra created the heaven and earth and all its creatures
• Ra took the form of a man and became the first king upon earth
• Ra had a secret name which gave him his divine power
• The goddess Isis created a serpent to poison Ra, so he would reveal his name
• When Ra finally reveled his secret name to her she cast away the venom
• Ra became aware of men speaking against him
• He called the other gods for advice
• He sent Hathor to slay those against him
• His anger passed and he sent to flood the Nile to stop Hathor
• Hathor ended her slaying and anytime the Nile flooded men and women would become drunk
• Ra became weary
• Nu sent Nut and Shu to aide Ra and mankind cried unto Ra as he left them
• They followed him until he returned and slaughtered his enemies in battle
• When Ra grew old and ascended into heaven Osiris took his place
• Osiris created laws and brought peace to Egypt, before him men were savages
• Osiris left to share his ways with the world, Isis took over until he returned
• His brother was jealous and evil and sought to stir up rebellion
• His brother killed him and took over his throne
• Tyranny and disorder prevailed
• Isis mourned her husbands death and took refuge in the swamps and deep jungle
• Isis gave birth to a son
• The brother learned of this and wanted to kill his nephew
• Isis hid the child and went to find Osiris's body
• She brought it back to Egypt where Set cut it into many pieces and threw it in the Nile
• Isis retrieved them all and buried them
• Horus went to take his rightful throne

(Osiris, Anubis, Horus)