Yi for kids?

[candid]

64

There once was a little fox who wanted to cross a great river to reach the other side. She sat by the river?s edge pondering, ?how can I make it to the other side?? for the river was too deep to walk and too far to swim, and the fast current would carry her far off, away from her path. So she waited and waited; until one day in the dead of winter the river froze. Jubilant now, she leaped onto the ice and began running, running across the river to reach the other side. But just as she was halfway across she heard the ice making creaking sounds beneath her. Fearing for her life now, she laid flat to spread her weight evenly over the thin ice beneath her, and then looked back to the bank she had left behind, wondering if perhaps crossing the river was a bad idea. Then with mindful determination she forded forward toward the bank she had waited so long to reach. But now, rather than carelessly running, she circumspectly moved ahead one paw in front of the other, her sharp ears alert for the sounds of ice giving way beneath her.

 

[jte]

Well, it's good Candid, some feedback for you:

- The idea is a good one, I think and the story is good, too. Some hexagrams would be easier than others to "storyize" I'm guessing.

- You'd want to think about what age kids you're writing it for - not sure what grade level "jubilant" and "circumspectly" are - you could probably check with a good K-6 teacher and find out. Maybe ask one to proof your draft and give feedback.

- If you carry this through, I would suggest thinking carefully about how much of the Yi itself you actually put into it. - I could see anything from "64 short stories based on Chinese folklore" to a full-fledged junior Yi. The question kind of becomes *how much* Yi should a kid learn about. The Yi can raise a person's consciousness in many ways. It's good, but I could see a kid who grew up with this kind of awareness might be very very different from other kids. And different isn't easy when you're growing up (or even later). So, my advice would be to think about that aspect carefully.

Overall, I think its a very cool idea.

- Jeff

 

[candid]

Hi Jeff,

Thanks. I had the same thoughts when interjecting a couple of $5 words, but then I figured, its an educational book so why not include one or two non-juvenile words? I figure the demographic to be between 8-12 years old.

I also know that 64 has a built in story/lore whereas others are not so obvious. In light of this I began working on 1, a short story of a dragon with no home. Then in 2 he meets a wife, 3 is they bear a child, 4 the child reaches adolescence, etc.

Its an idea that resurfaces from time to time. So happens the impetus for 64 began as a way for me to explain the lesson to a young woman. There's a little girl in every woman and a young lad in every man. So I think there may be potential to reach both through child-like simplicity. I even imagined an animated fantasy movie telling Yi's story, but that's pretty far reaching.

I?m not driven to do this but it might provide a little hobby writing fun for me.

Appreciate your input.

C