Tremida and Its Boundaries

Tremida has been in creative flux for many years, and it will continue to grow and develop. Overall, I am content with the cabin, our view of the lake, and the surrounding woods and mountain ranges. I will never grow tired of staring out across that glassy water at the tumultuous waterfalls.

But we have wondered how far Tremida goes… or could go. What goes on beyond the boundaries?

One day in Tremida, the conversation came up. Could we cross the lake, and if so, what would we find? I stood on the shore, and I requested clarity to look across the way. In the shadow of the mountain, beyond Tremida’s falls, I could see the heads of businesses and residences on the farther shore. 

“There’s a town over there,” I decided.

It’s important to know who is listening in at all times. The following day, when I returned to Tremida, the conversation came up again.

“You know, Ed tried to cross the lake,” someone said.

“What?” I snorted. I hadn’t expected anyone to actually try to make it across. There was never really a reason to. Now I had planted a seed for exploration out there. I was immensely curious; nothing over there was ‘done.’ What would he have found? 

I turned to Ed, who looked somewhere between resolute and embarrassed. “So, what happened?”

“The boat capsized.”

I laughed, incredulous but a little concerned. “Were you scared?”

“No. God said it wasn’t done yet. He didn’t want me to leave the shore until it was done.”

This led to a conversation about why the boat capsized. Ed had made it sound like God did it. He explained that he felt a resistance, like he couldn’t go farther, and he concluded that the boat must be capsizing. I still don’t know if Ed was being honest, trying to sound brave, or trying to be funny. I was concerned, but he assured me that he snapped back to shore. 

And what if he kept rowing out to sea?

Ed said, “I would have gotten bored adrift on the ocean, and I would have reappeared in Tremida again.”

Despite our propensity to create on-demand as souls, it seems like in the case of Tremida, the creation, depth, and extent of this environment rests solely on me. Since then, I have planned for theaters, coffeehouses, and even a pizza parlor (which we have since visited). 

All of these suggestions raise questions. How do you generate a movie you’ve never seen before? Is it similar to reading a book or a note someone has handed you, where the idea of the subject matter is channeled instead of read word-for-word?

Another consequence to having such a complex environment is the limitation of memory. If you and your team aren’t regularly visiting areas of your environment, at your whim, they may appear different the next time you visit, much to your team’s confusion. In addition to this, it’s exceedingly difficult to control an entire bustling city with its mapped roads, alleyways, and businesses. It would be in constant flux.

Instead of attempting to visualize an entire city down to the street grates as I would have with the cabin, I have been selectively creating small establishments and sort of “magicking” us there. The team loves sharing the experience of driving, but as soon as we enter town and city limits, I have to “blink” us into the establishment. 

Also, I can imagine it would be a logistical nightmare as I attempt to procedurally parallel park over and over again.

This sort of experience has only been effective if my team is lying down with me. I haven’t yet heard of them visiting these places on their own, and if they have, they don’t talk about it. If I consider an area to be unstable or “under construction,” they seem to understand now that it’s “off-limits,” and this is maintained by Source energy/God when I am not present. Very efficient!

I hope to eventually have a fully functioning city eventually, but I honestly prefer the quiet natural setting of the cabin and lake the most.