From the Baron & Baroness
As I write this, I am listening to the lovely, ethereal sound of RavenSong’s voices entwining and swirling together to the words of Dona Nobis Pacem just a few feet away from me. I believe you all will be as enthralled as I am when you hear them perform at College of Three Ravens in a few short weeks. :)
Heeding a suggestion from Their Majesties, I went to an event recently purely for the fun of it: Heralds & Scribes. Being neither strong of voice like my lord nor particularly skilled with brush or quill like he is, I would not normally go to an event focusing on just those arts. So, why did I go? A little explanation is in order…
On the day of Their Coronation, Duncan and Ilish had asked all of us landed barons & baronesses to think about how we could have more fun at events and to ask those in our groups for their ideas. After quietly seeking thoughts from several friends (more small themed events, activities like live chessboards, different battle scenarios, etc.), we looked at our event schedule for the next six months.
As many of you know, there are several recurring events we are expected to attend if at all possible, both by tradition and by the populace’s specific request during our election:
Coronation (so we can swear fealty), Crown (so as to witness the next heir), several activities at Pennsic, AEthelmearc War Practice, Twelfth Night, all Thescorre events, any event at which there is a Seven Pearls tournament, and nearby group events such as Ice Dragon and Feast of the Seven Deadly Sins. While we enjoy these events and that’s certainly not as many events as the number Their Majesties or Their Highnesses attend, that’s still a lot of events that we feel we “have to” attend.
So, we looked for one or two events for which we have no obligations, ones where we could meet new people and learn new things. Hence, us attending Horses, Hawks, and Hounds, where Eric rode a wooden horse while jousting at a dummy and I played in the kitchen I’ve never cooked with before. We had an absolute and total blast!
Back to last weekend, when I went to H&S… I wandered into a class on how to be a local pursuivant, at which I learned how a herald not only preps for court but also handles the research and paperwork for name & device submissions. I sat through part of a remarkable class on the charming and inventive period methods of fixing spelling mistakes: drawing red dots, little people, or pulleys to lift or drop the correct word or missing letter into place! I listened to Matilda skillfully encourage gentles to devise scroll wordings on the fly for all of the accolades in AEthelmearc.
But the high point was a howlingly funny and remarkably educating “Moot Court,” where heralds-to-be tried their hand at performing scrolls Her Highness bestowed on various individuals, some real, some fake. I have not cried until tears ran from my eyes for a long, long time! I’m betting that the Order of the Roaring Mouse will rear its head again some time, and if you get a chance to see this Moot Court at C3R, I *strongly* recommend it.
Needless to say, I had a thoroughly enjoyable time. I made some new friends, learned several new things, and felt very energized at the end of the day. I hope we can continue attending some other non-obligated events this year, such as ones for thrown weapons & archery or metalworking ones. Perhaps we will end up carpooling more, to share the cost of gas with friends and share the opportunity for new experiences?
As time and money allows for additional travel, we very much encourage gentles to try out new events, activities, and groups, just for the fun of it.
We thank Nezhah and Bryn for retaining for us during Court at Twelfth Night, and commend Fridrikr for entering the Sylvan Bard competition at that event. Vivant!
Kudos to Matilda and Fridrikr for teaching at Heralds & Scribes, and to Kadlin, Collette, and Caradawc for retaining for Her Highness at that event. Vivant!
We hope to see you all at College of Three Ravens, to hear not only RavenSong perform but also Raven Raqs Beladi!
Eric & Katja |
