Should I Speak Or Listen?

Heylyn Yates aka Ai Yuanlin Ying and The Butterfly Dragon
Where To Now?



Having thrown myself wholeheartedly into the final chapter of Leave It To A Beaver, and having spent a great deal of time setting up my content production pipeline, I'm going to take a break over the weekend, and be an audience member in support of some of the entertainment content that I enjoy as a long time lover of books, movies and computer gaming.







Waking up to this morning's news headlines was an exercise in temptation, because I do feel very strongly about the relationship between the west and the east, namely over the relationship between Taiwan, The People's Republic Of China and the west. I struggled against the urge to write a politically impassioned address to the current situation after Nancy Pelosi's visit and China's response, but ultimately decided that I should give it some time over the weekend before expressing any sentiments when it comes the situation. I'd really like to see all parties come out of this in a way that is conducive of a better future, and cooperation between all nations involved.





Professor Bryce Maxwell And His favourite pass time
Where Does Shhhh! Digital Media Stand?



I do however want to illustrate the importance of Shhhh! Digital Media's stance on a few things, namely the fact that Shhhh! Digital Media itself is of a secular nature, embracing the idea that religion and beliefs are of a personal nature, and that where such beliefs organize to involve community, Shhhh! Digital Media does not identify itself with any particular religion at all. Instead, it strongly supports the freedom of belief of all peoples of the world, whether those beliefs are theist, atheist, deist, gnostic, agnostic or any other religion or philosophy. 



Monique Defleur: The Eclipse
Whenever Shhhh! Digital Media shows or disproves support for policy or actions taken in the world by representatives or decision makers, this is intended solely on the grounds of that distinct instance of policy or action itself, rather than extending to any other aspects that are unrelated to said policy or action (such as the religious identity of the policy maker). There are some actions and efforts that we can undertake in society, but those efforts should never embody the idea of turning any issue into or associating it as part of a "brand". Especially religiously or politically because all issues have their roots in, or affect people.










Doctor Alicia Westin
Shhhh! Digital Media has long been an advocate for Women' Rights, yet, Women's Rights do not belong to Shhhh! Digital Media or any other "brand", for they belong to Women. Much the same, Shhhh! Digital Media has advocated strongly through story telling for education, social engagement and responsible action coupled with leniency, yet those ideas do not belong to Shhhh! Digital Media, for they belong to everyone.

































Heylyn Yates - The Butterfly Dragon
In good form
Finally, thanks to earlier relationships in my own life and from the help of the Asian community in Canada and abroad over the last thirty years, my heart very much has a vested connection to the Far East Of Asia, and always will. Shhhh! Digitial Media through my efforts has advocated for Asian cultural presence and representation in some of our most popular forms of media, and long before it would have been considered fashionable or socially responsible to do so. This has been the case with both The Butterfly Dragon And A Lady's Prerogative, both of which were actually born when I was in my pre-teens, back in 1980/1981. That's how long both story lines have been with me. Yet, any culture of the world, belongs to the members of those cultures themselves, and is not and never will be the property of any brand, Shhhh! Digital Media included. I am very grateful to have had my perspective through story telling acknowledged and accepted by the very people who inspired me as much as I've strived to inspire them.







Warai Jeongmin-Tokama: The 6 year old "Gem"
With the Butterfly Dragon III: The Two Dragons nearing its arrival on the doorstep of its third act, Shhhh! Digital Media is focusing on a key aspect of that story in the form of the tiniest protagonist I've ever written. A young child, who is coming into a world complicated by challenges that are difficult for many of us of the older generations to comprehend. Especially by the fact that as we get older, we tend to become more rigid and closed minded,  while the other opposite extreme is just as risky and dangerous. This is the world that children the world over are facing, and yet life goes on. The courage and optimism of children the world over does not belong to Shhhh! Digital Media at all, nor is it part of any brand. It belongs entirely to the children, and the future of the world. I only hope that I can represent this challenge in some meaningful and inspiring way, as I walk beside them.




Askuwheteau: The strength of the Totem
Finally, Shhhh! Digital Media in the last five years has taken steps to come full circle. Back to my home of Canada, where the most recent characters added to the lineup of A Lady's Prerogative and the Butterfly Dragon reflect the growing convergence of the Indigenous community as a determined force in the future culture of the world. Once again, with such efforts put forth, I walk responsibly with, but will not wield Indigenous culture as a brand of Shhhh! Digital Media, nor will it ever belong to the brand of Shhhh! Digital Media, for it belongs to the Indigenous people themselves.


All of those elements will be part of the future of Shhhh! Digital Media, but they will always belong to the people whom they represent.





Enjoying The Ride



Shaela Sheowellyn: Night Wytch And Shadow Cat
There have always been times when it is a benefit to the world to express your perspective, and yet sometimes there are times when its better just to watch and let things play out, trusting in the potential that people have not for vilifying each other via polarization, but rather their ability to find a mutually beneficial solution that considers and includes all.


When I saw those headlines, I started a very different post several times, before I decided that this weekend, I'm just going to be a part of the audience, and enjoy the ride.







You Are More Than Just One Thing At A Time



Xenshi: In The Spirit Of The Dance
As many of you know, besides being a writer, I'm also a gamer and a coder at times too, though I'm not one for software releases. I've actually got a backlog of software I've written that I've not released at all. 


Some of it that has been actively developed over the course of the last twelve years, and is software that I use every single day. I've never been the kind of person that believes that if you don't use it, you lose it. I think that's nonsense. I haven't ridden a bicycle in a decade, but I can guarantee you that I can still do it. I haven't swam in about sixteen years, but I guarantee I can still do it.


At any given moment, without the requirement of your having to concentrate or think about it, your body is taking care of over a thousand functions each second, all of which are required for your body to remain alive. Just because you aren't consciously thinking about any of those things, doesn't mean that a part of you isn't doing them, or for that matter that you're losing them because you lose what you don't use. A body builder's body needs maintenance if its going to be able to retain its muscular form, but one never loses the ability to do something simply by not doing it for a period time. Except for breathing.

You Can Do It


Athandra Rithyani: Ganesha Overcomes
You're not a phony, just because you suddenly want to try something different or new. Never let the kind of people who'd discourage you be the deciding factor for any creative or work endeavor you want to pursue. Whether they call you a blood sucker or phony, don't let them get to you. In most such cases, Marshall McLuhan was right. The messenger really is the message. Don't focus on them. They're the obstacle, and never let others decide for you your own measure of success. 


Some of the greatest successes in the world were never realized until long after the death of the person who realized them. Nicolai Tesla died broke in a cheap rental hotel room, and yet his legacy has yielded the entire world electrical power grid, and hence everything that arose from it. Financially that's worth trillions upon trillions of dollars in the GDP of nearly every country in the world for the last century. Measure yourself by your own yardstick (or meter stick if you're metric).


Lastly, there are people who literally never try. There are people who are fully capable of getting out of bed every single day, but choose instead to stay there, under the auspices that they control the world just by lying in bed and concentrating on it. That everything that everyone else in the world does, arises from these people who are too afraid to get out of bed. Its quite sad really, but when you become victimized by such people, its anything but worthy of pity.


I guess its far easier to simply sit and do nothing, and yet claim everything when in fact, such people are so terrified of the world, that when they attempted to do anything through the vessels of the people they assume to control, they'd fall apart. Never let people who are too afraid to face life themselves make you afraid of life so much that you'd eventually end up becoming one of them.



 Nelony Ardbloem: Aerth Wytch
Expressing meaningful ideas and taking part in the world means having an interest in knowledge and the way of things, and that drive that motivates you to be curious about such things, even pursuing them when it isn't the healthiest thing to do. That is you in every sense of the word. That's how you learn to deal with this world, and how you learn to apply the knowledge and experience that interests you. Many of the people who lay in bed all day and think they control the world, don't have any kind of passion or drive like that, but they know what it is, and I think they like how it tastes, for lack of a better word.













Mila Rendebelle: Art Wytch
By expressing meaningful ideas into the world, or taking action to take part in the world yourself, you've already separated yourself from those people. Consider it that when you realize that they live and thrive for your attention, that you'll be able to focus on anything but them because they're thriving on your motivation. I honestly believe that its a good thing to share, even if you're sharing your sense of satisfaction and completion with regard to any of your efforts in life. The good feeling with effective communication and effort too.


However, its never good to reward abuse by any means. You and others have a right to be treated with dignity, and if you reward abuse, then chances are you're encouraging it. In my experience, never reward the kind of people who treat you that way, but do everything you can to direct your attention somewhere else where it is better focused.


Sooner or later they might gain the introspection and insight to try taking part in the world themselves and as such, earn the good feeling that comes from knowing they did their part, whether that be sharing their experience or taking part in the world without making others afraid to do the same.


The Future?



Aikiko Tanaka: Dragon Butterfly
I've got two more books to finish. The first being The Butterfly Dragon III: The Two Dragons, and the last one being A Lady's Prerogative III: Singularity. Technically I have a bunch more, but the aforementioned two are my current focus.


Once they're done, I'm going to be continuing my story telling efforts on a much different and interactive medium. Something I've wanted to do my whole life, but never had the right stories to tell or the technology to achieve it.


Now I've got the right stories, and I'm nearing the point where the technology and know how are within my grasp, so there's not really an excuse anymore. 


That's the future of Shhhh! Digital Media. I hope that inspires your future too.








To anyone interested, I'll be spending most of my weekend gaming, trying out the latest test update of Conan Exiles with Steam and Epic (playing on the Test Live servers and possibly on one of my favourite G-Portal servers), doing the Far Cry 6 free weekend on Ubisoft and possibly if time permits, doing a stint on X-Box Game Pass and Google Stadia while watching a good flick.


Thank you for taking the time to read my content here on Shhhh! Digital Media. 


Have a great weekend and I hope to see you online. Special thanks to YouTube community, TikTok and of course a big kiss to Miss Chen. Hope you like the house ;-)