Rites of Passage

[clauderainsrm]

 You have been through a lot to get to this point. 

But you haven't made this journey on your own.   There have been others who have helped you get where you are.  There are others who needed to be eliminated for you to get this far. 

That is why the Rites of Passage exists. 

Jeff Probst has said that modern fans don't like them.  He is wrong,  He thinks that there are "more important" things to showcase on the final episode.  Some people disagree. (including myself) 

I think that taking the time to reflect on your journey is extremely important part of preparing for the final tribal council. 


As the 3 of you walk down the path, you will encounter the torch of your fallen tribe mates.  Stop.  Reflect on what they have meant to you.  Move to the next one. 

This is a special moment in time. 

(I'm including a link to the YouTube selection of different US Rites of Passages from over first few seasons of the show) 

(Note for everyone else, even if they are talking about you - this is ONLY for these 3.  You will have a chance to have your say at the Final Tribal Council) 

The names (torches) start below.   Enjoy your walk through your memories of this special event in time. 

 

Comments

[clauderainsrm]

Jenwithapen

[gunwithoutmusic]

Jen, for better or for worse, you helped this season start out with a bang, and you helped make the first Tribal Council just a little bit easier than any of the rest. You're a great writer and I would have loved to have seen you really have the chance to give it your all; I honestly think that there's a strong possibility that the top three might have ended up completely different if you had that chance. I was hoping that you'd be able to make a comeback from Redemption Island, but sadly it was not to be. Here's to meeting again and getting to compete in the future!

[halfshellvenus]

Oh, Jen-- you were my most enthusiastic cheerleader in that first week of this season, and I so loved having your energy be part of our tribe!

You're one of the most talented writers I know, and I was really looking forward to reading your work and having the chance to hang out and chat with you and basically just revel in your presence. I only ever see you around in relation to Idol, which is never enough Jen for me, so I'm always grasping at crumbs. :(

You're always one of my favorite picks for 'finalist' in every Idol season, and I'd hope that you'd be with us long enough to have that chance this time. :( And you're one of my favorite people, period. I so hated losing you. :(

[flipflop_diva]

Jen, I'm really sad I never got a chance to know you or write with you or play with you. You are so, so admired around these parts, and I was excited for the chance to read your writings and maybe get to play with you, but it was not to be. It sucks a lot that everything happened how it did, and we all had to lose you before things really even got started. I hope you'll join into a future Idol season and I will have a chance to talk with you/get to know you more then!




((Also, for anyone reading all these, so sorry my comments are late! My husband mowed the lawn yesterday morning and ran over the internet cable so we had to wait till today for the technician to come and fix us!))

[clauderainsrm]

uselesstinrelic

[gunwithoutmusic]

We didn't really spend any time together and I didn't have a chance to get to know you on a more personal level than just through your journal comments, since we were on separate tribes to start with, but I really enjoyed your entries, your style, and your creativity. I can't speak to the reasons that you decided to remove yourself from the game, but I trust that they were good ones and that you did what was best for you, which is what really matters. You have a lot of talent and it would be an honor to play with you again.

[halfshellvenus]

I was so happy you were going to play this season. I always enjoy your work, and I like the variety of what you write. You have both strength and versatility, and that combination is not as common as one might think.

I honestly thought you were going to be on my team, but that wasn't how the mathematics of the alternating 'selection' process worked out. I wish we'd seen more of your work this season, and I'm sorry you left us so soon. You're a good person, and I know the style and specifics of this mini-season were not what you or I or anyone else expected. :(

I hope you'll be back to play Idol in the future, and I look forward to seeing what you have to say in-Idol or just in your regular journal entries!

[flipflop_diva]

Awwww, uselessrelic. I know (most of) what happened with our tribe in those early days, and everything was such a mess. I'm sorry everything happened how it did, and I know you made the best decision you could at the time and did what was true for you.

We might have had some differences of opinion on how we should play this game and the best way to do it, but I admire you for sticking to your beliefs and not faltering on them. I also did really enjoy talking with you, and I'm sorry we couldn't do more of that because those times were really nice.

You're also a really great writer, and I enjoyed your entries, so I hope you'll consider re-joining a different season of Idol someday. I would love to read more of your work!

[clauderainsrm]

bittyjane

[gunwithoutmusic]

Honestly, I think you got the short end of the stick with your elimination. It was a tough set of circumstances and seeing you get voted out while uselesstinrelic dropped was heartbreaking. Again, I wasn't there so I don't know, and I can't speak to uselesstinrelic's intentions, but I was always under the impression that the drop was intended to be a sacrifice and that the hope was you wouldn't be eliminated, despite getting the most votes at Tribal Council. You're one of the handful of players that I didn't know at all coming into this game, but I appreciated getting the chance to read your work. In just three entries, you showed a wonderful amount of range in your writing, and your Redemption Island piece felt like they were my own thoughts and feelings about writing and that need for someone to push you because it's so hard to make the time unless there's a "good reason" for it. I really hope I see more from you in the future.

[halfshellvenus]

I agree with Sean's comment about the unfairness of your elimination. When uselesstinrelic decided to drop, there was no need to eliminate anyone through voting, and I don't know why Gary chose to do that. Nobody was happy about that outcome, and I know it hurt you most of all. :(

I didn't get to know you as well as I would have liked this season. You were one of the few people I didn't already know really well, and you were on the other team, so there was less interaction. I enjoyed your stories quite a bit, though, and I have to tell you-- that murderous little bride-to-be from your second story has stuck with me to this day! I loved the narrative voice, and it showed that you have the kind of wicked sense of humor that I need more of in my life! \o/

[flipflop_diva]

Oh, bittyjane, your elimination broke my heart. I was so, so, so sad. I hadn't wanted you to go in the first place, and then after uselesstinrelic dropped, I was so sure you were going to be safe. And then when you weren't, it was just awful.

You took it so gracefully and like such an amazing sport, but I know that must have been so hard, and I'm so sorry it happened that way. I adored talking to you in our team comm, and you're just the sweetest, kindest person, and I really wanted to have a chance to get to know you better. I was so sad that didn't get to happen.

I'm also really glad you wrote an entry for the re-entry competition, even if it didn't work out. I would have loved to have you back, and I hope I will see you in a future Idol competition!

[clauderainsrm]

megatronix

[gunwithoutmusic]

Meg! It was such a joy having you on Asaga with me. I really loved how willing you were to help out the rest of the tribe with constructive criticism and ideas, and your work was always fun to read. Your piece about your dogs had me laughing out loud; as a fellow dog-owner, I just found it so incredibly relatable. You have a good sense of humor and a special light that made working with you just plain fun. I can't wait for the next time I get to see you in Idol. :)

[clauderainsrm]

impoetry

[gunwithoutmusic]

Oh, B. Now that we're in the final three, I feel comfortable saying this: my day one alliance, my guy, you are just amazing in every way, and I really really hope that you know that. I don't begrudge you dropping because I know that real life comes first, and hey, I still did pretty okay for myself! You put out some good work in your time with us this season, and you are a great friend to me. We still need to figure out a time to go on a hike together!

[clauderainsrm]

n3m3sis43

[gunwithoutmusic]

Another Luzon member that I didn't really get much of a chance to really talk to in this game aside from journal comments. Your fiction was well-crafted, but what really stuck with me was your COVID entry and your ADHD entry. My husband has ADHD and reading that piece felt like I was able to actually get inside his head and understand for once. Your work is so real, and I'd encourage you to keep up with it, because you really are a talent.

[clauderainsrm]

minikin25

[gunwithoutmusic]

minikin, I'll be honest - I wasn't really sure what to expect from you this season. You were one of the players that I also had no familiarity with coming into this game. With your first entry talking about being stuck in the Blah, I didn't have high hopes that you'd be able to pull it out. I know all about the Blah, and it sucks to be there. But you really surprised me! Your entries showed growth and improvement from week to week, and you offered a lot of much-needed support to all of us on Asaga, especially when we were down and out from challenge losses. I'm so proud of you and the work you've done this season; I hope you are, too, and I'd love to see you back in Idol again. :)

[clauderainsrm]

wolfden

[gunwithoutmusic]

You had the toughest of tough breaks! Being the odd man out in the schoolyard pick and being the first person sent to Exile Island... that's a hard way to start out this game. I really admire how you didn't let that get you down and you turned out some excellent pieces in your time with us this season. If I was ever glad to lose a challenge, that first one was it, because Asaga got you! It was a real pleasure being on a team with you this season; I think everyone here really underestimated you and your abilities. Plus, you gave me lots of chances to make SE7EN references and scream, "What's in the box?!" to you, and even though I didn't end up needing it, you gave me immunity at Tribal Council! Thank you so much for that, and for being a part of this with me. :)

[clauderainsrm]

lawchicky819

[gunwithoutmusic]

lawchicky... man, what do I say? You scared me! I'll be completely honest and say that I thought that playing up the goat strategy was a good one, and probably the best move you could have made given what was going on in the game at the time. I really thought about trying to use that to my advantage and seeing if I could keep you safe, but I won't mince words: you were absolutely 100% a threat to me. If you ended up making it to Final Tribal Council, I really do think you would have won, hands down. So I'm both sorry and happy that it didn't work out that way, because sitting next to you in the end was just too terrifying a prospect for me at the time. That being said, I would absolutely love to play this Survivor game again with you, and if we ever end up on Survivor the TV show in the same season together, you'd better believe I'd be going straight to you. You were a tough competitor and you put out some really strong work this season.

[clauderainsrm]

bsgsix

[gunwithoutmusic]

Your loss really struck me and threw me for a major loop in this game. Aside from impoetry, you were my best alliance for the beginning portion of this game, and it was hard to overcome the loss of both of you and still make it here to the end. You are a phenomenal writer and I am so lucky to have you as a friend now; you were my cheerleader and my rock, both in this game and in the stuff I was dealing with in my personal life. You know all this already, of course, but it's worth repeating. :) I don't know what the future holds for you. I hope that there's some way we can work together again in the future, and I hope that you continue surviving and I wish you the best of health. *hugs*

[clauderainsrm]

swirlsofpurple

[gunwithoutmusic]

swirls, I want to apologize to you. I know that you didn't seem to take my comments against you in Tribal Council personally, and they really weren't personal. I've said it before, and I'll say it again: you are a true talent. The way your mind works, the universes you create... they just absolutely fascinate me. I personally think you were gone way too soon, and I don't know how much influence I had over the group's decision on that, but I really hope that you didn't let your place in this game discourage you from continuing to imagine and create. You are a gem, and I absolutely can't wait to read more from you in the future.

[clauderainsrm]

eeyore_grrl

[gunwithoutmusic]

eeyore, my friend! I was so upset to see you go, even if I was pretty sure I knew what was going to happen at that Tribal Council. You were such a breath of fresh air in this competition; you have such a unique style and I could really feel your heart in everything you put out. As another person that likes to do readings of my pieces, I'm so glad that you did those! They added such a wonderful dimension and personality to your work, and I really hope that I see more from you. Thank you for helping to keep me safe in those Tribal Councils where I felt vulnerable; I really wish I could have done the same for you.

[clauderainsrm]

bleodswean

[gunwithoutmusic]

You already know how I feel about your writing. You absolutely stun me with your work. And if it wasn't for life getting in the way, I think there's a really strong chance that you might have been in the final instead of me, and I think there's a really strong chance that you could have won this whole thing. You have a great spirit and a beautiful mind. I know how hard your loss was on you; I've been through it myself and I know I'm going to have to go through again at least three more times in my life. I wouldn't wish that on anyone. *hugs* But I also know how strong you are, and I fully expect to see more beautifully- and carefully-crafted tales from you the next go-round.

[clauderainsrm]

adoptedwriter

[gunwithoutmusic]

adoptedwriter, you really really surprised me this season! You showed a huge amount of range in your work and I could tell that you were really stretching yourself and just having so much fun with it the whole time. I'm really proud of you for just going for it time and time again; you put out some of the best work that I've read from you this season, and I hope you're proud of yourself too. :) Your attitude through this season and your contributions to Tribal Councils and discussion posts were sorely missed. I know I'll see you again, and I really look forward to it!

[clauderainsrm]

alycewilson

[gunwithoutmusic]

Alyce, I had hoped that things wouldn't have ended up the way they did for you this season. I could have seen you sitting here in the top three; you are so consistent and you are such a good writer. The ease with which you manage to touch my heart with your work is just astounding to me. Like adoptedwriter, I saw such range from you that I didn't get to see in the last regular season of Idol. I always liked your writing and your style, but you really stepped it up this time around and did an amazing job! It broke my heart to see you go out in fifth place, because I had that goal too of surpassing my best finish... and it killed me to feel like I had a hand in stopping you from achieving your goal in an effort to achieve mine. I'm ready to see what you come up with for your next Idol playthrough - and I'll be right there cheering you on the whole time!

[clauderainsrm]

murielle

[gunwithoutmusic]

murielle, what can I say? You are just a treasure. I know that we didn't talk much outside of journal comments this season; it seemed like we were always on opposite ends. From the straight-up joy you brought into the Tribal Councils and the discussion posts to the anxiety you brought me with your constant cliffhangers (you'd better finish that story!!), you really were the heart and soul of this game, and I'm so happy that you made it almost to the end because this whole place would have been completely different without you around. You are a good writer and a good competitor, and I really hope that you enjoyed playing with me as I did with you.