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The Second Life Vision Quest
What does it mean to "see?" Anyone who is blind or has limited eyesight will tell you there are many ways to perceive the world. All the senses are involved - smell, taste, touch, and hearing - not to mention that elusive, not quite definable sixth sense. It's that sixth sense takes us beyond the realm of pure physical sight into what is often called, "vision."
The Native Americans understood the concept of "vision" well. Knowing the limitations of physical sight, they built rituals into their lives that helped them go beyond those limits to discover other, hidden insights. They called these rirtuals "visions quests," or journeys that expanded reality and made it possible to "see" in new and different ways.
This Second Life version of a Vision Quest is designed to spark your imagination and encourage you to "see" in new and thought provoking ways. Participants will have a choice between one of two Story Trails to pursue:
- Story Trail #2: Told from the eyes of a seeing eye dog named Max.
Each trail will have a specific set of clues to find and follow in order to tell your story. These clues will include everything from finding actual physical objects and interacting with them to doing a bit of online sleuthing in order make your story more authentic. No matter which story you choose, you must use MAX the seeing dog (free to all participants) to find the physical clues hidden on the sims. Other requirements for the story will be explained in the instructions.
Participants in the Quest will also be encouraged to take photos as they work through the clues and to post them to a Flickr group called, "Where is Max." These images will be used as part of the awards ceremony presentation. Instructions on how to post will be included in the the Instruction Kit each participant will receive at the start.
When: The Vision Quest begins on Saturday, June 20th at midnight and runs until midnight on Tuesday, June 24th. In other words, a total of four days.
Where: The Vision Quest will begin on one of two sims: Storybook Island or Biloxi. Participants are free to choose either sim as a starting point.
What: Participants can choose their story trails, pick up their Instruction Kits, and get a Free copy of Max the seeing eye dog at the starting point on either sim. Volunteers will be present to help those who are unsure about how to use the dog. The instructions will contain directions to the first clue.
Length: The Vision Quest will run for four days. To be considered for one of the prizes, all stories must be dropped in the submission boxes on either Storybook Island or Biloxi by midnight on Tuesday, June 23rd. There is no limit to the number of stories you can turn in, and you can do one or both of the Story Trails.
Prizes: Cash prizes will be given to the top three stories: $10,000 Lindens for First, $7,500 Lindens for Second, and $5,000 Lindens for Third. Judging will be conducted by a panel of five judges and commence on Wednesday, June 2th.
Awards: Awards will be handed out at The Vision Quest awards ceremony to be held on Saturday, June 27th at 1:00 pm (SLT). Winners will be notified beforehand and asked to read their winning entries at the ceremony. If for some reason a winner does not want to read his/her story, Jenaia Morane or another appointed avatar will read it for him/her.
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