There's an enormous birch tree here, shedding leaves.\n\nAs you watch, the final five leaves twist from its branches. Lunging forward, you catch them before they touch the ground.\n\nA strange thought -- unlike almost everything else in the world, the items you hold in your hand have never touched earth before.\n\nPerhaps there is a magic in that.\n\nPerhaps they are not bound by the same rules.\n\n(In real life, grab a sheet of paper and a pencil, and come back to me.)\n\n[[Okay, ready.|Passion not yet 4]]

Well. Good thing you're here.\n\nRoot your feet in the space where you are. Take a deep breath, and look around.\n\nThe sky overhead sifts through the canopy in a thousand shifting points of light, each like a gift.\n\nThere is moss clinging to the bark of the nearest tree, impossibly soft. And a tiny snail inching its way up the moss.\n\nYou spy a flash of gold in a clearing off to the side of the path -- a rain the color and texture of autumn.\n\n[[Investigate.|Passion not yet 3]]

On the third piece of paper, write down something you've done that you were proud of or feel good about. (Again, big or small. Have you helped someone? Smiled at someone? Performed well on a challenge?) (Looked real good in a hat? Seriously, it's all fair game.)\n\n[[Okay, ready.|Dislike 5]]

Your challenge is this:\n\nCut or tear out each action item from your list. Keep them in a safe place -- a drawer or jar, or tucked between the pages of your favorite book.\n\nOnce a week, pull one out. Perform the action there.\n\nIf that feels good, add more leaves to the drawer. And if it doesn't, that's okay. Sometimes, chasing our dreams feels scary.\n\nEither way, you've caught a piece of magic here. And you've taken steps to make yourself more whole.\n\nWhich is a brave and wonderful thing indeed.\n\n(You may [[return to the beginning|Hallway]], or simply close the tab to exit the game.)

Think about your passion. Picture it clearly in your mind.\n\nOn your piece of paper, write down five discrete actions that will move you closer to the life you want -- actions you are not already taking.\n\n//(They can be small. Do you want to get smarter? Open a dictionary each day and learn a new word.\n\nWant to change the world? Join an organization or volunteer for a cause you believe in.\n\nWant to be more spiritually advanced? Meditate each day.\n\nWant to pursue a career path? Identify a person you admire in the field. Write them a letter. Read an interview they've done.\n\nWant to make more money? Make a list of the jobs you might want to do and research average income for each, as well as background skills required.)//\n\nTake your time. Then proceed when ready.\n\n[[Okay, ready.|Passion not yet 6]]

That feels better already.\n\nLike there was an itching in your hands that's settled, just with this simple action.\n\n(You have wanted so badly to begin for so long -- sometimes so much so that the ache keeps you up at night.)\n\n[[Continue.|Passion not yet 5]]

It's a small notebook and pen.\n\nIt should seem weird, but you are getting used to magic by now.\n\nHave a seat in the moss. Get comfortable.\n\n(In real life, grab a sheet of paper and a pencil, and come back to me.)\n\n[[Okay, got it.|Clearing list]]

The tree to the north is a massive birch, its leaves twisting in a breeze too high up for you to feel. Its door is welcoming and wide, with a golden knob shaped like a feather.\n\n[[Open the door.|North tree 2]]\n[[Examine a different tree.|Clearing 5]]

What is your passion? What drives you?\n\n[[Social justice -- helping the world and others.|Helper]]\n[[Personal development -- improving myself by gaining new skills or knowledge, or getting ahead in life.|Personal]]\n[[Interpersonal connection -- developing strong relationships with others.|Interpersonal]]\n[[I care about all of these! How do I pick?|Emotional polymath]]\n[[I don't know what my passion is.|Undecided.]]

So here is your challenge: a small way you can make the world whole.\n\nThink of another person -- maybe someone who's helped you, or someone who needs your help. Think of a trait or quality in them that makes you feel proud and good, the same way you do when you think of the best thing about yourself.\n\nMaybe this trait in this other person makes you feel stronger, or like the world is a better place. Maybe you saw them do something brave or kind or good.\n\nWrite that thing down on a scrap of paper. Hand it to them. Or mail it to them. If the person is dead or unreachable, tell someone else about them.\n\n[[Let them know how you feel.|Yes mirror end]]

Are you sure?\n\n[[Yes.|Mirror room]]\n[[Actually, let's go back.|Deeper hallway]]

Of course it does.\n\nThe poet Rainer Maria Rilke said, "Beauty is nothing but the beginning of great terror." \n\nPursuing the great dream of your life is a beautiful, and in turns, terrifying thing.\n\nYou are brave and wonderful to be doing it.\n\nYou are racing down the path now, the birdsong threading the air around you, threatening to lift you into flight.\n\n[[Run on.|Great passion 2]]

The most important thing is that you say aloud, to another person, //This is what I want, and the direction I am going.//\n\nMaybe you'll want to take it a step further. Make a piece of art about it. Post about it online. But also be sure to tell at least one person to their face. \n\nWhen you do, sit with the feeling.\n\nDeep in your chest, you should feel something stirring. The beginning of a whole new you.\n\n\n//Not up for this challenge? [[Try a different one.|Clearing 5]]\nWant to take on all available challenges? [[Examine all the trees.|Clearing 5]]\n\nOr, if you want to complete this challenge, and then return later for the others, you may exit the game now. But be sure to bring this with you when you return, so you don't have to play through the whole game again.\n\n[[This?|Acorn code 2]]//

As you keep working to make the world whole, here are some flames for your fire:\n\nFirst, that manifesto you wrote? Keep it in your pocket all week.\n\nEach day this week, look for one action you can take that lights your fiery soul.\n\nIt doesn't need to be big. Smile at a person who needs your kindness. Create signs welcoming those who need it. Plant trees. Write or reblog something you care about. (But make sure at least one action takes place offline, in meatspace.)\n\nAt the end of the week, pin the manifesto somewhere you'll see it, like by your bed or above your desk.\n\nThank you for your passion. Things look a little brighter already.\n\nAnd the world looks a little more whole.\n\n(You may [[return to the beginning|Hallway]], or simply close the tab to exit the game.)

(Did you actually do it?)\n\n(Seriously, I have no skin in this game. You can choose your happiness.)\n\n[[Yes, I really, really, really did it.|Clearing list 3]]

Thank you.\n\nLook at your five items.\n\nNow, imagine a life in which all five of those things are present.\n\nWhat does that life look like?\n\nDoes it require that you have a certain career, or make a certain amount of money?\n\nDo you need to live in a certain place?\n\nWho do you need to be there with you?\n\nTake a few minutes. Take notes, or draw a picture, or write a page -- whatever you do, your answer should fill you with hope and joy.\n\nWhen you have an answer to at least one of the questions above, [[move forward.|Clearing list 4]]\n\n[[Need more time to think?|Acorn code]]

A soft sliding sound spirals up from the edges of the clearing around you. Turning, you see that doors appeared in the trunks of the three largest trees: the ones to the north, east and west of you.\n\nA tingling tickles up your fingers, like an electrical charge. Like feathers.\n\nSomehow, without understanding how, you know that the paths to your future lie through those doors.\n\n[[Continue.|Clearing 5]]

WHAT'S YOUR (W)HOLE?

Here's what you're going to do. It is soft, and simple.\n\nOn your sheet of paper, write down five things that make you happy.\n\nThey can be anything, big or small.\n\nSeeing a certain person. Making a certain food. Jumping on trampolines. Particular smells. Making other people smile.\n\nJust write down five.\n\n[[Okay, I'm done.|Clearing list 2]]\n

Are you grateful to them?\n\n[[Yes.|Grateful]]\n[[No.|Not grateful.]]

The star flickers dimly as you return to it. As if it's almost afraid to hope.\n\nThe scummy string has looped across the star's surface. As you watch, it splits, becoming a web.\n\n[[Examine the string.|Star string]]\n[[Cut the string.|Cut string]]

A small, golden acorn has appeared in your palm, with a cap made of cut topaz.\n\nNext time you restart the game, enter the password "acorn" into the password field, and you'll come right back here.\n\nI'll be waiting.\n\n//Exit the game by closing your tab. Or you can return to [[the clearing|Clearing 5]] now.//

Really? That's amazing.\n\nWhat keeps you going?\n\n<<textinput $sj>>.\n\nActually -- wait. That's important.\n\n(Let's break the fourth wall a moment -- go run and get a piece of paper. Then come back and write that down.)\n\n[[Continue when ready.|SJ 4]]

That's completely fine. It's easy to feel like there's a ton of pressure -- especially in a world of YouTube stars and "25 under 25" lists -- to Know What Your Passion Is and go charging blindly off after it.\n\nDon't go blind. Take your time. Especially if you're hurting.\n\nYou're just getting to know yourself and what drives you. Which is to say, you're being honest and true to yourself.\n\n[[Which is to say: this is important and kickass work.|Personal no 2]]

As your fingers close around the key, the scene around you begins to shift, melting around the edges.\n\n[[Close your eyes.|Eyes close]]\n[[Keep your eyes open.|Eyes open]]

That's wonderful.\n\nTell me -- what are you doing to pursue your passion?\n\n<<textinput $chasepassion>>.\n\nIn the distance, a bird answers the other. [[You hasten your pace up the trail.|Passion yes 2]]

As you hurry forward, birdsong begins to lace through the air in all directions. A thrill of exhilaration floods your veins.\n\nTell me -- how do you feel when you're actively pursuing your passion?\n\n[[Great!|Great passion]]\n[[Honestly? It can be pretty challenging. It sometimes wears me out.|Great passion]]\n[[Both.|Great passion]]

That's okay! Just pick one for right now, and we'll talk about that.\n\nWhat did you pick?\n\n<<textinput $mypassion>>\n\n[[Continue.|Helper 5]]

You can. It's up to you.\n\nSome days, it's really, really tempting.\n\nBut think about how it felt to write those words.\n\nThe brightness in your chest, cutting through your every kind of darkness.\n\nYou can close the tab now and exit the game. Or you can [[turn around|Turn back]].

Root your feet in the space where you are. Take a deep breath, and look around.\n\nThe sky overhead sifts through the canopy in a thousand shifting points of light, each like a gift.\n\nThere is moss clinging to the bark of the nearest tree, impossibly soft. And a tiny snail inching its way up the moss.\n\nThink about all of the moss on all of the trees. All of the leaves twisting bright and colorful, unseen, in streams. The coolness of the undersides of stones. All of the things you'd miss if you went charging ahead.\n\nYou spy a flash of white in a clearing ahead of you.\n\n[[Investigate.|Clearing]]

It's a tremendous painting, occupying nearly an entire wall. \n\nThe theater seats are all empty, hazy. Almost as if they aren't the point.\n\nInstead, your eye is drawn to the figure alone at the center of the stage: a dancer rendered in charcoal, sailing gracefully through the air above an empty stage. It has no legs. It could be flying or falling. Or both.\n\n[[Examine it further.|Dancer 2]]\n[[Look at another painting.|Hallway]]

If this doesn't work for you, try this:\n\nWrite nice things about other people, and sneak them into their pockets.\n\nEven if you still feel bad, those other people will start to believe in MAGIC. And that is pretty cool.\n\n\n(You may [[return to the beginning|Hallway]], or simply close the tab to exit the game.)

There is no door in this tree, yet.\n\nBut maybe someday.\n\n[[Back.|Clearing 5]]

Your challenge is to reach out to this person -- in person, or by letter or online. Ask them how they got where they are now, and what advice they would give to someone just starting out.\n\n(It sounds scary, but in the best-case scenario, you make a new friend and learn some great things. In the worst-case scenario, they don't respond. But you still know, deep in your heart, that you are the kind of person who will do brave things to pursue the life that will make you happy.)\n\n(You will do brave things to make yourself more whole.)\n\nNot up for this challenge? [[Try a different one.|Clearing 5]]\nWant to take on all available challenges? [[Examine all the trees.|Clearing 5]]\n\nOr, if you want to complete this challenge, and then return later for the others, you may exit the game now. But be sure to bring this with you when you return, so you don't have to play through the whole game again.\n\n[[This?|Acorn code 2]]

Find a pen and scrap of paper to write this down -- the thing that is missing at the heart of yourself.\n\n(If you have no paper, whisper it into the palm of your hand.)\n\n(If you have no hand, close your eyes and picture it in your mind very clearly.)\n\nThe thing I am missing is: <<textinput $missing>>.\n\n[[Ready to move on?|Entry]]

Great. Let's examine that a little more.\n\n[[Continue.|Personal]]

That makes sense. This is a huge, hard, big question.\n\nHere's what we'll do: take some time to mull it over.\n\nThis forest isn't growing anywhere without you.\n\nKeep that list of five happy-making items with you, or pin it up beside your bed. Throughout the week, consider those questions. Maybe write them down to help you remember.\n\n//Imagine a life in which all five of those things are present.\n\nWhat does that life look like?\n\nDoes it require that you have a certain career, or make a certain amount of money?\n\nDo you need to live in a certain place?\n\nWho do you need to be there with you?//\n\nWhen you have an answer to at least one of those questions, come back and visit. Bring this with you, so you don't have to play through the whole game again.\n\n[[This?|Acorn code 2]]

The tree to the west is a towering bald cypress with knobby knees. The door cut into its bark is slender, almost sinuous. The knob is made of brass and shaped like teeth.\n\n[[Open the door.|West tree 2]]\n[[Examine a different tree.|Clearing 5]]

That's completely fine! It's easy to feel like there's a ton of pressure -- especially in a world of YouTube stars and "25 under 25" lists -- to Know What Your Passion Is and go charging blindly off after it.\n\nDon't go blind. Take your time. \n\nYou're just getting to know yourself and what drives you. Which is to say, you're being honest and true to yourself.\n\n[[Which is to say: what a kickass thing.|Undecided 2]]\n\n

This is a small painting, and looks like it was placed here by accident.\n\nThere's a lone figure huddled in the middle of the canvas. A black hole is carved through its middle, and spirals out into the surrounding space, slicing through everything around it.\n\n[[Examine the painting more closely.|Hole 2]]\n[[Look at another painting.|Deeper hallway]]

You walk away. It feels good, easy. \n\nYou think, //I couldn't have done anything anyway.//\n\nYou think, //Freeing stars is hard work.//\n\nYou think, //I have a lot of Netflix to catch up on.//\n\nAs you walk away, the light behind you begins to dim.\n\n[[Something stabs you in your pocket.|Manistab]]\n

Oh, hello.\n\nIt's you.\n\nDo you like what you see?\n\n[[Yes.|Like]]\n[[No.|Dislike]]

The cat glances at you with a glint of amusement.\n\n"I would caution you about writing others off based on external appearance," it says. "But, you know. Legit. Do you have the key?"\n\n[[Give the cat the key.|Cat Philosophy]]

The tree to the east is a massive loblolly pine. There is a small door carved into the square, grayish shingles of its bark. The doorknob is made of silver and is shaped like a bird, flying upward.\n\n[[Open the door.|East tree 2]]\n[[Examine a different tree.|Clearing 5]]

Thank you.\n\nYou have made the world more whole.\n\n(You may [[return to the beginning|Hallway]], or simply close the tab to exit the game.)

You're sure. You have no doubts.\n\nWhich is precisely why it's important to re-examine them.\n\nIn the moment before you lift into flight, a cloud scuds across your path and stops there. You come to a halt so suddenly you nearly trip over yourself.\n\n[[Continue.|Cloud]]

Ahead of you, the sun breaks dazzlingly through the trees, washing everything out in a sea of golden light.\n\n(//It is possible,// a small voice murmurs in the back of your mind, //that there is nothing there. That you will chase your passion off the edge of a cliff and stumble into oblivion.//)\n\n[[Keep running.|Great passion 3]]\n[[Stop running.|Stop passion]]

The colors in the paintings grow wilder in this part of the hall. The lines seem sketched with a great urgency, almost leaping off the canvas at you in their frenzy.\n\nWhich piece would you like to examine?\n\n[[Two lovers reaching out for one another with no hands.|Lovers]]\n[[A lone, blind figure holding up a collapsing building with the force of a song.|Singer]]\n[[A person with a small hole in the middle of their body.|Hole]] \n[[Keep going.|End of hall]]\n[[Go back toward the entryway.|Hallway]]

That's wonderful. What cause are you committed to?\n\n[[I'll tell you.|Helper 2]]\n[[I'm not sure yet.|Helper 3]]\n[[I have too many causes I care about!|Helper 4]]

Well hot damn. \n\nYou've got yourself a manifesto.\n\nRead through your manifesto. Read it again.\n\nIt should make your heart sing ferociously in your chest.\n\nIf it doesn't, add more reasons to WHY THIS THING MATTERS TO YOU. Then read it again.\n\n[[Hell yeah.|Manifesto 4]]\n[[Actually... I'm having trouble articulating this.|Stop passion]]

Hmm. \n\nLet's hold onto that for a second.\n\n[[Move forward.|Hallway]]

It is a full-length mirror with an ornate, heavy-looking frame, tarnished with age. Slender threads suspend it in a silver spotlight.\n\nAs you draw nearer to the pool of light, your reflection swims up ghostly in the glass. \n\nYour image is still grainy, out of focus. But you can look more closely by stepping into the light.\n\n[[Look in the mirror.|Look]]\n[[Never mind; let me out of here.|End of hall]]

Kendra Fortmeyer, the author of HOLE IN THE MIDDLE -- a YA novel about a girl with a hole in the middle of her body -- wrote this game. But you are the author of your life. Let's think about you right now.

The painting depicts a lone figure sitting at a window, resting a hand against the glass. The world beyond is bright, an enticing riot of blues and greens and yellows.\n\nThough the figure has no mouth, the many eyes peeking from its face and arms are bright, too.\n\nPeople who are drawn to this painting tend to have a desire for interpersonal connection -- to build powerful relationships with others.\n\nDoes this sound like you?\n\n[[Yes.|Interpersonal]]\n[[No.|Pick a passion]]

That's fantastic! You certainly don't have to commit to having one passion -- life is long, and with a heart as full as yours, you've got all kinds of growing and giving ahead of you.\n\nFor now, though, let's pick just one to think about:\n\n[[Social justice -- helping the world and others.|Helper]]\n[[Personal development -- improving myself by gaining new skills or knowledge, or getting ahead in life.|Personal]]\n[[Interpersonal connection -- developing strong relationships with others.|Interpersonal]]

The background of this painting is a riot of reds and yellows, but your attention is captured by the two charcoal figures in the middle. Color swirls up their ankles and legs, but they reach their black-and-white arms out toward each other, missing each other by inches.\n\nIt's unclear if the color at their feet is rooting them to the ground, keeping them apart, or if it's just a distraction. If they notice each other at all.\n\n[[Examine this painting more closely.|Lovers 2]]\n[[Look at another painting.|Deeper hallway]]

Are you part of a group or organization that is also working to help your cause?\n\n[[Yes.|Yes group]]\n[[No.|No group]]

You peer more closely at the string, squinting against the brightness of the star.\n\nYou see it is made of small ugly words, compounded and crushed together by the weight of years and systemic resistance.\n\n//can't//\n\n//shouldn't//\n\n//no time//\n\n//no energy//\n\n//don't deserve//\n\n//why bother//\n\nJust looking at it makes your heart grow heavy. As it does, the star flickers, dims.\n\n[[Ugh, you're right. What's the point?|Give up]]\n[[Not today, demon.|Cut string]]

The room is empty except for a mirror against the far wall, illuminated by a single spotlight. Somehow, you have no sense of the size or depth of this room. It could be impossibly small, the walls just beyond the tips of your outstretched fingers. It could spill on forever.\n\nThe air feels very close around your face.\n\n[[Examine the mirror.|Mirror]]\n[[Actually, leave.|End of hall]]

You understand, without understanding how, that you are back in the art gallery.\n\n(Man. You really wish you'd gotten that ramen.)\n\nThere is a gaping doorway ahead of you. You see nothing beyond but a deeper darkness.\n\nBehind you, the paintings wait in silence.\n\nYou sense that the cat wanted you to go forward. But the decision is up to you.\n\n[[Go back to the hall.|Deeper hallway]]\n[[Go forward through the doorway.|Take a sec.]]

Hello, and welcome. Or, perhaps, welcome back.\n\nA few things to know before we begin:\n\n//None of the choices you make or text you enter during play is saved or shared. Simply close your browser tab at the game's conclusion to erase all record of what has passed here.\n\nYou'll want paper and a pencil close at hand.\n\nEach quest is short -- about 10 minutes of play or less.//\n\nReady? Let's [[begin|Prebegin]].\n

You glance around, feeling a little sheepish, then lean across the table to the cat.\n\n"Um," you say. "I think I'm supposed to ask you about relationships?"\n\n(You are also, it must be noted, rather hungry, and would like to ask if the cat has ordered food yet. But alas, the cat does not look like it has the patience for such questions.)\n\nThe cat says, "Do you have the key?"\n\n[[Give the cat the key.|Cat Philosophy]]

Fantastic.\n\nYou came here because you are a person with a deep need to grow.\n\nSome days, you wonder if you're going anywhere at all. Others, you feel itchy inside, like you might burst out of your skin with wanting.\n\nDo you know what you want?\n\n[[Yes.|Personal yes]]\n[[Not quite -- it's hard to name.|Personal yes]]\n[[No.|Personal no]]\n

I'm sorry. That's really hard.\n\n(But we do love weird, here.)\n\n(And just between us, I suspect there's something beautiful about you.)\n\n[[Let's focus on that.|Dislike 2]].

The sandstorm haze of the world clears, resolving itself into --\n\nA ramen shop?\n\nIt is a bright, clear day, the white light of a nowhere-place leaking in around the edges of the wooden window blinds.\n\nYou are seated in a booth, the plastic of the seat cushion sticking to the backs of your thighs. Seated across from you is a giant cat.\n\n[[Continue.|Cat2]]

Every time you feel like you dislike yourself, remember that no matter what you do or how you feel, you carry these things with you.\n\nAs the week goes on, you might even add to them.\n\nEach time you feel bad, [[add one more kind thing to your pockets|Dislike 7]].

There is a gaping doorway ahead of you. You see nothing beyond but a deeper darkness.\n\nBehind you, the paintings wait in silence.\n\n[[Go back to the hall.|Deeper hallway]]\n[[Go forward through the doorway.|Take a sec.]]

(Did you actually do it?)\n\n(Seriously, I have no skin in this game. You can choose your happiness.)\n\n[[Yes, I really, really, really did it.|SJ 5]]

The glimmer in your periphery gets brighter and brighter. Suddenly, the moonscape of rubble around your feet is outlined in clear, sharp light.\n\nYou fold your manifesto \n\n//--because this is what it is, isn't it? the outpouring of your passion into language. The words you would tattoo on your heart--//\n\nand tuck it into your pocket.\n\nThen you [[set off across the rubble.|Star 2]]

I want you to think about the feeling you get when you think about this part of yourself -- your favorite part of yourself. The thing you like best.\n\n[[That's a kind of power.|Forward challenge.]]\n\n

You click "continue," and something strange washes over your vision. You watch in horror as [[the world falls away into nothing.|SJ]]

As a bonus challenge:\n\nNow that you've reaffirmed your commitment to pursuing your passion, make a real-world connection with someone else doing the same thing. Identify someone you admire in your field -- be it a certain career, social justice, entrepreneurship, art, spirituality or something else.\n\nYour challenge is to reach out to this person -- in person, or by letter or online. Ask them how they got where they are now, and what advice they would give to someone just starting out.\n\n(It sounds scary, but in the best-case scenario, you make a new friend and learn some great things. In the worst-case scenario, they don't respond. But you still know, deep in your heart, that you are the kind of person who will do brave things to pursue the life that will make you happy.)\n\n(And that is another way of being whole.)\n\n\n(You may [[return to the beginning|Hallway]], or simply close the tab to exit the game.)

People who are drawn to this painting tend to have a desire for interpersonal connection -- to build powerful relationships with others.\n\nDoes this sound like you?\n\n[[Yes.|Interpersonal]]\n[[No.|Pick a passion]]

Many species of pine depend upon fire. The presence of the heat opens the cones and lets the seeds fly free.\n\nLight the fire //safely//, in a stove or pot or stone circle. Once they're cool, collect whatever ashes there are left and scatter them.\n\nYou, too, are now free.\n\nThis is not to say that life will be perfect or easy. But every time you run into an obstacle holding you back from the life you want, remember how easily that reason twisted up into smoke. How you can't carry it with you, because it's gone now.\n\nAnd you're a little more whole.\n\n//Not up for this challenge? [[Try a different one.|Clearing 5]]\nWant to take on all available challenges? [[Examine all the trees.|Clearing 5]]\n\nOr, if you want to complete this challenge, and then return later for the others, you may exit the game now. But be sure to bring this with you when you return, so you don't have to play through the whole game again.\n\n[[This?|Acorn code 2]]//\n\n

Well. Good thing you're here.\n\nSometimes it's hard to figure out how to actively pursue our passions. It's really easy to fall into mind-traps. Traps like\n\n//I'm too young.\n\nI'm too old.\n\nI don't have the time.\n\nI don't have the resources.\n\nI'm not good enough.//\n\nAnd other such toxic nonsense.\n\nTime to [[get off the trail|Passion not yet 2]].

The painting is a strange shape, wedged in among the others as if by the force of great determination.\n\nAt its center, a lone figure stands beneath a collapsing building, its mouth open wide in words or song.\n\nIt seems like the force of its singing is all that keeps the building and its occupants from falling into dust. Though the lines are static, you can almost see the figure's throat trembling.\n\n[[Examine the painting more closely.|Social justice]]\n[[Look at another painting.|Deeper hallway]]

That's fantastic. Way to go, you! (And way to own it! Sometimes it's hard to take credit for our own efforts.)\n\n[[Continue.|Pay it forward.]]

The air is cool, so fresh and bright that you feel like you're breathing in light.\n\nTrees you can't quite identify tower far over your head. A trail extends ahead of you. To either side, the ground is soft with moss.\n\nOne lone bird calls from somewhere far away.\n\n[[Go forward?|Personal 3]]\n[[I'm not ready yet -- stay here.|Personal aside]]

Is this what you want?\n\nMaybe you're unsure.\n\n[[Continue racing toward your original goal.|Great passion 3]]\n[[Take a moment and rethink some things.|Personal no 2]]

People who are drawn to this painting tend to have a desire to help others or heal the world. They may be dedicated to one cause in particular, or be filled with a greater, more abstract desire to help.\n\nDoes this sound like you?\n\n[[Yes.|Helper]]\n[[No.|Pick a passion]]

Would you like to try exploring one of these in a low-key, no pressure way?\n\n(Or, because you've taken a chance and been honest, we can open a secret door for you and let you take a shortcut to the hidden room at the back of the gallery.)\n\n[[Pick a passion]].\n[[Go through the secret door.|Mirror room]]

If you received a password during a previous game, you may enter it here to return to your challenge: <<textinput $password [[Submit|Passtest]]>>.\n\n[[Otherwise, start a new game now.|Begin]]

The cat draws your key from the table. Then it lifts it into the air, and //twists// --\n\n[[...|Precipice of end]]

Well -- not entirely nothing.\n\nAs your eyes adjust, you realize that you're not in //nothing.// But. Something close to it.\n\nAbove you, a sky stretches infinite and inky black.\n\nBelow you, in a grayscale so dim your eyes swim as you try to focus on it, is a field of rubble, stretching in all directions to every horizon.\n\nIt shifts beneath your feet slightly. [[You struggle to regain your balance.|SJ 2]]

Before you go -- or continue to go -- launching out into the great unknown, you must do this.\n\nTake a few moments to write down the following things.\n\nWHAT is your passion.\n\nWHY does it matter to you.\n\n(Does it make you happy? Does the world need it? Does it heal a wound from your past, or from history?)\n\n(Et cetera. Clouds don't care. Write down the things that matter to you.)\n\n[[Continue.|Manifesto 2]]

That's wonderful. You're lucky to have this person in your life.\n\n[[Continue.|Pay it forward.]]

People who are drawn to this painting tend to have a desire for healing and personal growth. They may feel that something is missing from their lives -- either the result of a specific trauma or illness, or a lingering, unnamed ache.\n\nDoes this sound like you?\n\n[[Yes.|Hole 3]]\n[[No. I'd like to look at a different painting.|Deeper hallway]]

I'm sorry. Thank you for telling me. \n\nThe edges of the painting begin to blur a little.\n\nYou examine them more closely. It looks like the painting is beginning to peel back from the wall. In fact, it looks like the //wall// is beginning to peel back from the wall...\n\n[[Step through.|Personal]]

That sounds complicated. I'm sorry.\n\nBut still, it's wonderful that you've emerged with a part of yourself you love and are proud of.\n\n[[Continue.|Pay it forward.]]

You find yourself in a forest.\n\n[[Whoa.|Personal 2]]

This is a large, ambitious painting. The figure at its center is a weaver with too many hands, spilling from its arms and legs and chest, cascading from its sleeves. You try to number the hands several times, but each time, you lose count, your mind slipping away from certainty with a velvety, queasy sensation.\n\nBut the weaver's work is rich, lustrous: the tapestry an intricate and shining thing unfolding beneath its many fingers. Some of the extra hands detangle knots; others lift food and drink to the figure's mouth. Another pair, down by the figure's ankle, just hold each other, quiet and intimate.\n\n[[Examine it further.|Social justice]]\n[[Look at another painting.|Hallway]]

The cat leans away from you, studying a spot in the air you cannot see.\n\n(You are really starting to wonder about that ramen.)\n\nFinally, it nods, as if satisfied. And it tells you this:\n\n"Relationships are hard. It can be hard to honestly tell other people what we want, it can be hard to approach new people, and sometimes things fall apart for no reason.\n\n"It is very easy to be lonely.\n\n"There was a period of my life when many of my friends all moved away at once. I went out and tried to make new friends, but I found that all the relationships I was making were fragile and falling apart. I was too anxious about them, and the weight of that anxiety was making them crumble.\n\n"I realized that, before I could build strong relationships, I had to be okay with being alone. I didn't have to love it -- but I had to be unafraid of it. And in order to do that, I had to genuinely like myself."\n\nThe cat meets your eyes.\n\n"We came here to talk about relationships. So I'm going to send you to the heart.\n\n"Are you ready?"\n\n[[Yes.|Cat Key]]\n[[Wait!|Cat Key]]

There's a concept in Judaism called //tikkun olam,// healing the world.\n\nYou are a world healer, and a bringer of light.\n\nIt's not easy. Some days, it seems impossible. Some days, all you notice is the vast blackness of the sky. How many more stars are trapped, waiting to be set there.\n\nBut the more and harder you work, the brighter the world becomes.\n\n[[And slowly, you begin to be able to see other figures moving among the rubble.|Group]]

As you draw nearer to the pools of light, you realize that each is illuminating a painting. The figures in the paintings are unlike anything you’ve ever seen before, but something about them feels familiar. Maybe there is something here you recognize.\n\nWhich painting would you like to examine?\n\n[[A weaver with a hundred hands.|Weaver]]\n[[A person with many eyes and no mouth, looking out a window.|Gazer]]\n[[A dancer with no legs, sailing through the empty air above a quiet stage.|Dancer]]\n[[Something else.|Deeper hallway]] \n

You find yourself alone in a darkened hall. It is night. \n\nThe darkness ahead of you is dotted with small pools of light, like silver coins laid against charcoal velvet.\n\nOn the wall beside you appear the words: //WHAT ARE YOU MISSING?//\n\n[[What are you missing?]]\n

That's fantastic. Other people who share your beliefs can help you keep going when the going gets tough.\n\n[[Continue.|Star challenge]]

This painting is small, with a simple frame. It takes up almost no space on the wall. In fact, it's almost lost among the loudness of the busy images around it.\n\nIt takes a specially observant person to notice this painting.\n\n[[Examine the painting more closely.|Gazer 2]]\n[[Look at another painting.|Hallway]]\n

You sit, feeling a little sheepish. (Also a little hungry. Have you ordered yet?) (Alas, the cat does not look like it has the patience for such questions.)\n\nThe cat says, "You're here because you care about building relationships. But you also seem to be afraid of them. Does that sound right?"\n\n[[Maybe.|Afraid Cat.]]\n[[Only when the relationships are with giant cats.|Sarcastic Cat]]\n

This thing that you like best about yourself -- is it something you grew or made happen by yourself, or did someone help you?\n\n[[I did it on my own.|Own it.]]\n[[Someone helped me.]]

Fantastic. What's your passion?\n\n<<textinput $passion>>.\n\nAnd are you actively pursuing it?\n\n[[Yes.|Passion yes]]\n[[No.|Passion not yet]]

Inside the door is a small velvet chamber, the color of moss. A small pile of silver pinecones rests in its center.\n\nSeeds, you realize, of the life you want.\n\nTo earn a silver pinecone, accept this challenge:\n\nThink about the life you know you want. (You have already done this).\n\nThink about the life you know you want. (You have already done this).\n\nThis week, this week, make a list of all the reasons you can't have that life.\n\nThen burn it.\n\n[[How to plant the seed.|Pinecone]]

<<textinput $mycause>>\n\n[[Continue.|Helper 5]]

That's okay! With so much pain in the world, it can be hard to know where to start.\n\n[[Would you like to pick an issue you care about to focus on for now?|Helper 2]]\n[[Or do you want to look at something else?|Hallway]]

You are suspended in darkness for what seems an impossible length of time.\n\nSeconds or hours later, the ground grows firm again beneath your feet.\n\n(You suspect that for a moment there, you no longer had feet.)\n\n[[Open your eyes.|Eyes open]]

That's fantastic. What drew you to it?\n\n<<textinput $whymycause>>\n\n[[Continue.|World dissolve]]

Something pale glimmers in your peripheral vision.\n\nQuick -- keep writing.\n\nWrite why this matters to you.\n\nWrite why you feel it is important.\n\nWrite how working on it makes you feel.\n\n[[Continue.|Star]]

<<if $password is "acorn" or "Acorn" or "ACORN">>\n\nWelcome back, traveler.\n\n[[Return to the forest.|Clearing list 4]]\n\n<<else>>\nI'm sorry. That doesn't appear to be correct.\n\n[[Back.|Start]]\n\n<<endif>>

Other people who share your beliefs can help you keep going when the going gets tough.\n\nYou might consider starting one, or joining one.\n\n[[Continue.|Star challenge]]

That's wonderful.\n\nWhat do you like best about yourself?\n\n<<textinput $best>>.\n\nPlease write that down on a card or scrap of paper, and then [[continue|Like2]].\n

Inside the door is a small velvet chamber, the color of irises. A small pile of withered brass cypress fruits rests in its center.\n\nFruits rich with seeds, you realize, of the life you want.\n\nTo earn this seed, accept this simple challenge:\n\nThis week, tell someone about the life you want. It can be a friend, teacher, loved one, parent or stranger.\n\n[[How to plant the seed.|Cypress]]

People who are drawn to this painting tend to have a desire for achievement and personal growth. For example, they may want to gain new skills, knowledge or understanding; or pursue success in a particular field.\n\nDoes this sound like you?\n\n[[Definitely.|Dancer3]]\n[[Maybe.|Dancer3]]\n[[Not really.|Pick a passion]]

You stand and try to leave the ramen shop. The door is sealed. Outside, you see an infinite swirling whiteness. Half-invisible things swim across your vision.\n\nBehind you, the cat says, "You didn't really come here to run away, did you?"\n\n[[Goddamn it.|Sit Cat]]

It's your manifesto. Its edges have gone rigid with disappointment. The dull taste of iron floods the back of your throat.\n\n[[Turn back to the star.|Turn back]]\n[[Give up.|No way]]

The cat licks its paw, runs it over an ear. It regards you with solemn amber eyes.\n\nWell?\n\n[[Go on. Talk to the cat.|Talk Cat]]\n[[Leave.|Leave Cat]]

(Did you actually do it, or do you need a few more minutes?)\n\n(Seriously, I have no skin in this game. You can choose your happiness.)\n\n[[Yes, I really, really, really did it.|Manifesto 3]]

As long as you know what matters to you and you work actively toward achieving it, you'll soar.\n\nPin the manifesto up somewhere you'll see it every day -- maybe by your bed, or above your desk. As you have new experiences, don't be afraid to amend it. Cross things out. Add new things. But never stop chasing that feeling that you're living a life that lifts you into flight.\n\nYou're living your dream. Thank you. That makes the world a little more whole.\n\n(You may [[return to the beginning|Hallway]], or simply close the tab to exit the game.)\n\n(Or, if you'd like a bonus challenge, [[click here|bonus letter]].)

As you read through your manifesto, you feel lighter and lighter.\n\nLooking down, you realize the clouds have gathered around your feet. And they're lifting you.\n\n[[Continue.|Manifesto 5]]

[[Examine the tree to the north.|North tree]]\n[[Examine the tree to the east.|East tree]]\n[[Examine the tree to the west.|West tree]]\n[[Examine the tree to the south.|South tree]]

I know.\n\n[[Continue|Personal aside]]

Take your pieces of paper and fold them up very small. They are talismans, now.\n\nTuck them into your pockets. Keep them with you throughout the day. Keep them for a week.\n\n[[Why?|Dislike 6]]

"It can be hard to form the relationships we want to have when we're afraid," the cat says. "And there's a lot to be afraid of. Intimacy. Rejection. Being intimate and vulnerable and //then// being rejected."\n\nThere's a shout in the corner. A table of customers is watching the soccer game.\n\nNobody seems to care that you're talking to a giant cat. Which is -- weirdly comforting?\n\nThe cat says, "You only have one key. But for you, I'll share you [[two secrets|Cat2 secrets]]."

Just think of that -- reaching into your pocket and feeling the curling crush of everything that makes you great, as soft as a pocket of feathers.\n\nIf you add enough, they will lift you, like wings.\n\nThank you for coming to visit.\n\nThe world feels a little more whole, now.\n\n(You may [[return to the beginning|Hallway]], or simply close the tab to exit the game.)\n\n(Or, if your heart is still heavy, you may try this [[bonus challenge]].)

What keeps you going?\n\n<<textinput $sj>>.\n\nActually -- wait. That's important.\n\n(Let's break the fourth wall a moment -- go run and get a piece of paper. Then come back and write that down.)\n\n[[Continue when ready.|SJ 4]]

It's not always easy, is it?\n\nNot when there's so much pain in the world.\n\n[[No, it isn't.|SJ 3]]\n[[It isn't as bad as you think.|SJ happy]]

Here is your challenge:\n\nCut or tear out three small scraps of paper.\n\nOn the first piece, write down a thing you like about yourself. (This can be as deep or as shallow as you want -- anything from //I like the shape of my left thumbnail// to //I am an honest person// to //I like that I keep cool under pressure.// Your pick.)\n\n[[Ready to move on?|Dislike 3]]

On the second piece of paper, write down something that you're good at.\n\n[[And finally--|Dislike 4]]

The star trembles a minute, then shoots up into the sky. It reaches its zenith, then nestles there, a diamond against black velvet. A sole point of light.\n\nAcross the horizon, dim lights wink on. \n\nYou realize, you are standing in the rubble of starstuff.\n\n[[Continue.|Starstuff]]

You pull your manifesto from your pocket. It shines bright with your passion, its edges gone diamond-sharp.\n\nIn two swift motions, you slice through the string anchoring the star to the rubble.\n\nOne gives easily. The other, you have to saw and saw until finally, the strands grudgingly snap.\n\nThe star begins to [[float into the sky|Star sky]].

Inside the door is a small velvet chamber the color of roses. A small gold pile of seeds rests in its center.\n\nSeeds, you realize, of the life you want.\n\nTo earn this seed, your challenge is high-reaching. But you can do it:\n\nThis week, identify a person who is living this life. If you are career-driven, it may be someone in the career field you want to pursue. If you are hurt and healing, it may be someone who has overcome a great loss. Perhaps a spiritual mentor. Perhaps someone living in the city or country you want to live in.\n\n[[How to plant the seed.|Birch seed]]\n

You give the cat your key. It sinks into the table by its paw, vanishing. Strangely, you feel a weight has lifted from your chest.\n\n"The first secret is that it's okay to be nervous about new relationships. It means that you take your relationships with people seriously. You're likely to treat them with respect. You are a careful friend. You should celebrate that about yourself.\n\n"Just don't," the cat says. "Let that paralyze you."\n\n[[The second secret?|Cat Philosophy]]

I thought as much.\n\nHere -- take this key. You'll need it.\n\n[[What?|Cat]]\n[[Wait, I changed my mind. Let me go back to the hallway.|Hallway]]

Gently, from beneath the rubble, you unearth a star.\n\nIt is gently warm in your hands, bathing you in silver light. You can't quite bear to look at it.\n\nYou realize there is a thick string of scum connecting it to the earth.\n\n[[Examine the string.|Star string]]\n[[Cut the string.|Cut string]]\n[[Walk away.|Give up]]

You regard the cloud.\n\nThe cloud fogs at you, innocently.\n\nThen it disperses, leaving a small sheet of paper in its wake.\n\n(In real life, please go find a paper and pencil, then come back.)\n\n[[Okay, ready.|Manifesto]]