Which of the Encanto Gifts would you like to have?

[everywhere and nowhere]

(And how many times do I have to type the same? Topic title, poll title, question title... arrrgh. I guess that you understand it anyway without me explaining it for the fourth time.)

[Destranix]

I have not watched the movie, but someone else asked this question on another platform and only one of the powers was valueable in the end after looking at the drawbacks: Talking to animals.

[Gloomy]

Shape shifting!

[Monke Jimmy]

I would like the grandmother's gift: the house

[AceArospec]

Talking to animals would be top on my list, but I think weather control, shape shifting & superhuman strength would be sort of neat, too. I have VERY sensitive hearing & it's not fun, so I think I'd consider "ultra hearing" less of a blessing and more of a curse. But (especially considering Bruno's storyline) I suppose all gifts could be seen this way. 

[Ceebs]

Haven't seen the film, but probably healing. Seems like it would be the most useful to myself and others, and I'd rather be able to help people than like... create flowers??? Shapeshifting would definitely be cool, though.

[Artemis42]

Either shapeshifting or talking to animals, though healing is probably more useful and practical lol.

[The French Unicorn]

Certainly not weather control or super hearing. Sounds like curses to me (at least how they are depicted in the movie).

Clairvoyance is good though I hesitated with communicating with animals. Flowers and plants are cool too, we need more of them.

 

[blunose2772]

Shapeshifting. That way i can be anyone I want to be and not who I am.

[verily-forsooth-egads]

I think Camilo's power is objectively the best (second choice Luisa) and Pepa's is objectively the worst.

 

Seriously… are we pretending there's any environment where feeling emotions causes property damage that doesn't result in trauma?

[Lord Revan]

26 minutes ago, verily-forsooth-egads said:

I think Camilo's power is objectively the best (second choice Luisa) and Pepa's is objectively the worst.

 

Seriously… are we pretending there's any environment where feeling emotions causes property damage that doesn't result in trauma?

Pepa's would be horrible. Except if she can select what sounds to hear. That might be fun

[verily-forsooth-egads]

19 minutes ago, Lord Revan said:

Pepa's would be horrible. Except if she can select what sounds to hear. That might be fun

You're thinking of Dolores, Pepa is the one whose emotions control the weather

[Lord Revan]

1 minute ago, verily-forsooth-egads said:

You're thinking of Dolores, Pepa is the one whose emotions control the weather

Oh, ok, sorry. I mean Dolores

[verily-forsooth-egads]

2 minutes ago, Lord Revan said:

Oh, ok, sorry. I mean Dolores

If you ask me it seems like she does have control over what she hears, I mean she can hear infinitesimal noises across the house that you'd think would be drowned out by a billion other infinitesimal noises.

[Lord Revan]

4 minutes ago, verily-forsooth-egads said:

If you ask me it seems like she does have control over what she hears, I mean she can hear infinitesimal noises across the house that you'd think would be drowned out by a billion other infinitesimal noises.

Probably would get burst eardrum instantly

[Eutierria]

Healing is the closest, followed by talking with animals. 

 

Why is no one talking about Bruno? 🙃😝

[Lord Revan]

Just now, Eutierria said:

Healing is the closest, followed by talking with animals. 

 

Why is no one talking about Bruno? 🙃😝

Because 🎶we don't talk about Brunooooo 🎶

[everywhere and nowhere]

2 hours ago, verily-forsooth-egads said:

If you ask me it seems like she does have control over what she hears, I mean she can hear infinitesimal noises across the house that you'd think would be drowned out by a billion other infinitesimal noises.

This reminds me a lot of the "brain valve" theory: that, basically, the brain is - not exclusively, of course, but also - a "reducing valve", which filters out "unnecessary" input, allowing the subject to concentrate on anything. Because one thing should be clear: it's not just some "malice of nature", too much input would indeed leave a person unable to concentrate on anything and get anything done, they would constantly be interrupted by some kind of sensory stimuli. One of the things psychedelic drugs to do is to disrupt this mechanism and intensify available stimuli. The theory is, for example, presented in Huxley's "Doors of Perception".

And obviously, in my case my early introduction to psychedelic theory (at that point only theory, and it continued being that way for eighteen more years since "these words which produce visions") made me problematise the issue, pay attention to moments when I catch my brain red-celled filtering out something that I think I should have noticed or remembered... From a diary entry, June 27th:

Quote

In fact as I am recording it now, it's already about two levels of oblivion. I don't remember the exact circumstances anymore, I don't remember why I was wondering whether a car had just turned right - maybe it was even just a random example, a pars pro toto as a proof of how many tiny events happening around us escape our awareness. Indeed I have a poor recall of events, but next to perfect recall of texts ("Lore-Lei" in Heine's version, that French poem about butterfly effect, or even national anthem of Norway - I have learned them many years ago and I still remember them...), which too casts a light on my priorities... Anyway it was like this: I was cycling close to Auchan [1] and for some reason I was wondering whether some car had just turned right - and I didn't remember. A kind of realisation how many events does our consciousness fail to record. I have no doubt that constant functioning with an untwisted valve would be at the very least strenuous, if not unbearable (...). The valve has in fact a protective function, facilitates out everyday functioning. And yet the moment some form of psychedelic theory or philosophy of the mind problematises the valve's existence, it's impossible to repress thoughts that there are other ways of experiencing the world. The mind rebels somehow aimlessly, with an obstinacy worth of a better cause [2], since the valve can be untwisted anyway, and on a day-to-day basis I absolutely wouldn't want to, couldn't function among water from an untightened valve flooding the floor. And yet the valve issue appears as a problem, even just for asking myself: how much does evade us every moment? What do we really know about the world? [3]

Footnotes:

[1] Auchan - supermarket close to my home.

[2] It's a literal translation of a Polish saying, I'm not sure if there's an equivalent in English... anyway I found it vivid enough to decide to translate it literally.

[3] Self-quote from some older diary entry, hence the italics.

[Blueberry Pie]

If you have seen Isabela’s song, you know how cool her powers are! My top three choices are:

 

- Isabela (total plant control… definitely not just flowers if you have seen the movie)

- Julieta (healing. The problem with this is that you’d be cooking all the time, but it is undoubtedly invaluable.)

- Camilo (shapeshifting)

[Kurokuma]

Communicating with animals would be cool and maybe useful in some situations.

[Itsa me a person]

I chose healing but really it’s between that or just no powers at all 

[A User]

Shape-shifting.

Ultimate gender 

[Starry Sky]

Communicating with animals!! I all too often wish I could.  Although superhuman strength is a close second. Only worry that I would accidentally hurt objects or people with that amount of strength 

 

Oh! Or healing! Completely looked over that one

Edited November 20, 2022 by Starry Sky

[Kimi_gata]

Shapeshifting would be cool, especially if I could change my personality, too. Or healing.

[iff]

@everywhere and nowhere

 

This poll is being locked and moved to the read only Census archive for it's respective year. As part of ongoing Census organisation, and in an attempt to keep the demographics of the polls current with the active user base at the time, the polls will last for one year from now on. However, members are allowed and even encouraged to restart new polls similar to the archived ones if they like them.

  

iff, Census Forum Moderator