Week 2 Storytelling: The Love of Sita and Rama

Love at First Sight: Sita and Rama 

Once upon a time, a beautiful woman named Sita sat in a lush garden and began to dream about her future life. She was a single woman, but she still longed for a loving husband and beautiful children. She believed in love at first sight, however, she was unsure if that special moment would ever happen in her life. When she woke up from her dream, she saw a man across the garden. He was unlike any man she had seen before. He was very masculine with a gentle, compassionate look about him. The two made eye contact and Rama walked across the garden to talk to Sita. 

As Rama made his way over, Sita felt a strong, powerful feeling come over her. Was this her love at first sight moment? Sita wanted to make sure her feeling was real. She was not going to let Rama into her heart easy. The two conversed for hours, as Rama told tales of the beats he had killed. Rama had an instant connection with Sita and continued to swoon the beautiful coquette. 

After that day in the garden, Sita could not get Rama off her mind. As days past, she longed for Rama more and more. She knew Rama was to be her husband. She felt a connection to Rama, even when he was not around. One day while at the market, Sita caught a glimpse of Rama leaving the King’s palace. From across the market, the two lovers met eye to eye, and instantly knew fait had brought them together. 

The two continued to converse, this time about more intimate, personal details. Sita asked Rama about his ideal family. Rama wanted to have strong boys to continue to defend his honor and protect the community. He wanted to have beautiful girls who grew up to be queen. Most of all, he wanted to have a loving relationship built upon trust with Sita. He wanted to love Sita with all of his heart. Sita wanted his love as well. She began to blush and threw herself into the waiting arms of Rama. 


Although Sita played hard to get in the beginning, she knew that Rama was the love of her life. The two got married, and even though Rama had been exiled from the kingdom, the two continued to love and honor their marriage, even though they were miles apart. And they lived happily ever after. 

Authors Note: Although some creative details were added, I decided to give the story a Greek theme and incorporate aspects of Rama and Sita's love life into the story. My goal was to show that long distance relationships can work if love is foundation of the relationship. 

(Rama and Sita)

Bibliography: Narayan, R.K. (1972) The Ramayana

Week 2: Reading Diary B The Golden Deer

Important Facts to the Plot
-In the previous post, Kaikeyi was in the process of betraying Rama
-Rama's punishment was unjust. Everyone supported Rama but didn't like Kaikeyi.
-Rama has a half-brother, Lakshmana, who stays by his brothers side.
-Rama's exile hurts the King.
-Kaikeyi is responsible for the empty throne.
-Everyone wants Rama to return to the throne.
-Kaikeyi has a son who is also Rama's half-brother. His name is Bharatha.
-Kaikeyi cleared the throne for her son, however, Bharatha believes that Rama should take the throne.
-Bharatha rules only until Rama's return.
-Even though Rama is in exile, he and Sita still continue their love.

Week 2: Reading Diary A: Rama and Sita

Important Characters:
-Dasaratha: King of Kosala
-Rama: Avatar of Vishnu in the flesh to defeat Ravana. Although masculine, he still has a compassionate side to him.
-Sita: Wife of Rama. Avatar of Lakshmi who is Vishnu's wife.
-Ravana: Ten headed monster.
-Kaikeyi: Wife of the King. Has a childish personality at the beginning, however, she becomes backstabbing as the story progresses.
-Kooni: servent to Kaikeyi.

Important Facts of the Story: 
-Rama, who is the incarnated form of Vishnu, is seen as hero. He is tasked with killing Thataka, a demon woman. Rama's personality and feeling are seen when he second guesses himself about killing Thataka because she is a woman.
-Rama meets Sita, who is immediately captivated by him. She is constantly described as being madly in love with Rama.
-Kooni, who is the servant to the king's wife, Kaikeyi, is an interesting character because she appears to be on Kaikeyi's side in the beginning but then turns negative.
-Kooni makes random, sneering remarks about Kaikeyi throughout the story. Kooni eventually gets in Kaikeyi's head and turns her into a cold person.

Week 1 Storybook Favorites

Tales of Love

The first thing that I found interesting about this storybook is the background that is on the storybook page. The mystical, dreamy background really brings out the title of the storybook, Tales of Love. After I began exploring the storybook, I realized that this is a unique storybook because it allows the reader to choose the ending of the story from the beginning. I liked the fact that the author provided her own understanding and explanation of love in the introduction. I also like how she introduced the characters in the introduction. I believe this allows the reader to get to know the characters more and base their decision on ending choice after getting to briefly know the characters.

Zoo Animal History 

I really liked the initial appearance of this storybook. The font choice and vibrant colored background really brings the storybook to life. The images look like they are out of a children’s book and help to add to the personality of the story. I like how the author creates a mystical “Zoo Trolley” within the readers mind and acts like she is the director of the trolley. It allows for a more personal interaction between the author and the reader and really draws the reader in. I like how the “Zoo Trolley” takes them to different locations and how she actually instructs everyone to “hop out of the trolley”, maintaining her role as trolley director throughout the stories.  

India Travels 

I like how the author uses a cartoon image of India on the front page of the storybook. It really draws the readers’ attention to the overall travel theme of the storybook. I like how this storybook is different from the others I explored because it focuses on the author’s personal desires and fantasy exploration. I enjoyed the dialog throughout the author’s trip. The dialog, along with the engaging descriptions of places, really helps to paint a picture in the readers’ mind of what the author is dreaming about. I like how the author includes an author’s note on the stories because it allows the reader to engage better with the author because it provides a brief background into the author’s thoughts and feelings while writing.

Week 1 Introduction

My name is Tyler Rhoades and I am from Tulsa, Oklahoma. I am currently a senior at the University of Oklahoma and am studying chemical biosciences. I am also a pre-med student and am applying to medical school. In my free time I enjoy being around other people. I hate being alone, so even just going to a coffee shop or something makes me happy.

            I love to watch sports. I especially like to watch OU football. One of the best memories of my life was being at the Sugar Bowl and watching OU beat Alabama. My student tickets somehow ended up in the front row and I had an incredible time. Besides football, I enjoy watching basketball. Like everyone else in Oklahoma, my favorite team is the Oklahoma City Thunder.

            I love food a lot. My favorite type of food is Italian, however, I like many different types of food. Although I love food, I hate onions, so if a dish has onions in it, I won’t eat it or, if the recipe calls for it, will leave them out. I want to learn how to cook better and how to pair wine with food. I got this inspiration from the documentary Somm that explores the world of a Master Sommelier. Deemed the hardest test to pass in the world, a Master Sommelier is someone who can taste a wine and know exactly what region, year, soil type, grapes, and vineyard the wine came from. I find it interesting because the majority of us do not heavily rely on our sense of taste to learn more about things.

            Overall, I am looking forward to exploring different ways to express my creativity in this class. As a science major, it is hard to find much creativity in my major classes, however, I am hoping this class will challenge me to think more creatively about tangible experiences.  

(Somm documentary poster)

Indian Epics Week 1

I am interested in the way that Indian Epics and the book that we will read for this course relate to other modern day religions such as Islam, Christianity, and Judaism. With my previous studies of St. Paul, I believe that a lot of religious studies intertwine and relate to each other. Within the video, I was especially interested in the birth story that was presented. My goal for this class is to learn about different epics, stories, etc. that relate to concrete stories of the many different religions.

Storytelling Week 1: George Defeats Jim

Jim and George were both alcoholics. They both attempted to do the correct things in life, however, their addictions held them steadfast in a stagnant position. George had a wife and kids and was more apprehensive to treatment compared to Jim. One day Jim called up George to go to the local watering hole. Although reluctant, George agreed to have a beer with Jim. One thing lead to another, and George was arrested on public intoxication charges a couple of hours later. George had one phone call in jail and decided to call his best friend Jim to post his bail. Jim had spent all his money at the bar, so he had no money. George then had to call his wife and let her know that he was booked on public intoxication charges. Needless to say, she was not too happy to hear from her husband. George’s wife called a bail bondsman who got him out of jail. The next morning, George confronted Jim. Jim was still severely intoxicated and was incoherent while George was confronting him. Although they had been friends since they were 6 years old, it was time for George to part ways and assimilate himself with more positive people in his life. He decided to apply for a minimum wage job at McDonalds. Even though he had relapsed and hit the lowest point in his life, George rallied and continued to defeat his alcoholism. George proved to be an ardent McDonald’s employ and eventually worked his way up to be regional manager. One day while George was working, Jim came in and ordered a Big Mac. Assuming a professional attitude, George served Jim his Big Mac, fries, and Coke with an unashamed countenance. The next person in line was Donald Thompson, the CEO of McDonalds. Impressed with George’s professionalism, he offered George a corporate position. Within 3 years, George became the CEO of McDonalds, all thanks to Jim getting him drunk and his public intoxication charge years earlier.

This story was based off of The Prohect Gutenberg Nursery Rhyme 

Jim and George were two great lords,

They fought all in a churn;
And when that Jim got George by the nose,
Then George began to grin.

(George the McDonalds Worker who became CEO. From Daily Mail)

Authors Note: The nursery rhyme above and the recent death of Robin Williams inspired my story. Robin Williams battled drug and alcohol addiction, and in the end, succeeded in making people grin. Robin Williams didn't let addiction stop him. He continued to make people laugh as one of the most successful comedians of all time. 

Bibliography: 

Gutenberg Rhymes