Greetings, Altavia!
Welcome to the New Year! We hope that you all had a lovely holiday season full of fun times with the people that you love.
It has been quiet, event and practice-wise, since our last missive. With the holidays and much-needed rain hitting southern California, we have only had one fighter practice since the beginning of December 🙁 Many thanks to Sibylla for arranging and encouraging alternate hangouts on Discord during fighter practice time the past two weeks and to those that have joined the hangouts. It’s certainly not the same as getting out there and practicing but it’s a great spirit-lifter when “recess” gets cancelled for weather.
This past weekend was the Coronation of King Optimus and Queen Issa and Caid’s bi-annual Privy Council, and they were both full of important pageantry, conversations, and, at the end of the day, much love for the Kingdom we play in and the Game we play. Thank you to everyone who contributed to the bountiful largesse and amazing gifts we presented to their Outgoing and Incoming Majesties and thank you to all who processed in with us. As always, Master Colwyn creatively announced Altavia’s presence and entertained the assembled crowd. A highlight of the day was the beautiful and theatrical exit of their then Majesties and now Graces Adam and Staeina on amazingly decorated and kitted out Viking ships; more theater like this please! And, of course, many thanks and deepest gratitude to Duke Adam and Duchess Staeina for their calm and thoughtful leadership throughout their reign!
Many congratulations, also, to Altavia’s own Master Laertes who stepped up as Kingdom Seneschal during Saturday’s Coronation! He takes over from Sir Tiberius Finn who masterfully guided Caid through some of the darkest times. Thank you, Sir Tiberius, for your tireless service to the Kingdom of Caid and enjoy your well-earned break.
On Sunday, His Excellency and I attended Privy Council, skillfully run by our new Kingdom Seneschal, where many important and weighty subjects were discussed. A large part of the conversation was around officer burnout, recruiting, and how we can all help each other make sure our territories have what they need to keep going strong. If you have any ideas on how we can partner with other baronies and shires on events, demos, or other efforts, please bring them forward…no idea is too big or too small to be discussed. At the end of the meeting there was a difficult discussion around the investigative process in the SCA and what can be done during this process to help members of the populace that may not feel safe attending events.
While we don’t need to go into details here, we know there were many things that took place this weekend and leading up to this weekend that you may want to discuss further. Please know that His Excellency and I are always here to listen, to bring your concerns forward when needed, and to help you work on any solutions you might want to propose. At the end of the day, though we may have different opinions on many things, we ALL love this family we call the SCA and want to make sure it is a fun, safe, and inclusive space for all for years to come.
Yours in Service to the Dream,
Baron Nikolaos Phaistos
Baroness Briana MacCabe
