tontonton

Welcome! Today we will go through a story about a rabbit, in English, and show how it is written in Tone Text. This can help us master some of the basic vowels and consonants so we can read more Tone runes in other languages :)

Let's begin!

Rabbit

Mmmm... I stretch, opening my eyes. My legs are still quietly tucked in.

mmmm... aI strEtx, owpOniq maI aIz. maI lEgz a2 stIl kwaIEtli tUkt In.

Notice how the m looks like an m, they are basically the same. The I sound is represented as aI throughout several words.

Mmm... My home feels extra cozy today. Don't want to wake up, let those eyes droop down for just a little longer!

mmm... maI howm filz E9kstU kowzi tOdeI. down' want0 tO weIk Up, lEt0 Cowz aIz d2up dAwn f12 djUst U lIdl laqg2.

Note the o in home is actually involving two sounds, ow. Also note that the English r is treated as a vowel in Tone, 2. Finally, to is not written/pronounced like the number, but tO, how you more casually say it. Just sound out the words and see how it is exactly written in Tone!

Mmmm!! The burrow has an unusually musty smell about it. It is time to do work! Chipper me this. And all will be well, just wait and see.

mmmm.. CU b292ow hAz On Unyu9juwli mUsti smEl UbA9wt It0 It Iz taIm tO du w2k9 txIp2 mi CIs. And al wIl bi wEl, djUst weIt And si.

Here we have some words with accent marks or stress, the dot above in b292ow. Sometimes the English word in Tone becomes shorter, like work becomes w2k, other times it may expand slightly. The j sound in just is written as two sounds dj, that is key.

Hop hop hop, out of my burrow. Emerging from the ground, my hind legs support my peeping eyes. Look around! See the beauty. Witness the infinite unfolding. The rays of the sun warmly touch me like a kiss. Surrounded by green and purple, red and blue, I feel the yellow chanting with all of us. Sniff. Sniff. "What's this?" Perching on all toes, I freeze. Ears kept sharp and steady. Bloop. A bit of rain settling into the dirt. Wow, so cool.

hap hap hap, Awt Uv maI b292ow. im29djiq frUm CU grAwnd, maI haInd lEgz sUpo2t0 maI pipiq aIz. lOk U2A9wnd. si CU byu9di. wItnIs CU InfInIt0 Unfowldiq. CU reIz Uv CU sUn w12mli tUtx mi laIk U kIs. s2%A9wndId baI grin And p2pl, rEd And bluw, aI fil CU yE9low txA9ntiq wIc al Uv Us. snIf. snIf. wUts CIs? p29txiq an al towz, aI friz. irz kEpt xarp And stE9di. blup9 eI bIt Uv reIn sE9dliq Intu CU d2t. wAw, sow kuwl.

Here we have two more compound sounds, ch as tx, since it is really a composition of two sounds, and sh as x, since it is really just one primitive sound. After a while of practice and standardizing, it appears we will land on a canonical pronunciation, even if we vary slighly in our specific character and way we pronounce the words we are speaking.

A soft breeze glances my fur. Boom, it's wonderful to be alive. To be tantalized by the aroma of wild sage; to be seated amongst the tallest pines. Pluck! A blackberry. What more could one want.

eI saft briz glA9nsIz maI f2. bum, Itz wU9nd2fUl tu bi UlaIv. tu bi tA9ntUlaIzd baI CU Uro9wmU Uv waIld seIdj. tu bi si9dId UmU9qst CU ta9lIst paInz. plUk. aI blA9kbE2%i. wUt m1r kOd wUn want.

Here we have a long r, with the accent below as 2%.

Ah, my friend! There you are, you're awake! Smell the must. Be like the newborn babe and take a gander. Feel the rhythm, feel connected. Feel inspired. The information and computation that surrounds us is at its best.

a, maI f2End. CE2 yuw a2, y12 Uwe9Ik9 smEl CU mUst. bi laIk CU nu9wb12n beIb And teIk U gA9nd2. fil CU 2I9Cm, fil kUnE9ktId. fil InspaI2d. CU Inf2me9IxOn And kampyute9IxOn CAt s2%A9wndz Us Iz At Its bEst.

Watchful like a hunter, open minded like a beautiful blue flower, ready like the wind, we begin our trek. Following the trail of the wilderness, feasting on its diversity. Others will soon join in as they see fit.

wa9txfUl laIk aI hUnt2, owpIn maIndId laIk a byu9dIfUl bluw flA9w2, rEdi laIk CU wInd, wi bigIn Ao2 trEk. fa9lowiq CU treIl Uv CU wI9ld2nIs, fi9stiq an Its daIv29sIdi. UC2z wIl sun dj1In In Az CeI si fIt.

Now it's time for work. Things to be done. Ideas to create. Problems to illustrate, solutions to spiral back around, like the tunnels we so generously have dug. More must be dug. Gems uncovered. Roots nibbled upon, areas explored and safety and benevolence experienced. After all, this process needs some company. Let the mind mould the earth, and I should have a safe restful home for the night. Sniff Sniff.

nAw Its taIm f12 w2k. ciqz tu bi dUn. aIdi9Uz tu krie9It0 pra9blUmz tu I9lUstreIt, sUlu9xOns tu spa9I2Ul bAk UrA9wnd, laIk CU tU9nlz wi sow djE9n2Usli hAv dUg.

Licking our ears and rubbing our paws, well-groomed rabbits begin our rugged journey. Like master chefs early in the dawn. Whoo whoo whoo, we dig away. We must take a few essential stops along the way, too. To see the lights and know what's ahead in the darkness.

Boom. A new stone. A speck of the unseen. A specimen of the evolution of creation.

bum. eI nuw stown. eI spEk Uv CU Unsi9n. eI spE9sUmIn Uv CU Ev1lu9xOn Uv krie9IxOn.

Bam. What'd you find?! Some gold creeping out from the crevices of this rock. Nice.

bAm. wU9tOd yuw faInd? sUm gold kri9piq Awt frUm CU krE9vUsIz Uv CIs rak. naIs.

Now, map it out. What do we do next? We solve the main problem we're facing in traversing down this rabbit hole.

The sun is sinking in the horizon. The breeze is still cool. Grasshoppers and woodpeckers flicker about. The salmon still fill the stream. Moon is becoming visible, and yet, we have no desire to end our endeavors. What mysteries await? What more must we find and learn to construct this map and use it to the worlds advantage?

Rain. We must master the rain. Know how it starts, and how to bring it back when things are near. We must find the patterns in the light and night, in the big and small, in the rough and smooth, until it just clicks. You know better than I what this feels like. We are masters, just like all things who reach into the unknown and open to the wisdom of the elders. Once we figure it out, we will be able to move mountains.

But, for now, we are here. On time. Sitting on our chosen spots. Clean, focused, satisfied, and capable. Sniff. Sniff. I munch on a scatter of weeds. What are you up to next? I begin dipping my paws into the soil to dig into it, shifting it this way and that. I take my time, distracted by my imagination, looking through my eyes to my front and sides, yet seeing with my body. You know it when you see it, you know it when you feel it, you know it when you do it. Just wish it could I had a little bit more time to try this one last thing. But alas, the sun has set.

My journey rests with the dark blue and gold. The moon shines with its four key phases, subdividing into an odd and curious number 7. A sprinkle of creation, a dash of hard work, and the outcome is magical.

Finally, I peep around the mystery I've unravelled. Weep at the sketches we have all so fortuitiously made. Sniff. Sniff. We have made our home safe, made it grand, we could never lose sight of it. It will keep us sheltered well. The walls are large enough to let me wiggle my ears if I need to. And yet, cosy enough to cover my body like a woolly blanket. I take a deep breath in. And one out, to greet the night and say thanks to the day.

I have burrowed into my hole. My home.

I tuck my legs in snugly, making me a furry ball of happiness. My ears become floppy. My home already feels familiar. I let my eyelids slide down, half way through. My senses ease off. What an eventful day it has been. You too? I give myself a paw on my back, as my thoughts settle down. We're a good team, and I can't wait for others to join.

Sniff sniff. Mmmm... Time for rest. Time to purify the mind and leave what's best. Breathe in.... Breathe out... Breath in... Breath out... Good night all. Sniff sniff. Sniff.

Sounds of the wind roll over the tube from which we have made our sleeping space. I dream of all the new things I get to do and make in the next part of the cycle. So close, yet so far, and yet this is what keeps me going.

Sounds of the stream in the distance. A few crickets.

More crickets. This is the life.

More wind... More wilderness awaits.