the rite of spring

when I write these lines, it's already may, and we're already deep in summer. however, we will just take a moment to acknowledge that school hasn't been very kind to me, so I haven't been able to write this blog up until now. in this blog, I want to jog you through the concept of spring, and what it looks like for me in action. ever since hibernation, I wanted my photography blogs to capture not only photos, but also my lifestyle in the making. these activities start roughly around spring break, or international women's day, 8th of march.

TROS: THE RITE OF SPRING

in words, notes, and strokes

the title comes from a collection including stravinsky's the rite of spring (which oppenheimer also listened to) and ma mère l'oye by maurice ravel, especially movement V, le jardin féerique, or garden of the fairies. I liked the title of one composition and the sound of another, so I combine them both to arrive here.

what is interesting is how all the compositions here are designed for piano duets. I think that's only about right, as after a lonely winter, spring is about accompany, quite literally. with that in mind, here is a very fine performance of le jardin féerique by martha argerich and lang lang. martha argerich is one of the greatest pianists of all time from argentina, and lang lang, if you watch 2 set violin enough, you may know him as the iconic chinese pianist that practices 40 hours a day. lang lang is also the first chinese pianist to be engaged by the berlin philharmonic, the vienna philharmonic and many of the top american orchestras. I didn't know this recording exist until today, but it is pretty unbelievable seeing my two favorite pianists on the same stage, performing a song that I adore so much.

the background painting of the album is the dance by matisse. I've been to quite a lot of art museums this year, including moma in new york. that was where I saw it in person, along with dalí's the persistence of memory, van gogh's starry night, and many other paintings by picasso. matisse is the king in the realm of softness, given how round and soft his paintings are. although we can only see, I can feel the softness of human skin and flesh. visit barnes foundation in philadelphia if you want to see his paitings embracing the ceiling.

matisse in the barnes foundation

in poetry

the rite of spring, when shortened, is tros. and guess what, tros is the founder of troy in homer's iliad. it's form tros that the term trojan and troad come from. for me, the real trojan war is the temptation to lay down and do nothing on the grass versus the workload I'm having. I've read madeline miller's the song of achillies, but I haven't read homer's iliad and odyssey, and this coincidence encourages me to read them this summer.

now that we've seen what spring is as a concept, we shall see it in actions.

chapter i. flower arranging and fine dining

when I talk about fine dining, I don't mean going to a restaurant kind of place and paying through your nose for it, but rather just eating heartily. ever since studying abroad, I've been craving homecooked meals. it's not only about the food, but the feeling of sitting down and eating in an idle manner, and ideally with someone you love. most of the times, one or two of those criterias would be met, as we don't have time as stem college students.

working in the dining hall taught me too many truths that I can't unlearn, one of which include how processed the food I consume on a daily basis is. when I have the time, I cook for myself over the weekend. this gets even more established during spring break, as I didn't go to the dining hall at all that whole break. I literally took a break from studies and also dining hall food. the week before that, I went traderjoesing and bought veggies, meat, fruits, juices, and flowers. when I come back, I arranged the flowers in the bottles and also used most of them for some projects, which I'll talk about in another blog. cooking by myself helps me appreciate the food more, as well as calming me down in the process.

living this way, I slowly understand what thuy means when she talks about simple luxuries.

ok but I didn't eat heathy all the time as I don't always have the time and energy lmao. remember photos that you see above are peak moments! and life doesn't always give you peaks. here're some footage of me and my friend eating good old instant noodles in new york. I also skipped so many meals during finals week that I lost count <3 however, the mentality here is to do it when you can do it! it's always something that I keep in mind.

chapter ii. waldening and flower picking

this is a tribute to thoreau, author of walden and civil disobedience. if you don't know thoreau, think about him as an anarchist writing some very dope diss tracks against the government because bro doesn't want to pay taxes that support inhumane causes. after living in his bestie ralph waldo emerson's backyard for two years, two months, and two days, he left. a few years after that, bro came up with civil disobedience and then walden. when I think of walden, I don't really think much about the political aspect of it, but more of doing stuff that brings you joy and happiness by yourself, and most of that includes strong connections with nature and your favorite people.

waldening is a combination of walking, wandering, sitting, talking, comfy silence, gazing, flower picking, but most importantly, let your instincts guide you and take the course of actions. in tolkien's words, not all who wander are lost. or even if you get lost, then let eric van vuren's words guide you: you'd be surprised who the love of your life turns out to be. after all, adventure fell in love with lost.

chapter iii. skip into sunset and never return

at the sight of that house that resembles the house by the seaside, you can hear a bit of me internally screaming the words of robbie in atonement as he thinks about cecilia in the war. I will return, find you, mary you, and live without shame.

chapter iv. living in accordance with nature

I mean going on picnics but I just wanted to sound dramatic. this is another tribute to zeno, father of good old epicureanism. you've seen landscapes before, so why don't become part of the landscape just now? I wouldn't turn down whipped cream sandwich and quality time with friends while basking in the sunlight, and I don't think anyone would too.

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chapter v. dressing up

you don't really see me without my black sweater much in the fall semester and the start of spring sememster. I was afraid of the cold, and I was being a hardcore minimalist so I look essentially the same every single day. the only thing that changes is possibly the color of my pants, and the shirt beneah my sweater that you never got to see.

it's primarily during hell week and seeing how colorful my hell parents life are that I decide to do something about it. it's getting warmer, and with every fake spring (the kind of weather that gets warm for a bit then cold again) I dress up a little bit more. I start by skipping the black sweater, then eventually my outer jacket. I used to think it was a waste of time to dress up, but now that I'm doing it, I realize that dressing up helps build my confidence and boost my perfomance when I take midterms or when I need to motivate myself to study. also, dress up because you deserve it. you can be the smartest person in class and also the hottest person at a party, as those things are not mutually exclusive <3

here's a collection of my slayest fits starting this spring semester. huge credits to rhoads north 1st free box, I've picked up so many precious clothes there free of charge. also huge credits to lily h for your amazing make up <3, and laura, ron, and linh for taking highly entertaining photos of me <3

epilogue

the final photos are on the cusp between spring and summer. so long the rite of spring, I hope you continue to enjoy its transition into summertime. stay tuned for été 90 coming up!