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First Impressions: That Dragon, Cancer

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That Dragon, Cancer is a storytelling, narrative video game that retells the story of Joel Green’s 4 year fight against cancer. Released on Joel’s birthday January 12, 2016, That Dragon, Cancer is two hours of poetic narrative that explores faith, hope and love.

That Dragon, Cancer was developed by Joel’s father and mother Ryan and Amy Green along with Josh Larson and Numinous Games.

Inspired after watching Jacksepticeye play the game, I decided to give it a go. And what a powerful gaming experience.

From the beginning, I was emotionally invested in That Dragon, Cancer. Playing the game through headphones, I felt as if I was going on a magical journey through life.

I was interested in the game because of the characters who brought to life the reality of what facing cancer as a parent is like. They made the game real to those of us who haven’t had to deal with cancer in their lives. I felt as if I were living their lives, feeling all of their emotions as they dealt with cancer hurting their son. Amy was strong, holding on to her faith in God that Joel would be alright while Ryan was scared, not wanting to lose his son and feeling as if he was drowning. These feelings are showcased through Amy’s letters in the water and seeing Ryan drowning when Amy is trying to pull him on their boat.

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In That Dragon, Cancer, this imagery is paramount throughout the game. The player not only experiences Amy and Ryan’s thoughts and feelings throughout the game as their son battles cancer, but also experiences a lot of dream-like imagery and metaphors. The title of the game itself showcases this as you get dived into an arcade game where you play as Joel, a warrior who battles monsters and eventually faces his greatest foe, a dragon who is called cancer.

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In this part of the game, you play as Joel and Amy is telling you a bedtime story about a warrior who has a hard battle with a dragon to face. As you play this arcade game, Joel’s brother asks questions about the warrior the further you progress until you battle the dragon. The game itself is an interesting experience that also helps you understand the title of the game and puts meaning behind it to symbolize that Joel is in a battle against a dragon for his life.

Besides the imagery and characters, I also enjoyed playing That Dragon, Cancer because of the storytelling. I love how Amy and Ryan tell Joel’s story of battling cancer in an imaginative way. It allows the player the experience of seeing cancer in a new light, bringing understanding to a subject people avoid discussing.

I also enjoyed the story in That Dragon, Cancer because it is real. Joel Green is a real child who went through cancer and lost his battle. And experiencing that battle in a video game really brings to light how cancer can impact a family.

The only drawback I experienced playing That Dragon, Cancer is lagging. Whenever I was playing the game, there were a lot of moments where the game would shutter and repeat words a character said. This made moments whenever dialogue was really heavy and emotions were high difficult to immerse myself into the game because I had to keep pausing the game to stop the lagging. This made enjoying the emotional impact That Dragon, Cancer had difficult because I felt I couldn’t connect to the game as much because of the issues I was having.

However, That Dragon, Cancer is still an amazingly powerful emotional rollercoaster I enjoyed getting to experience. It not only made me emotional but also brought awareness to cancer in a fashion I hope we can use for other health illnesses.

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Writing Prompt: “Don’t Cry Because It’s Over” Quote

Dr. Seuss Quote

Lately whenever I see this quote, I always end up thinking of the same thing. I can’t help it; my mind can’t stop thinking of it.

While I’m sad that it’s over, I really should be happy because it happened. But sometimes, it’s hard because I didn’t want it to end. It was one of the best things that happened to me this year.

But it’s over and there’s nothing I can do to change it. I just need to accept the fact that I did the best I could to make things work but it wasn’t enough. So instead of being sad and gloomy about it, I need to smile, remember all the good things that came out of it.

While the situation I find myself in isn’t the most ideal, I have to accept what’s happened. But I also need to start moving forward, getting hopeful that it can happen again.

And I am. Hopeful that I’ll have these feelings for someone again. Hopeful that things will work out the way they should, even if I have a hard time accepting it right now.

A new year is coming and I sense good things to come with it. I sense a change in the wind, I can feel it in my bones. A new year is coming and I am nothing more than looking forward to it.

So while I’m sad over things I can’t change, I’m hopeful because it happened.

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Writing Prompt: Mahatma Gandhi Quote

The Future Depends on What We Do With the Present Quote

I totally agree with this. I really believe our actions in the present really help determine what our future looks like.

Every action has a consequence. Sometimes, our consequences are good, others bad. It depends on how you handle the situations that come up in your life.

Kind of reminds me of two video games, one of which I’ve already played: Life is Strange and Until Dawn.

Life is Strange is a video game that centers around a high school student named Max Caulfield. Max discovers she has the ability to go back in time after saving her best friend Chloe Price from being shot. In Life is Strange, the player plays as Max as she’s going through school, controlling all of her actions throughout the game. Each decision you make in the game determines certain end results some of which are better than others. One of these outcomes is whether you save a friend from suicide or watch as she falls to her death, not being able to do anything about it. This event itself has its own consequences in the game just like all of the others.

Until Dawn is a horror game centered around a group of teenagers who spend their break at a friend’s house in the woods. Like Life is Strange, Until Dawn has player choice. However in this game, the choices the player makes determines the survival of the characters in the game. Unlike Life is Strange, I haven’t played this game myself so I’m not entirely sure of all of the actions the player gets to decide.

But in both of these games, the player’s actions have consequences. What you do in the present time in both of these games determines what happens to the characters in their future.

However, I believe real life is like that as well. I believe that every decision we make determines what will happen to us in the future in some way. I believe our choices now affect our future because the actions we take are for our future.

What we do now is important in order to continue living our lives. The steps we take now determine what will happen to us in the days to come.

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Turning 23: Celebrating Another Year of Life

23-birthday

I know this post might seem silly, but I wanted to do it anyway. My older sister Laney inspired me and I thought it would be a unique idea to write a blog post about turning 23 and talk about life and growing up.

My 23rd birthday was actually a couple days ago, on Thursday, January 14th.

As weird as this might sound, I still get excited about my birthday. Even though it means getting older and getting more responsibilities, I still get excited over my birthday because it is a moment that I find myself reflecting on life. On the life I’ve lived and on how quickly things can change.

Me After Zumba

Probably one of my favorite pictures of me that I can find. Which is kind of weird because I’m sweaty and gross in this picture after going to the gym to do Zumba.

Over this past year, a lot has changed for me. In February, I met the man I fell deeply in love with attending his band’s concert that my friend had invited me to because she was friends with him. Then in May, I graduated from Columbia College with my Bachelor of Arts degree in English Writing for Print and Digital Media. For the next couple months, I struggled without success to get a job in my field only to start working in my school’s dining hall once again while continuing my search. While searching for a job, I started this blog in July because I felt inspired to start blogging and wanted to continue writing while I continued my job search. I then began falling on hard times in October after the man I deeply fell in love with broke up with me, crushing my heart completely. I used this heartache in November when I began writing my novel for National Novel Writing Month The Swan & the Crow in the hope that writing about my experience would start me on the path to heal. And I definitely feel like it made a difference because it allowed me the opportunity to distract my thoughts from reality and get through the pain I was experiencing. However, I didn’t heal completely from it and am still working on that to this day, though I’m much closer to it now than I was then.

It wasn’t until December that I really felt life was finally turning around for the better. The time I had off from work for Christmas helped because I got to spend time with my lovely family and realized I have everything I need. I realized it was time to begin letting my anger, frustration, and sadness go and to forgive him, despite everything. To realize that being single is okay because I might not be ready to spend the rest of my life with someone just yet.

And as weird as this might sound, thinking about my birthday brought some of these thoughts on. Made me optimistic about the months to come and hopeful that life isn’t over for me just because I’m not in a relationship right now.

My birthday has a weird way of bringing out the best in me. Puts a light pep in my step and allows me to see what’s coming next in my life in a whole new light.

CC Graduation Image with Maria

A picture of me with my friend Maria after graduation.

I also get excited about my birthday because it is the celebration of life. Of getting the chance to live another year longer, getting to reach an age some people don’t necessarily get the chance to experience and being thankful for getting to this point in life.

Yes, being an adult is hard and I don’t have my life completely together just yet. I still don’t have a job in my field, getting the opportunity to write, but I do still have a job and a home to live in while I search along with a supportive family and friends who care about me.

But despite that my life isn’t completely perfect, I still have a reason to celebrate life. In the end, that’s what really matters and is a good reason to celebrate.

So Happy 23rd Birthday to me and may you all enjoy the month of January!

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Writing Prompt: You Are Your Own Worst Enemy

Look In the Mirror Thats Your Competition Image

This saying reflects a lot on society today and how people view themselves. But I also know that for me, this saying definitely stands true.

I am my own worst enemy. I am the biggest self-critic of them all. I am often too harsh, too cruel towards myself, always telling myself that I’m not doing enough, that I could be doing better.

There are moments where I experience a lot of doubt. Doubt about my life, my writing, my career choices, and even the relationships I have with the people I care the most about. I tell myself that I’m not good enough, that I don’t deserve the things I do have, and that I don’t have certain things because I don’t deserve them.

But that’s not true. Not at all. I tell myself these things because I believe them. BUT that proves that I am my own worst enemy because I’m the only person currently who is criticizing myself. I don’t have anyone else in my life who is criticizing the choices I make in my life, telling me that I’m not good enough, that I could be doing better.

I used to have someone in my life like that. In the past, there was someone who made me feel this way. Made me believe that I’m not good enough, that I don’t deserve to be here.

But since that person is no longer a part of my life, I’ve started to become that person towards myself instead. I often find myself  doubting all of the choices I make, telling myself that I’m not good enough. I find myself looking in the mirror, unsatisfied with the reflection in the mirror staring back at me.

But at the same time, my own unsatisfaction has also driven me. I tell myself I can’t do things that are impossible to do. And then, I do them to prove myself wrong. To prove to those who might doubt me that I can do things, that I can be who I want to be. That I can achieve the impossible even at times when it seems difficult to do.

I am my own worst self-critic. But at the same time, my self-doubt is the best motivator to push me to succeed at everything I do.

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Writing Prompt: Once Upon a Time

Once Upon a Time Image

Once upon a time, there once was a young girl and her cat. The girl’s name was Wendy and the cat’s name was Luna.

Wendy and Luna were the best of friends. Wendy found Luna outside her house, sitting on the porch, begging for food. They became the best of friends after Wendy started feeding Luna.

But Luna was a stubborn cat. Gray with white fur, she strutted her stuff around the neighborhood outside as if she owned the place. Wendy idolized her and talked to her about her real life problems.

Because Wendy’s life wasn’t perfect. Oh no. Wendy’s parents were mean and cruel to her. They barley fed her and gave her hand me downs as clothing.

For Wendy once had an older sister named Charlotte. But Charlotte died after their parents beat her for misbehaving very badly. But what Charlotte had done even Wendy didn’t know.

So she tried the best she could, to be the best little girl her parents could ever want. And for a time being, it worked. Her parents started being kinder to her, allowing her to do whatever she pleased as long as she stayed in the yard and didn’t talk to any of the neighbors.

But once Luna came, everything changed. Worried that Luna would somehow destroy everything they had, Wendy’s parents allowed her to go outside less and less. She was once again locked up in her room, where she was once again barely fed until she had to beg to be given food.

The world was cruel to little Wendy. But the world was even crueler to Luna. Once Luna realized her friend was nowhere to be found, she went in search of her, wondering where she went. For days, she searched high and low, looking everywhere a cat her stature could look until she realized that Wendy was nowhere to be found.

Sad and alone, completely heartbroken, Luna stayed outside on Wendy’s house porch and cried little meows until she was able to fall asleep every night.

These meows tortured little Wendy who was inside, very close to Luna yet so far away. She wanted to reach Luna, to wrap her arms around her and hold her close, to let her know that she was okay.

But it was not meant to be. Because as the months went by, Luna waited outside of Wendy’s house less and less until Wendy saw her no more.

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Writing Prompt: Winnie the Pooh Quote

Winnie the Pooh Quote

The reason why I’ve added this quote to my collection of writing prompts is because it has become one of my favorite quotes from Winnie the Pooh.

Winnie the Pooh is one of my favorite childhood memories. Along with reading the book, I watched the show a lot as a child. Pooh Bear and all of the other characters in the Hundred Acre Wood were someone I could relate to.

Like the quote says, Winnie the Pooh is one of the many things from my childhood that I have close to my heart.

And that’s what this quote makes me think of: everything that I have close to my heart. People I care about that I don’t talk to anymore and aren’t close with anymore because of certain circumstances. Though I can’t be with these people anymore, I keep them closely in my heart.

This quote makes me think of them and of loss. Of losing those you love, but still holding them close to your heart. Makes me think of everything I’ve recently been through, but in a different light.

That even though you say goodbye to someone who you can’t be with anymore, you can still hold them close to your heart. And that person will always be a part of your heart, even when you don’t care about them anymore. Even after you’ve let that person go and moved on.

This quote from Winnie the Pooh is really powerful and I love it.

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Writing Prompt: Night Time, the Moon

Night time is my favorite time of the day. I like it because it is one of the only times really during the day where the sky is perfectly clear and the moon is out. You can see the stars, glistening in the darkened sky like a beacon, pointing your way home.

I love the night because everything is eclipsed in shadow. Everything becomes darker, harder to see, but hauntingly more beautiful than ever before.

Most of my dreams I have during the night happen at night. Whether I am dreaming about taking a night stroll through a densely packed forest or thinking about life and everything else going on in life, most of my dreams take place in a world full of shadows.

I love the night because of the stars. I like looking at the stars, blinking at me as if to greet me and ask me about my day. They look friendly to me, like familiar friends guiding me into the heavens.

The night time is a moment of truth. It is the time when reality blurs and everything you think is impossible becomes possible.

I love the night time at Christmas because of all the lights. People put up their Christmas lights and they are beautiful to look at, but they can only be seen when darkness overshadows the world. They are packed full of brightly lit colors that brighten the night with happiness and hope.

At night time, I have many dreams. I dream of being one of my favorite animals, a wolf. I dream of hunting my prey, stalking them in the grass and watching them shrivel in fear as I hunt them down.

Night time is my favorite time of the day because to me, it is really beautiful to behold.

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Writing Prompt: “Happiness in the Darkest of Times” Quote

 

Albus Dumbledore Harry Potter Quote
Image can be found on Kites Quotes.

Yay, I get to talk about one of my favorite quotes from Harry Potter! How exciting!

Anyway, I think this quote strongly speaks to me on so many levels. It reminds me that even when things get really bad, there can be happiness in the moment, you just have to go and look for it.

When things seem rough and you don’t know what to do, you have to think about the things that really matter to you. These things are what will brighten your day, make everything that seems horrible disappear. For me, these things are writing, reading, coloring, video games, family, friends and music. Whenever I feel down as if nothing in my life will ever get better, I do one of these things to keep my mind off what’s bothering me and my mood immediately shifts.

I start to feel like myself again. As if every matter that’s bugging me isn’t important and that everything will be alright. Even when I try and tell myself over and over again that it isn’t okay, that I’ll never get better, I push through. I make the most of every moment and try my best to stay away from the negative thoughts clouding my head.

This quote makes me believe again. Believe that there is magic in the world, you just have to go and find it. That even in the darkest hallways, there is a light that just needs to be turned on to brighten the place. That happiness might seem impossible, out of reach, but once you are able to find a moment that makes you laugh, you will be alright again.

In the end, you need to see the good in everything, even if the bad tries really hard to take over. Just think of the things you love and you’ll be alright.

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