As I begin an adventure on Steemit...
I feel like an explorer in a mysterious world – like the guy in the picture below. He’s traveled far and is generally a friendly inquisitive fellow. His backpack is full of notes and ideas and a smattering of half-started tales. He’s not a scholar, preferring rather to explore the wilderness, discover first-hand interesting creatures and magical places. And here he’s found a new friend – a baby dragonling of some sort or other, not realizing that the large, very powerful, and potentially dangerous mother dragon is headed his way. To devour him? Or to befriend him? That remains to be seen…
Yes, I make a living LARP’ing with children.
LARP: That’s live-action roleplaying – dressing up as elves, wizards, goblins, and trolls, and playacting with kids. Sound fun? It is! And…there’s a lot more to it.
Experiential Education Through Live-Action Roleplaying
How do you teach a kid to think outside the box? To share, and not interrupt other kids? To not label a “monster” as a “monster, or as good or evil, but rather to see shades of light and shadow? To view so-called “villains” as creatures deserving of respect, and who have complex goals and motivations, like everyone else.
How do you help a kid build their self-esteem, self-worth, and courage to speak up and stand up for what they know is right?
Lecturing and moralizing - these are not effective. However, give a kid a foam sword and some magical powers, playact the king or queen asking them to go negotiate a peace treaty between dwarves and goblins, and you can facilitate an amazing opportunity for learning. And that is a topic I’ll talk more about in another post! For more information about edu-LARP, check out my three-minute video on youtube, or on the homepage of my website: www.RenaissanceAdventures.com 
A Little Background On Me:
I founded Renaissance Adventures in 1995 out of a passion to give kids the opportunities for learning, play, and love that I did not have as a child. I do my best to lead RA through ethical leadership, and to coach my staff in leading the children’s Adventure Quest programs in a non-authoritarian style, that invites children’s creative expression and responsible empowerment.
As for me, I grew up an introverted disempowered nerd, avoiding life through reading fantasy novels and playing roleplaying games with a few friends. Roleplaying was my creative outlet, and my most active and engaged method of communication and co-creation as a teen.
Meditation and Personal Growth
Meditation retreats and intensive group therapy in my early twenties tore me open and out of the safe shell. Gratitude to my many mentors! When I found my center I realized I needed to work with kids. I do storytelling at schools and camps, and I lead a team of storytellers, actors, and teachers in facilitating the children becoming the heroes of mythic quests.
I’ve lived in spiritual communes, worked with amazing people, and done a lot of soul searching. I’m human - I get laid low by old wounds, reactions, self-sabotaging habits. Lately, I’ve been wrestling with a part of me that believes I’ll never be able to accomplish what I truly desire. That old voice says, “It’s ok to numb out. No need to finish writing your book. No need for your business to succeed. Disappear into distraction.”
But maybe engaging with Steemit will be helpful for my creative spirit and desire to expand my community. Will I flake out? Procrastinate and not share my struggles, insights, and wisdom? Let’s find out, shall we?
Writing!
Over the years I’ve started writing a few fantasy novels, and somehow they’ve fallen by the way side after writing only one or a few chapters. “When I retire,” I tell myself. Well, that’s lame!
I am hoping that you, the Steemit community, will inspire me to write, and to share and collaborate.
So – hello, and well met! I look forward to participating. It may be baby steps at first.
I’m passionate about a lot of things.
If any of these topics interest you, I invite you to follow me:
- Conflict resolution
- Conscious parenting
- Experiential education
- Inspiring and working with children
- Ethical leadership, right use of power
- Psychology
- Live-action roleplaying (LARP)
- Tabletop roleplaying games (RPGs)
- Game Design (I'm the lead designer for Adventure Quest - the Live Action Roleplaying Game)
- Dance Therapy & Drama Therapy
- Meditation
- Personal growth, emotional healing
- Relationships, communication
- Delicious health-food recipes
- My inner journey Spirituality Riddles – one fun sample below.
- The Pirate’s Last Wish – a fantasy short story about power and transformation that I’m polishing. Short excerpt below.
- A Broken Phoenix Flies – a fantasy novel about coming of age and right use of power. I have thought much about it but have only barely begun writing.
- Baldhuren’s Bloodhearts – a fantasy novel inspired by epic sagas in the Norse tradition. I’m intimidated to write this, though I have begun it. It probably needs to be delayed until I’ve a book or two under my belt.
- Learning – Thank you for sharing your posts and comments on Steemit!
And here are some teasers:
A riddle: (more for fun than to challenge you!)
Push me around will you?
I’ll slam you good, softie!
Then I’ll stop you in your tracks.
You won’t be able to get past me.
So, don’t twist or pull on me.
And don’t complain about my shrill voice.
Give me some oil and TLC,
And I’ll let you pass so gracefully!
The first three paragraphs of a short story I’m polishing, The Pirate’s Last Wish:
A’ruin Runeson fell from his ship and was swallowed by the sea. His blood seeped from many gashes, and the cold water sucked the warmth from his body. On the ship above, his crew cheered, thankful to be rid of the pirate captain’s tyranny. They thought he was dead, but A’ruin Runeson was not dead yet.
A’ruin sank into the salty depths. He could not move. He could not even think. The rage that had flamed within him moments before was utterly extinguished. All that was left was the unblinking gaze of a dying man seeing a flash of color and memory that told his life’s tale within the span of a few heartbeats. That tale was interrupted.
A’ruin had never paid much attention to the ever-beating drum within his chest until now, in its silence. His chilled blood slowed. Darkness yawned within him, enveloping the light of his consciousness. But this final moment heralded a last burst of memory, a review of the last five minutes of his life; the five minutes that had transformed him from the most dreaded pirate captain of the clans into a corpse, all because of one treacherous wish.
~~~
An Invitation
Thanks for reading! I invite you to read, explore, engage, and dialogue with the coming posts I will slowly but surely be sharing.
~Spark
Mark Hoge, Director of Renaissance Adventures, LLC.
Art credit for warrior pic (bottom of article): Jojo Monson, https://www.etsy.com/shop/monsondesigns
Art credit for all other art: https://www.thestorydragon.com