Teyr'loch Delter Pach: Finale

Yesterday, November 6th, Cael performed the 2nd half of Teyr'loch Delter Pach for their father, almost a year after its conception.

"Why yesterday?" you might ask. "Weren't you supposed to have the session on Sunday?"

Indeed, and under normal circumstances, we would have had the session on Sunday, and I would have written my blog as usual on Wednesday, but it was another abnormal week.

A Year of Death

Earlier in the year, I often heard friends talk about the failing health of their relatives. 'This is going to be a year of death,' I thought, taking a moment to reflect on the age groups of those closest to me.

I have not been wrong.

On Friday, my partner's other grandmother died. Neither of us were as close with her, but several factors surrounding her passing affected my partner in some ways more than the death of the one with whom we used to meet for breakfast.

So, we took the weekend to ourselves to recuperate and postponed the session to Thursday. As a result, I made a conscious decision to wait until today to blog.

Post-Performance Thoughts

I wish I could write about how excited I am or how relieved I am that it's finally finished. I wish I could even say, "Yeah, now I feel empty like I do after finishing a longstanding book series or a really good video game." For better or worse, I can't in full sincerity even say that I've already turned my attention to the next project. Although part of my attention is on the next project--I'm looking at you, Obsidian.

No, my moments of excitement manifested the most while I was piecing everything together and experiencing mind-blowing revelations; they manifested the most when I successfully managed to elongate the intro of The Black Mages' version of "Distant Worlds," or when I successfully mashed the lullaby I'd written with "Seglass Ni Tonday."

Honestly, the hardest part of the above was ensuring the key aligned properly. The rhythm was a cinch to nail after a few tries. The most time consuming part was 1) recording and then 2) splicing the best sounding portions together, narrowing ~37 tracks down to the one, which I duplicated for volume near the end. The 20s provided the best material. My voice was raw by the time I hit the mid-30s, and the first handful of tracks were trash as I was figuring out how to go about it all.

Now that the whole performance is done, done, I find myself simply meditating on it because, in a way, I had already moved on, since this is technically session 106, and we're on session 122. It's current, but it's not. The feeling is difficult to articulate fully. To revisit the topic of death as a note of comparison, it's the feeling some might experience sitting next to their deceased pet, except in my case it isn't sadness so much as it is taking a quiet moment to reminisce on all the moments we shared.

Of course, that doesn't mean I wasn't excited to hear from my partner how the other characters reacted. That's what I look forward to the most after one of these performances or sessions, because that is unexplored territory for me, and boy, do I not like upturning every rock in sight. What was going through their father's mind? Or his envoy's? Their professor's or their peers'? What was going through the priest of Fate's mind as Cael declared, "Fate does not exist!"? I like to dissect and discuss how the characters have influenced one another, to take a peek inside their minds to learn what they are thinking.

We'll be wrapping up the post-performance chat between Cael and their father on Monday, after which we'll be working on some new backstories for a couple more characters I intend on introducing to fill out the party. Until then, I have to transcribe the session external to the performance, so that is where I'll be turning my attention for the time being.

Other Notable Accomplishments:

• Mostly the above

• Been trying to work out when I can; if I can't, then I at least strive for my step goal

• My Animal Crossing island is coming along well. I need pears though...

Real Talk:

• Have you lost any loved ones, and if so, how do you grieve? People have chastised me in the past for "not being sad," just because I don't exhibit the same tears or sorrow. Death itself is natural; what will stir me is the manner in which someone has met their demise.

• How quickly do you move on from a completed project, especially one that you've been enjoying? Do you ride the euphoria of completion into the next idea, or do you sit on it for a time first?

This Week's Obligatory Cat Pic: Mura

*Snore* Me-me-me-me-me-me-meow.