There are moments in Scripture when the words do not simply describe something but seem to lift you up and carry you into a place where language itself feels too small. Revelation chapter fifteen is one of those moments. It is not a long chapter. It does not offer a long list of events or detailed timelines. Instead, it opens a window into heaven at a very specific and very powerful moment in the story of God and humanity. It is the quiet, blazing calm before the final storm. It is the pause in the music before the last movement begins. It is the breath God takes before justice is finally poured out in full.

John tells us he sees “another sign in heaven, great and marvellous.” That phrase alone should make us stop. Heaven does not use words lightly. When heaven calls something great and marvelous, it means the whole universe is paying attention. This is not spectacle for spectacle’s sake. This is divine gravity. Something is about to happen that will finish a story that began all the way back in Eden. The war between light and darkness, truth and lies, God and rebellion is reaching its final chapter.

Seven angels appear, carrying seven last plagues. John is careful with his language here. He does not call them just plagues. He calls them the last plagues. There is a finality in that word that echoes all through the chapter. This is not endless punishment. This is not God losing His temper. This is God finishing something He promised He would finish. The wrath of God is not the tantrum of a tyrant. It is the resolve of a holy Creator who will not allow evil to rule forever.

One of the quiet tragedies of modern faith is how often we shrink God down until He fits neatly into our comfort. We like a God who is gentle but not a God who is just. We like a God who forgives but not a God who confronts. Revelation fifteen shatters that small, safe version of God. It reminds us that love without justice is not love at all, and mercy without truth becomes meaningless. God’s holiness is not an accessory. It is His very nature.

John then sees something breathtaking. He sees what looks like a sea of glass mingled with fire. This image alone could occupy your heart for a lifetime. A sea of glass suggests calm, clarity, purity, and reflection. Fire suggests holiness, judgment, and refining power. Together they show us something extraordinary. God’s holiness is not chaotic. It is not wild or unstable. It is clear and purposeful. Even when God judges, there is beauty and order in it because God Himself is beautiful and ordered.

Standing on this sea of glass are those who have overcome the beast, his image, and his mark. These are not people who escaped suffering. These are people who endured it. They resisted the pressure of the world, the seduction of compromise, and the terror of persecution. They did not win by being stronger than evil. They won by being faithful in the presence of it. Heaven does not crown those who avoid hardship. Heaven crowns those who remain loyal in it.

And what are they doing? They are singing. That detail should not be missed. After everything they have been through, after every tear, every fear, every moment when they wondered if following God was worth it, they are not bitter. They are not exhausted. They are not numb. They are singing. Worship is what remains when every other voice has been silenced. Worship is what is left when you finally see God clearly.

They sing the song of Moses and the song of the Lamb. This is one of the most beautiful connections in all of Scripture. The song of Moses was sung after God delivered Israel from slavery in Egypt. It was the sound of chains breaking, of an oppressed people walking free. The song of the Lamb is sung after God delivers His people from the ultimate slavery, the dominion of sin, death, and deception. One song comes from the Old Covenant. The other comes from the New. Together they form one story of redemption that stretches across all of human history.

Their song declares that God’s works are great and marvelous, that His ways are just and true, that He alone is holy. This is not flattery. This is recognition. When you finally see God as He truly is, worship is not something you force. It is something that erupts. Heaven is not filled with worship because God demands it. Heaven is filled with worship because God deserves it.

Then something extraordinary happens. John sees the temple of the tabernacle of the testimony in heaven opened. This is the heavenly counterpart to the earthly tabernacle where God’s presence dwelled among Israel. In Scripture, when the temple opens, it means access to God’s presence. But in this moment, that access is not for humanity. It is for the angels who will carry out God’s final judgments. The holiness of God is stepping forward to confront everything that has defied it.

The seven angels come out of the temple, clothed in pure and white linen, with golden sashes around their chests. They are not described as terrifying or monstrous. They are described as clean, glorious, and dignified. Even judgment in heaven is carried out with purity and order. God does not use evil to defeat evil. He uses holiness.

One of the four living creatures gives the angels seven golden bowls filled with the wrath of God. These bowls are not thrown in anger. They are handed over in ceremony. Heaven is not chaotic when justice is dispensed. It is solemn. It is deliberate. It is reverent. Every drop of what is about to be poured out is measured by the righteousness of God.

Then the temple fills with smoke from the glory of God and from His power, and no one is able to enter it until the seven plagues are completed. This detail is astonishing. The same glory that once invited people into God’s presence now creates a barrier. Why? Because this moment is not about mercy. It is about completion. It is about God bringing the long, painful story of rebellion to its final, necessary conclusion.

There is something deeply emotional about this image. God is not distant here. God is intensely present. His glory fills the temple so completely that no one can move. Heaven itself pauses. Creation holds its breath. The holiness of God is not something you casually walk into. It is something that overwhelms everything it touches.

Revelation fifteen does not exist to scare us. It exists to sober us. It tells us that the choices we make, the truths we embrace, and the loyalties we keep actually matter. This chapter is not about punishing random people. It is about ending the reign of deception, cruelty, and spiritual abuse that has ravaged humanity for thousands of years.

There is a temptation in modern culture to treat all beliefs as equally valid and all paths as equally true. Revelation fifteen gently but firmly says that this is not so. Truth is not a matter of opinion. Holiness is not a social construct. God is not a preference. He is reality. And when reality finally stands up fully and clearly, everything that is false will fall away.

For those who have walked with God through hardship, this chapter is not terrifying. It is comforting. It means the story does not end with injustice winning. It means the tears of the faithful are not forgotten. It means every sacrifice, every act of obedience, every moment of quiet trust will be honored.

The people standing on that sea of glass did not get there by being perfect. They got there by being loyal. They trusted God when the world told them not to. They refused to bow when it would have been easier. They loved truth more than comfort. And now they stand in the presence of God, not ashamed, not afraid, but singing.

There is something deeply personal in that image for anyone who has ever felt out of place in this world. If you have ever felt like you did not quite fit, if you have ever been misunderstood because of your faith, if you have ever been mocked for holding onto something eternal in a temporary world, Revelation fifteen is whispering to you that your story is not over yet.

This chapter also confronts us with a serious question. Who do we trust when pressure comes? The beast in Revelation represents systems of power that demand loyalty in exchange for safety, success, or survival. Every generation has its own version of that beast. It might look like political control, social pressure, economic coercion, or cultural conformity. Revelation fifteen shows us that those systems will not last. Only what is rooted in God’s truth will remain.

When the bowls of God’s wrath are about to be poured out, heaven is not celebrating destruction. Heaven is honoring holiness. Heaven is recognizing that evil has had its day and now it is time for God to have His. There is a deep difference between vengeance and justice. Vengeance seeks to hurt. Justice seeks to heal by removing what is poisonous.

God’s wrath in Revelation is not about God losing His temper. It is about God restoring His creation. It is about God finally saying that enough is enough, that lies have lied long enough, that cruelty has had enough victims, that deception has destroyed enough lives.

Revelation fifteen is the doorway into that final restoration. It is the moment when heaven steps fully into the story. It is the sacred pause before everything broken begins to be made right.

And perhaps the most beautiful truth of all in this chapter is that the redeemed are not silent observers. They are participants. They are not hiding. They are singing. They are not afraid. They are worshiping. They are not wondering if they chose the right path. They are celebrating that they did.

If you ever doubt whether following God is worth it, come back to Revelation fifteen. Let it remind you that there is a sea of glass waiting, that there is a song you will one day sing, that there is a holiness that will one day surround you so completely that every doubt you ever had will finally fall away.

God does not start stories He does not finish. He does not rescue halfway. He does not redeem partially. Revelation fifteen is the promise that what He began in you, He will bring to completion.

And the fire that fills His temple is not there to destroy His people. It is there to burn away everything that tried to destroy them.

There is something quietly overwhelming about the way Revelation fifteen ends. It does not explode into chaos. It does not rush toward spectacle. It closes with a stillness so heavy that even heaven itself seems to pause. The temple is filled with smoke from the glory and power of God, and no one can enter until the last plagues are finished. That single image contains more theology, more emotional weight, and more spiritual truth than entire libraries of commentary.

This is the moment when God steps fully into His own story.

Throughout Scripture, smoke and glory appear when God’s presence becomes so intense that it cannot be ignored. On Mount Sinai, smoke covered the mountain when God gave the law. In the tabernacle, smoke filled the tent when God took up residence among His people. In Solomon’s temple, smoke filled the house so thickly that the priests could not stand to minister. Smoke is not confusion. It is holiness made visible. It is the weight of divine reality pressing into created space.

In Revelation fifteen, that same glory fills the heavenly temple. But this time, no one enters. Not angels. Not elders. Not worshipers. This is not because God has become distant. It is because God has become active. When the holiness of God moves from invitation to intervention, the posture of heaven changes. This is the sacred boundary between mercy extended and justice fulfilled.

This is one of the most misunderstood aspects of God’s character. Many people imagine that God’s patience means God is passive. They think His mercy means He will never act. But Scripture tells a different story. God is slow to anger, but He is not indifferent. He is rich in mercy, but He is also rich in truth. Revelation fifteen is the moment when patience reaches its holy limit.

What makes this moment so emotionally powerful is that it comes after worship.

The redeemed have just sung. They have just declared God’s greatness, His justice, His holiness. They have just celebrated His faithfulness. Heaven is filled with praise. And then, without contradiction, heaven is filled with judgment. These two things do not oppose each other. They belong together. God is praised because He is just. God is worshiped because He is holy. God is loved because He does not allow evil to win.

If you have ever been hurt deeply, this makes sense to you.

When someone has lied about you, abused you, betrayed you, or crushed something precious in you, you do not want a God who shrugs. You do not want a universe that says it does not matter. You want a God who sees. You want a God who remembers. You want a God who acts. Revelation fifteen tells us that God does.

The seven angels standing with their bowls are not symbols of cruelty. They are symbols of completion. These bowls are not random. They are the final expression of God’s response to a world that chose darkness over light again and again.

There is a deep kindness hidden in that.

Evil thrives on endless delay. Lies grow when truth is never spoken. Oppression deepens when justice never arrives. God’s wrath is not the opposite of His love. It is love’s final defense.

The people standing on the sea of glass are living proof of this. They did not survive because the world was gentle. They survived because God was faithful. They did not overcome because evil was weak. They overcame because truth was stronger.

And now, standing in God’s presence, they are not begging for mercy. They are praising God’s holiness. They are not asking for revenge. They are singing about God’s justice.

There is a maturity in heaven that we are still growing into on earth.

We often confuse justice with cruelty and mercy with weakness. God shows us that justice can be holy and mercy can be strong. Revelation fifteen is not a chapter about destruction. It is a chapter about moral clarity.

This world is not morally neutral.

What you love matters. What you worship matters. What you obey matters. What you refuse matters. Revelation fifteen is the heavenly acknowledgment that every choice echoes into eternity.

And yet, this chapter is not written to make you afraid. It is written to make you steady.

When everything around you feels chaotic, Revelation fifteen tells you that heaven is not. When injustice seems to be winning, Revelation fifteen tells you it will not. When truth feels buried under noise and manipulation, Revelation fifteen tells you that God is still holy, still just, still on the throne.

The smoke filling the temple is not the absence of God. It is the fullness of God.

It is the moment when all the pretending ends.

The redeemed stand in clarity. The angels stand in obedience. God stands in His glory. The story moves forward exactly as He said it would.

This chapter also quietly reshapes how we understand our own suffering.

The people on the sea of glass were not spared from pain. They were faithful through it. Their victory was not that they never faced the beast. Their victory was that they did not become like it.

That is the real battle in this world.

It is not just about surviving. It is about remaining true. It is about not letting the pressure of darkness change the shape of your soul. Revelation fifteen honors that kind of faith.

And if you have ever tried to live faithfully in a world that rewards compromise, you know how costly that can be.

This chapter tells you that none of that cost was wasted.

Every time you chose honesty when lying would have been easier. Every time you chose compassion when cruelty would have felt justified. Every time you chose obedience when rebellion would have been celebrated. Heaven saw it. God remembers it.

The song of Moses and the song of the Lamb are still being sung.

The God who delivered slaves from Egypt is the same God who delivers hearts from deception. The God who parted the sea is the same God who will one day part history itself and bring His kingdom fully into being.

Revelation fifteen stands like a lighthouse at the edge of eternity, shining backward into the storms of our present and reminding us that the story has an ending, and that ending belongs to God.

You do not have to make justice happen. You do not have to carry the weight of the world on your shoulders. You are not responsible for fixing everything. You are responsible for being faithful.

God will finish what He started.

God will right what has been wronged.

God will bring His holiness and His love together in a way that heals creation itself.

And until that day comes, you stand, like those on the sea of glass, in the tension between suffering and song, between hardship and hope, between a broken world and a faithful God.

Hold your faith.

Keep your song.

The temple is filling with glory.

The story is almost complete.

Your friend, Douglas Vandergraph

Watch Douglas Vandergraph’s inspiring faith-based videos on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@douglasvandergraph

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There is a moment in every human story when neutrality disappears. We like to believe we can hover in the middle, undecided, untouched, unclaimed, but life never truly allows that. Every heart eventually leans somewhere. Every soul eventually bows to something. Revelation 14 is one of the most piercing chapters in Scripture because it reveals that moment on a cosmic scale. It is the chapter where heaven openly draws a line in the sand, not in anger, not in cruelty, but in truth. And that truth is simple and terrifying all at once: everyone belongs to something, and in the end, it will be clear who belongs to God.

This chapter comes right after the rise of the beast and the system of spiritual, economic, and cultural control that has wrapped itself around the world. Revelation 13 shows us the pressure, the coercion, the fear. Revelation 14 shows us the response from heaven. It is not panic. It is not chaos. It is clarity. John lifts his eyes and suddenly sees something that has been invisible to most of the world: the Lamb standing on Mount Zion, and with Him 144,000 who bear His Father’s name written on their foreheads.

That detail alone is staggering. The beast marks people on the hand and the forehead. God marks people on the forehead. Both are claiming ownership. Both are saying, “You belong to me.” Revelation 14 reveals that the real battle of history is not politics, technology, or war. It is ownership. Who owns the human heart? Who has the right to define you? Who names you?

The Lamb stands on Mount Zion. Zion is not just a place; it is the symbol of God’s true kingdom. This is not a hidden group. This is not a defeated remnant. This is heaven’s answer to the beast’s empire. While the world is being trained to bow to fear and survival, heaven is quietly gathering those who belong to Christ.

And listen to how they are described. They sing a new song that no one else can learn. This is not elitism. It is intimacy. This is the song of those who have walked with God through a world that rejected Him. This is the song of people who did not sell their conscience to survive. They are called first fruits to God and to the Lamb. First fruits means they belong to God before anything else. Their loyalty was never divided.

Revelation 14 is not trying to scare you. It is trying to wake you. It is saying, “Look. There are two kingdoms. There are two marks. There are two destinies. And every human being is moving toward one or the other.”

Then John sees three angels flying in midair, proclaiming messages that shake the world.

The first angel carries the everlasting gospel. Even in the middle of judgment, God leads with grace. The message goes to every nation, tribe, language, and people. It is not a narrow invitation. It is a global one. “Fear God and give Him glory, because the hour of His judgment has come. Worship Him who made the heavens, the earth, the sea, and the springs of water.”

This is not fear as terror. This is fear as reverence. It is heaven saying, “Come back. Remember who made you. Remember who gives you breath. Remember who holds tomorrow.”

The second angel declares the fall of Babylon. Babylon is not just a city. It is a system. It is the culture of human pride, human power, and human self-worship. It is the world organized around everything except God. And heaven says it will fall. Every empire that pretends it does not need God will collapse. History proves it. Scripture promises it.

The third angel gives the most sobering warning in the entire chapter. Those who worship the beast and receive his mark will drink the wine of God’s wrath. This is not cruelty. This is consequence. When you give your worship to something that is not God, you are choosing a kingdom that cannot save you.

This is where Revelation 14 becomes deeply personal. This chapter is not about some distant future only. It is about the daily, quiet choices you make right now. Who do you listen to when no one is watching? Who do you obey when it costs you something? What do you compromise when pressure rises?

The mark of the beast is not just a future symbol. It is the pattern of a heart that trades truth for comfort. It is the willingness to deny what you know is right in order to survive. The mark of God is not just a future seal. It is the pattern of a heart that chooses faithfulness even when it hurts.

Then Revelation 14 gives one of the most beautiful lines in all of Scripture: “Here is the patience of the saints.” That means God sees. God knows. God honors those who keep His commandments and their faith in Jesus.

There is something deeply powerful about endurance. Not flashy faith. Not loud faith. Enduring faith. The kind that keeps believing when the miracle does not come quickly. The kind that keeps obeying when the crowd moves the other way. The kind that keeps loving when the world grows cold.

Then a voice from heaven says, “Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.” That sounds strange until you realize what it means. It means those who belong to Christ are never lost, even when they die. They rest from their labors, and their works follow them. Your faith is not forgotten. Your prayers are not wasted. Your obedience is not invisible.

Revelation 14 does not end with chaos. It ends with harvest.

John sees one like the Son of Man seated on a cloud with a golden crown and a sharp sickle. This is Jesus. This is not a random angel. This is the King. He is not frantic. He is not angry. He is ready. The harvest of the earth is ripe.

There are two harvests in this chapter. One is the gathering of God’s people. The other is the judgment of the systems that rejected Him. This tells us something very important about God’s heart. He separates people from evil. He does not lump them together. He rescues what belongs to Him and removes what destroys.

This is not about God wanting to punish. This is about God wanting to restore what was always meant to be His.

Revelation 14 is a love story disguised as a warning. It is heaven saying, “I have not forgotten you. I know who belongs to Me. I will not let the beast write the final chapter of human history.”

And that is why this chapter matters so much in our world right now.

We live in a time when truth is traded for convenience, when loyalty to God is considered outdated, and when standing for anything costs you something. Revelation 14 whispers through all of that noise: “Stand anyway.”

You are not crazy for wanting to be faithful. You are not weak for refusing to bow. You are not alone for choosing Christ when the world offers easier paths.

You belong to the Lamb.

And heaven knows your name.

There is a quiet weight to the ending of Revelation 14 that most people miss if they read it too quickly. It does not end with fire raining from the sky or nations collapsing in fear. It ends with something far more unsettling and far more beautiful: the harvest. Heaven looks at the world and says, “It is time.” Not because God has lost patience, but because the story has reached its fullness. Every seed that has been planted has now grown into what it was always becoming.

That is one of the deepest truths of this chapter. Revelation 14 is not about random destruction. It is about revealed identity. When the harvest comes, wheat is revealed as wheat and weeds are revealed as weeds. What was hidden beneath the surface finally becomes visible.

The Son of Man sits on the cloud wearing a golden crown. That image alone should change how we read this chapter. This is not a furious judge lashing out. This is a crowned King finishing what He began. The same hands that were pierced for love now hold the sickle of truth. The same voice that said “Come unto me” now says “It is time.” Mercy and justice are not enemies in God. They are partners.

When the harvest of the earth is gathered, God is not taking something that does not belong to Him. He is claiming what He already purchased. Every person who placed their faith in Christ, every quiet prayer that rose from a broken heart, every act of obedience that cost something, all of it has been growing in God’s field the entire time. Now it is gathered.

And then the other harvest happens. The grapes of the earth are thrown into the winepress of God’s wrath. This imagery is not about God enjoying punishment. It is about God removing corruption. Winepress imagery in Scripture is about crushing what is rotten so that it no longer poisons what is good. Babylon, the beast, the system of human pride and cruelty, is not allowed to continue forever.

That matters more than most people realize.

If evil had no ending, then suffering would have no meaning. If injustice was never judged, then every cry for help would echo into nothingness. Revelation 14 tells us that God sees everything. Every trafficked child. Every betrayed heart. Every abused soul. Every stolen life. None of it is invisible to heaven.

And God will not let it be the final word.

This chapter draws a line not just in history but in the human heart. It forces a question we often try to avoid. Who do you belong to?

You may not think of yourself as someone who bows to idols. You may not feel like a person who worships the beast. But worship is not always what you sing. It is what you surrender to. It is what you obey. It is what you shape your life around.

The beast offers safety, control, and belonging at the cost of your soul. The Lamb offers truth, love, and eternal life at the cost of your pride. Revelation 14 is heaven saying, “Choose.”

The people who bear God’s name on their foreheads are not perfect. They are loyal. They followed the Lamb wherever He went. Not when it was easy. Not when it was popular. Wherever He went.

That kind of faith is rare because it is expensive. It costs reputation. It costs comfort. It costs sometimes even relationships. But it gives you something the world never can. It gives you a name written by God Himself.

There is something breathtaking about that. The world wants to label you by your failures, your past, your weaknesses, your mistakes. God writes His name on you. He says, “You are Mine.”

Revelation 14 is not telling you to be afraid of God. It is telling you to be sure of who owns your heart.

And maybe that is why this chapter feels so heavy and so hopeful at the same time. It is heavy because it tells the truth. Not everything ends well. Not every system survives. Not every lie continues. But it is hopeful because it tells us that faithfulness matters.

Every time you chose integrity when compromise was easier, that was a seed. Every time you prayed when you wanted to give up, that was a seed. Every time you loved when you were hurt, that was a seed. Every time you stood for Christ when it cost you something, that was a seed.

And Revelation 14 says those seeds will be harvested.

The Lamb will not forget you.

Your story will not be lost.

Your faith will not be wasted.

This is why this chapter belongs in our time. We live in a world that constantly pressures people to bend, to bow, to stay quiet, to survive at any cost. Revelation 14 quietly says, “It is better to belong to God than to fit into Babylon.”

And that is not just a future promise. It is a present identity.

You already carry a mark. The only question is whose.

The Lamb is standing.

The harvest is coming.

And heaven is waiting for those who belong to God.

Your friend, Douglas Vandergraph

Watch Douglas Vandergraph’s inspiring faith-based videos on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@douglasvandergraph

Support the ministry by buying Douglas a coffee https://www.buymeacoffee.com/douglasvandergraph

There are chapters in Scripture that read like a gentle river, carrying us slowly through green valleys of comfort and reassurance, and then there are chapters that feel like standing at the edge of a storm-torn ocean, where thunder rolls beneath the surface and every wave seems to carry a warning. Revelation 13 is not a chapter that whispers. It roars. It does not politely knock on the door of our conscience. It kicks it in and forces us to look at what we would rather avoid. Yet even here, in one of the most unsettling chapters of the Bible, God is not trying to frighten His people into paralysis. He is trying to awaken them into clarity. He is revealing not just a future moment of crisis, but a timeless pattern of how deception, power, fear, and false worship try to take hold of the human heart in every generation.

When people think of Revelation 13, they almost always jump straight to the mark of the beast, to barcodes, microchips, or some future dystopian system of control. But that approach, while understandable, misses something far deeper and far more personal. Revelation 13 is not just about what happens to the world at the end of time. It is about what has always happened to human beings when power, fear, and spiritual deception collide. It is about what happens when the longing for security becomes more important than the call to faith. It is about what happens when people trade truth for convenience and worship for survival. The beasts in this chapter are not merely political systems or future tyrants. They are expressions of something that has always existed in the fallen world: the desire to rule without God, to be safe without trust, and to be unified without truth.

The chapter opens with a beast rising out of the sea. In biblical language, the sea often represents chaos, restless humanity, the swirling mass of nations and peoples. This beast is not born in a quiet place. It emerges from turmoil, confusion, and instability. It has ten horns and seven heads, imagery that echoes earlier visions in Daniel and points toward empires, kings, and systems of power that dominate through force, intimidation, and control. But what makes this beast truly terrifying is not just its political or military power. It is the way it blends that power with spiritual rebellion. It receives its authority from the dragon, from Satan himself, and it uses that authority not simply to govern, but to demand allegiance that belongs only to God.

Here is where Revelation 13 becomes painfully relevant to every generation. Human beings have always struggled with the temptation to give ultimate loyalty to something other than God. Sometimes it is a king. Sometimes it is a nation. Sometimes it is an ideology. Sometimes it is money, security, or social approval. The beast represents any system that demands your soul while pretending to offer your safety. It is the voice that says, “Follow me, and you will be protected,” while quietly moving you away from the One who actually saves.

What is striking about this first beast is that it receives what looks like a mortal wound, and yet it is healed. The world marvels and follows the beast because it seems to have overcome death. This counterfeit resurrection is not accidental. Satan has always been a copycat. He cannot create life, so he imitates it. He cannot produce resurrection, so he manufactures a spectacle that looks like one. The beast becomes a parody of Christ, a false savior who appears to conquer death and thus earns the worship of the masses. This is one of the most chilling truths of Revelation 13. The greatest deceptions are not the ones that look obviously evil. They are the ones that look almost holy.

People do not worship the beast because it looks monstrous. They worship it because it looks powerful, victorious, and seemingly unstoppable. They say, “Who is like the beast? Who can make war with it?” That language mirrors the kind of praise that belongs to God alone. In Exodus, Israel sang, “Who is like You, O Lord?” Now, fallen humanity is singing that same song to a counterfeit. The issue here is not ignorance. It is misplaced awe. It is what happens when human hearts become more impressed with visible power than invisible truth.

This beast speaks blasphemies, not just against God, but against His dwelling place and His people. It wages war against the saints and is allowed, for a time, to overcome them. This is another truth that many people struggle with. God does not promise that His people will never face defeat in this world. He promises that they will never face ultimate defeat. Revelation 13 is brutally honest about the cost of faithfulness in a world that worships power. Sometimes loyalty to Christ looks like losing. Sometimes it looks like being silenced, marginalized, or even crushed. But heaven measures victory differently than earth does.

The second beast rises not from the sea, but from the earth. It looks less threatening. It has the appearance of a lamb, but it speaks like a dragon. This is one of the most important warnings in all of Scripture. Not every enemy of truth will look hostile. Some will look gentle. Some will sound spiritual. Some will quote Scripture. This second beast represents false religion, propaganda, and spiritual manipulation. Its job is not to rule directly, but to persuade, to deceive, and to lead people into worshiping the first beast.

This beast performs signs and wonders. It calls down fire from heaven. It creates an image of the first beast and tells people to worship it. In other words, it builds a religious system that supports a political system. This is not just about some future moment when a false prophet performs miracles. It is about the way religion can be twisted into a tool of control. It is about the way spiritual language can be used to justify oppression, exploitation, and blind loyalty. When faith becomes a servant of power instead of a servant of truth, Revelation 13 is being reenacted.

Then we come to the mark of the beast. This is where fear tends to peak and understanding tends to drop. The mark is placed on the right hand or the forehead, and without it, people cannot buy or sell. At one level, this clearly points to a system of economic control. But at a deeper level, the symbolism is rich and intentional. In Scripture, the forehead represents the mind, what you believe. The hand represents what you do. To be marked is to have both your thoughts and your actions aligned with the beast’s system. It is not just about a physical mark. It is about allegiance. It is about who owns your loyalty.

God, in Revelation 7 and 14, also marks His people. They are sealed on their foreheads with His name. The issue is not marking. The issue is whose mark you carry. Revelation 13 forces every reader, in every generation, to ask a deeply uncomfortable question. Who has my mind, and who has my obedience? Do I belong to Christ, or do I belong to the systems that promise me comfort, safety, and acceptance in exchange for my silence and compromise?

The number of the beast, 666, has been endlessly speculated about, but its meaning is more theological than mathematical. In Scripture, seven represents completeness and perfection. Six falls short. To repeat six three times is to emphasize ultimate incompleteness, ultimate failure, ultimate rebellion. It is humanity trying to be God and falling short at every level. The beast system is built on human pride, human power, and human control, and it will never reach the perfection it promises.

What makes Revelation 13 so haunting is not just its imagery. It is how familiar it feels. We live in a world where people are increasingly pressured to conform, to align, to affirm things that contradict their conscience in order to participate in society. We live in a world where truth is often treated as dangerous and lies are rewarded if they keep the peace. We live in a world where technology, economics, and ideology are blending in ways that make it easier than ever to monitor, control, and manipulate behavior. Revelation 13 does not say this will happen. It says this is how the beast always works.

Yet in the midst of all this, there is a quiet but powerful line. “Here is the patience and the faith of the saints.” God does not call His people to panic. He calls them to endure. He calls them to remain faithful when faith is costly. He calls them to trust Him even when the world seems to be bowing to something else.

Revelation 13 is not meant to make you afraid of the future. It is meant to make you aware of the present. It is a mirror held up to every age, asking whether we will worship the Lamb who was slain or the beasts that promise us a kingdom without a cross.

And this is where the chapter becomes deeply personal. Because the war described in Revelation 13 is not just fought in governments and global systems. It is fought in the human heart. Every time you choose truth over convenience, you are resisting the beast. Every time you choose faith over fear, you are refusing its mark. Every time you choose loyalty to Christ over loyalty to culture, you are declaring where you belong.

Revelation 13 does not sit in Scripture like a cold academic riddle meant only for theologians and prophecy teachers. It sits there like a living warning, pulsing with relevance for every generation that finds itself drifting closer to systems of control, conformity, and spiritual distraction. When you read it carefully, you begin to see that the beasts of Revelation are not just future monsters waiting for their cue on a cosmic stage. They are patterns. They are blueprints of how evil works when it tries to govern human life without God.

The reason Revelation 13 feels so unsettling to people today is because it sounds so much like the world we already recognize. We live in a time when technology can track where we go, what we buy, what we think, and who we associate with. We live in a time when financial systems can be turned on or off with the click of a button. We live in a time when opinions are rewarded or punished, not based on truth, but on whether they align with what the system wants. None of this means we are automatically in the final moments of history, but it does mean the machinery Revelation 13 describes is no longer theoretical. It is visible.

But the deepest danger is not technological. It is spiritual. The beast system always offers a trade. It offers stability in exchange for submission. It offers access in exchange for alignment. It offers safety in exchange for silence. This is why the mark of the beast is tied to buying and selling. It is not just about commerce. It is about survival. When people are afraid of losing their ability to live, they will often surrender their ability to speak.

Throughout history, this has happened again and again. Empires have demanded loyalty that belongs to God. Ideologies have demanded obedience that belongs to conscience. Religious systems have been twisted into tools of political power. Revelation 13 is the Bible pulling back the curtain and showing what is really going on when that happens. It is Satan trying to build a kingdom that looks like order but is rooted in rebellion.

What makes this chapter so piercing is that it does not portray the beast as obviously evil to most people. It is admired. It is celebrated. It is followed. The world marvels. This is where many believers misunderstand spiritual warfare. They think evil will always look dark, ugly, and clearly wrong. In reality, the most dangerous evil often looks efficient, helpful, and even benevolent. It looks like a solution.

This is why the second beast is so important. It is not a brute. It is a persuader. It does not conquer through violence. It conquers through narrative. It creates an image, a story, a worldview that makes worshiping the beast feel reasonable. It uses signs and wonders, but it also uses language, education, media, and culture. It tells people what is normal, what is acceptable, and what is necessary. And slowly, without realizing it, people begin to bow.

The tragedy is not that people are forced to take the mark. It is that many will choose it because it makes life easier. This is one of the hardest truths in the entire book of Revelation. The final test is not whether people can survive suffering. It is whether they can resist comfort when comfort demands compromise.

God’s people are not called to be reckless or foolish. But they are called to be loyal. Revelation 13 draws a clear line between those who belong to the Lamb and those who belong to the beast. One group is sealed by God. The other is marked by the system. One group may struggle, suffer, and even die. The other may prosper, buy, sell, and thrive. But only one group belongs to eternity.

This is why Revelation 13 must be read alongside Revelation 14, where the Lamb stands on Mount Zion with His redeemed, His Father’s name written on their foreheads. The world may have its marks. Heaven has its seal. The beast may have its economy. God has His kingdom. The question has never been which system is more powerful. The question has always been which one is true.

When you begin to see Revelation 13 this way, it stops being a chapter about fear and starts becoming a chapter about faithfulness. God is not warning His people so they can stockpile supplies and hide. He is warning them so they can strengthen their convictions. He is saying, in effect, do not be surprised when the world asks you to choose. That moment is coming in one form or another for every generation.

Some people will be pressured through laws. Some through money. Some through social rejection. Some through threats. Some through promises. But the essence is the same. Will you worship what the world calls powerful, or will you worship the Lamb who was slain?

This is why Revelation 13 is actually a chapter of dignity. It assumes that human beings have agency. It assumes that they can choose. Even under immense pressure, people are still responsible for where they place their loyalty. God never portrays His people as helpless victims of a system. He portrays them as witnesses, as overcomers, as those who conquer by their testimony and their faith.

And here is something that does not get said often enough. The beasts can only do what God allows. Their time is limited. Their power is borrowed. Their authority is temporary. Revelation 13 is terrifying only if you read it in isolation. But in the full story of Scripture, it is simply one chapter in a drama that ends with the Lamb on the throne.

The dragon may give the beast his power, but he cannot give him eternity. The beast may demand worship, but he cannot give salvation. The system may offer survival, but it cannot offer life.

So what does all of this mean for you, here and now? It means that the real mark is already being tested long before it is ever applied. Every time you decide whether to speak truth or stay quiet. Every time you decide whether to stand firm or blend in. Every time you decide whether to obey God or follow the crowd, you are revealing whose mark is shaping your life.

The book of Revelation is not meant to turn believers into conspiracy theorists. It is meant to turn them into faithful witnesses. It is not meant to produce panic. It is meant to produce perseverance. Revelation 13 is not a reason to be afraid of the future. It is a reason to be rooted in Christ today.

If you belong to Jesus, you already bear His name. You already carry His seal. You already belong to a kingdom that cannot be shaken. No beast, no system, no government, no technology, and no ideology can take that away from you.

This is the quiet triumph hidden inside Revelation 13. The beasts rage. The world bows. But the saints endure. And endurance, in the kingdom of God, is victory.

If this chapter feels heavy, it is because it is meant to make you sober, not scared. God is preparing His people to stand, not to collapse. He is reminding you that no matter how loud the world becomes, the truth still whispers in your heart.

And that whisper says, you belong to the Lamb.

Your friend, Douglas Vandergraph

Watch Douglas Vandergraph’s inspiring faith-based videos on YouTube

Support the ministry by buying Douglas a coffee

There are chapters in the Bible that read like history, chapters that read like poetry, and chapters that read like instruction. Then there is Revelation 12, which reads like the curtain being pulled back on reality itself. It is not simply a story about a woman, a dragon, and a child. It is the unveiling of the invisible war that has always been raging beneath every heartbreak, every temptation, every prayer, every miracle, and every moment of your life. Revelation 12 does not explain a single event. It explains all of them. It tells you why the world feels hostile when you try to walk in truth. It tells you why spiritual progress is always met with resistance. It tells you why love is contested, why faith is fought, and why hope feels like a battlefield instead of a refuge.

If you have ever wondered why doing the right thing feels harder than doing the wrong thing, Revelation 12 answers that. If you have ever wondered why breakthrough always seems to come with backlash, Revelation 12 answers that. If you have ever wondered why your faith seems to attract storms, Revelation 12 answers that too. This chapter is not about symbols for the sake of mystery. It is about symbols because the truth it is describing is bigger than words.

John sees a woman clothed with the sun, the moon under her feet, and a crown of twelve stars on her head. She is pregnant, crying out in birth pains. Then he sees a dragon, red and monstrous, standing before her, waiting to devour her child the moment it is born. That image alone should stop you in your tracks, because it tells you something terrifying and beautiful at the same time: before the child has done anything, before the child has spoken a word, before the child has healed anyone or taught anyone or sacrificed anything, the enemy already wants to destroy it. That is how evil works. It does not wait to see what you will become. It tries to kill what you could become.

This woman is not just one person. She is the people of God. She is Israel, she is Mary, she is the Church, she is the community through which God brings His purposes into the world. She is every place where God plants promise. And wherever God plants promise, the dragon shows up. The dragon is not subtle. The dragon does not negotiate. The dragon does not wait for you to make mistakes. He stands ready to devour what God is birthing.

The child, of course, is Christ. He is the fulfillment of every prophecy, every covenant, every whispered promise God ever made to humanity. And what Revelation 12 is showing you is that Christmas was not just a peaceful nativity scene. It was a declaration of war. The birth of Jesus was not just heaven touching earth. It was heaven invading enemy-occupied territory. And the dragon knew it. That is why Herod tried to kill every baby in Bethlehem. That is why violence erupted around the incarnation. That is why the world shook when Christ entered it.

This is the first thing Revelation 12 wants you to understand: every time God moves, resistance moves too. Not because God is weak, but because darkness knows what light threatens. When Jesus was born, hell knew its time was limited. When you were called, hell knew something eternal was about to be released through your life. The opposition you face is not proof you are doing something wrong. Often it is proof you are doing something right.

The dragon fails to destroy the child. Christ fulfills His mission. He lives, He dies, He rises, He ascends. And then something shocking happens. War breaks out in heaven. Michael and his angels fight against the dragon and his angels. And the dragon loses. He is cast down to the earth.

This is one of the most misunderstood parts of spiritual reality. Satan is not God’s equal. He is not God’s opposite. He is a created being. He can be resisted. He can be defeated. He can be cast out. Revelation 12 tells you that there was a decisive moment when the authority of Satan in heaven was revoked. The accuser lost his courtroom. The prosecutor lost his seat. The one who brought charges against God’s people lost his platform.

That is why the chapter says that the accuser of our brethren, who accused them before God day and night, has been cast down. For centuries, Satan had functioned as a spiritual prosecutor, pointing out humanity’s sin. But the blood of Christ ended that role. The cross did not just forgive sin. It disarmed accusation.

This is where Revelation 12 becomes deeply personal. You do not just struggle against temptation. You struggle against accusation. You struggle against the voice that says you are unworthy, that you have failed too much, that you are not really loved, that you are not really forgiven, that you will never really change. That voice is not just your psychology. It is spiritual warfare. It is the echo of a fallen prosecutor who no longer has legal standing but still tries to intimidate.

The text says they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and the word of their testimony. That means victory does not come from your perfection. It comes from Christ’s sacrifice and your confession of it. Every time you agree with what Jesus has done instead of what the accuser says, you participate in that victory. Every time you speak grace instead of shame, you enforce heaven’s verdict against hell’s lies.

But the dragon is not gone. He is thrown to the earth. And that is why the chapter says, “Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and of the sea! For the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time.” That one line explains the chaos of the world better than any headline ever could.

Evil is loud because it is desperate. Darkness is aggressive because it is running out of time. Fear is intense because its days are numbered. The rage you see in culture, the hostility toward truth, the resistance to holiness, the mockery of faith, the obsession with destruction and deconstruction, all of it is the tantrum of a defeated enemy who knows the clock is ticking.

Revelation 12 then returns to the woman. When the dragon cannot destroy the child, he goes after the woman. That means when Satan cannot stop Christ, he tries to stop Christ’s people. That is not a metaphor. That is a strategy. If he cannot silence the Savior, he tries to silence the witnesses.

The woman flees into the wilderness, where she is protected by God for a time. This is one of the most tender moments in the chapter. God does not remove His people from danger. He shelters them within it. He does not promise a life without wilderness. He promises provision inside it.

The wilderness is where Israel learned to depend on God. The wilderness is where Jesus fasted and overcame temptation. The wilderness is where John the Baptist heard his calling. The wilderness is not a punishment. It is a place of protection and preparation. When the dragon is raging, God creates space. When the enemy is attacking, God provides refuge.

But the dragon does not give up. He sends a flood after the woman, trying to sweep her away. And the earth opens and swallows the flood. This is one of the most powerful images in Scripture. It means that even creation itself will cooperate with God’s plan to preserve His people. When the enemy unleashes chaos, God can use the very structure of reality to block it. You may not see the flood that was meant for you. You may not know the disaster that was diverted. But Revelation 12 is telling you that protection you never noticed is still protection.

When the dragon fails again, he becomes enraged and goes to make war with the rest of her offspring, those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus. That is where you come in. You are not reading about ancient battles. You are reading about your own. If you follow Jesus, you are part of this story. The dragon is not after you because you are weak. He is after you because you belong to something eternal.

Revelation 12 is not meant to scare you. It is meant to clarify you. It is meant to explain why faith feels costly. It is meant to explain why obedience attracts resistance. It is meant to explain why loving God feels like swimming upstream. You are not crazy. You are not broken. You are not imagining the struggle. You are standing in the middle of a war that began before you were born and will continue until Christ returns.

And yet, the most important thing Revelation 12 says is not that there is a dragon. It is that the dragon has already lost. The war is real, but the outcome is settled. The enemy is active, but he is defeated. The conflict is intense, but it is temporary.

There is something profoundly stabilizing about that truth. It means your suffering is not meaningless. It means your endurance is not wasted. It means your faith is not fragile. You are not fighting for victory. You are fighting from victory.

Every time you choose love when bitterness would be easier, you are enforcing Christ’s triumph. Every time you choose truth when lies would be more convenient, you are participating in heaven’s authority. Every time you pray, forgive, hope, or trust, you are pushing back against a defeated dragon who is trying to pretend he still has power.

Revelation 12 does not minimize the battle. It redefines it. It shows you that what feels personal is actually cosmic. What feels random is actually targeted. What feels exhausting is actually significant. You are not just trying to survive. You are part of a story that God Himself is writing across eternity.

And the woman, the child, the dragon, and the war are not distant images. They are the spiritual architecture behind every day of your life.

Now, we will go even deeper into how Revelation 12 reshapes how you see suffering, identity, spiritual opposition, and the hope that no enemy can touch.

There is a quiet truth buried beneath the thunder of Revelation 12 that most people never stop to notice, and it changes everything once you see it. The dragon is never shown creating anything. He never builds. He never gives life. He never brings healing. He never restores. All he does is stand, accuse, chase, rage, and destroy. That detail matters because it tells you something profound about the nature of evil. Evil has no creative power. It only reacts to what God creates. Satan is not the author of stories. He is a vandal of them.

That means every attack in your life is proof that something sacred is being targeted. The dragon does not waste time on empty places. He goes where God is moving. He goes where promise is being born. He goes where destiny is forming. If you have ever wondered why your growth feels contested, why your calling feels opposed, or why your healing feels delayed, Revelation 12 is whispering the answer. You are not being resisted because you are insignificant. You are being resisted because heaven is invested in you.

The woman in Revelation 12 is not weak, even though she is in pain. She is in labor. Pain in Scripture is often not the sign of failure but of something coming into the world. Birth pains are not death. They are the cost of life. That means some of what you feel right now is not destruction. It is delivery. You are not breaking apart. You are being brought forth.

This is one of the hardest spiritual truths to accept, because when you are hurting, it does not feel holy. It feels confusing. It feels unfair. It feels lonely. But Revelation 12 shows you a woman crowned with stars crying out in agony, and heaven does not rebuke her for it. Heaven recognizes it as part of the process. You can be chosen and still be in pain. You can be called and still be crying. You can be loved and still be laboring.

The dragon waits to devour the child because he understands something many people miss. The greatest threat to darkness is not sin. It is birth. New things terrify old powers. New identity threatens old control. New freedom undermines old chains. The enemy is not afraid of your past. He is afraid of your future. That is why he tries to intercept it before it can breathe.

But Revelation 12 shows you that God always protects what He births. The child is caught up to God and to His throne. That is not just about Christ ascending to heaven. It is about the security of God’s purpose. What God starts, He finishes. What God promises, He preserves. What God calls, He carries.

When the dragon is thrown down, his rage increases, but his authority decreases. That is how spiritual defeat works. A losing enemy often becomes louder, not stronger. The devil’s fury is not evidence of his power. It is evidence of his deadline.

That is why the world feels unstable. That is why truth feels controversial. That is why good feels fragile. You are living in the season of a furious but defeated enemy. The battle is intense because the end is near.

This helps explain something many believers struggle with. If Jesus won, why is there still so much pain? If the cross defeated Satan, why does the world still feel broken? Revelation 12 answers that. The war is won, but the cleanup is ongoing. The dragon has been evicted from heaven, but he is still causing damage on earth. He is like a criminal who has been sentenced but not yet imprisoned. His guilt is settled. His activity continues.

That is why the Bible never tells you to be afraid of the devil. It tells you to resist him. It tells you to stand. It tells you to put on armor. You do not armor yourself against a king. You armor yourself against a rebel.

The most powerful line in the chapter is this: “They loved not their lives unto the death.” That does not mean Christians are reckless. It means they are free. When you no longer fear losing your life, you can finally live it. The dragon thrives on fear. The Lamb triumphs through surrender.

The blood of the Lamb and the word of their testimony are what overcome the enemy. That means your story matters. Your faith matters. Your voice matters. When you speak what God has done for you, you are not just encouraging others. You are waging spiritual war. Silence helps the accuser. Testimony breaks his grip.

Revelation 12 also reframes what it means to be attacked. The dragon goes after those who keep God’s commandments and hold to the testimony of Jesus. That means obedience paints a target. Faith draws fire. Commitment invites conflict. But it also means you are never fighting alone. Heaven knows your name. Angels are not indifferent to your struggles. God Himself has already declared the outcome.

The wilderness, the flood, the pursuit, all of it is part of the journey. But the woman is never abandoned. God makes a place for her. God protects her. God limits the enemy. That is what He is doing in your life too, even when it feels chaotic.

There are battles you never see. There are attacks that never land. There are dangers that never reach you. Not because you are lucky, but because you are kept.

Revelation 12 is not just prophecy. It is perspective. It tells you that your suffering is not random. Your resistance is not pointless. Your faith is not fragile. You are standing in the middle of a story that began before time and will end in glory.

The dragon may roar, but he cannot reign. The Lamb has already taken the throne.

So when you feel weary, remember this chapter. When you feel attacked, remember this chapter. When you feel unseen, remember this chapter. You are not fighting alone. You are not losing. You are not forgotten.

You are part of the woman’s story. You carry the testimony of Jesus. And that makes you dangerous to darkness.

No matter how loud the dragon becomes, his end is certain. No matter how fierce the battle feels, your victory is secure.

That is the war behind the curtain.

And that is the hope that nothing in heaven or on earth can take from you.

Your friend, Douglas Vandergraph

Watch Douglas Vandergraph’s inspiring faith-based videos on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@douglasvandergraph

Support the ministry by buying Douglas a coffee https://www.buymeacoffee.com/douglasvandergraph

Introdução

Um memory leak (vazamento de memória) acontece quando uma aplicação mantém na memória blocos de dados que já não têm mais utilidade. Em outras palavras, a aplicação continua ocupando espaço de RAM de forma desnecessária, o que leva a um consumo progressivo de recursos e, em situações mais graves, pode resultar em lentidão ou falhas por falta de memória (Out of Memory – OOM).

Esse é um problema que pode ocorrer em qualquer linguagem de programação. No caso de ambientes que contam com Garbage Collector, como o Node.js, a causa mais comum não é a falha na coleta em si, mas sim referências que permanecem acessíveis em estruturas de dados, caches, closures ou listeners, mesmo quando já não deveriam estar em uso.

Ao longo deste texto, vamos analisar o problema sob a ótica do Node.js. Como a plataforma organiza a memória, de que forma o Garbage Collector atua, quais métricas e ferramentas podem auxiliar na identificação de vazamentos e quais práticas de código contribuem para preveni-los. Também veremos como detectar e mitigar esses problemas para prevenir falhas críticas.

O que é gerenciamento de memória e como funciona?

Para entender como ocorre um vazamento de memória, precisamos primeiro compreender o que significa gerenciamento de memória. Esse conceito reúne um conjunto de técnicas que garantem que uma aplicação utilize os recursos de memória de forma eficiente, equilibrando o espaço disponível com as necessidades do programa.

O gerenciamento de memória envolve quatro responsabilidades principais:

Alocação – reservar blocos de memória para armazenar variáveis, objetos e buffers necessários durante a execução.

Rastreamento – manter metadados sobre quais blocos estão em uso e quais podem ser reutilizados.

Utilização – manipular os dados alocados de forma segura, sem sobrescrever ou acessar regiões inválidas.

Liberação – devolver ao sistema a memória que já não é mais utilizada pela aplicação.

Em linguagens de baixo nível, como C ou C++, essa responsabilidade recai sobre o desenvolvedor, que precisa invocar manualmente funções de alocação (malloc) e liberação (free). Esse modelo oferece controle total, mas também amplia o risco de falhas críticas, como o double free, quando a aplicação tenta liberar o mesmo bloco de memória mais de uma vez, os dangling pointers, que são ponteiros que continuam apontando para regiões já liberadas ou ainda vazamentos por simples esquecimento da liberação.

Já em linguagens de alto nível, como JavaScript, Python ou Go, o gerenciamento é delegado ao Garbage Collector (GC). O GC tem a função de identificar automaticamente objetos que não possuem mais referências ativas e liberar o espaço ocupado por eles, reduzindo a probabilidade de erros manuais.

Um exemplo simplificado desse ciclo em uma API:

O servidor recebe uma requisição e aloca memória para armazenar metadados (cabeçalhos, parâmetros, corpo).

Durante o processamento, cria objetos temporários (consultas ao banco, arrays de resultados, buffers de resposta).

Quando esses dados deixam de ser utilizados, tornam-se elegíveis para coleta.

O Garbage Collector detecta que não há mais referências a essas estruturas e libera a memória, mantendo o processo estável.

Esse fluxo parece simples, mas em sistemas de alta concorrência, qualquer estrutura que não seja liberada corretamente pode se acumular rapidamente, degradando a performance e levando a falhas por falta de memória. Por isso, entender como o GC atua e quais padrões de código impactam esse ciclo é essencial para desenvolver aplicações estáveis.

Como o Node.js gerência memória

O Node.js é construído sobre uma arquitetura que combina diferentes componentes: o V8, motor de execução do JavaScript, e a libuv, responsável pelo event loop e pelas operações assíncronas de baixo nível (I/O, timers, sockets).

O V8, desenvolvido pelo Google inicialmente para o Chrome, tornou-se a base de diversos runtimes, incluindo o próprio Node.js. Ele é responsável por compilar JavaScript em código de máquina nativo e por administrar o heap de memória da aplicação, aplicando os ciclos de Garbage Collection (GC). Em outras palavras, sempre que o Node.js precisa lidar com objetos, arrays, buffers ou funções, é o V8 quem de fato realiza a reserva e a liberação da memória.

Mas como o V8 organiza essa memória? Diferente de tratar o heap como um bloco único, ele o divide em regiões especializadas chamadas memory spaces. Essa segmentação permite adotar estratégias de coleta e otimização específicas para cada perfil de objeto. Os principais espaços são:

New Space – região destinada a objetos recém-criados, geralmente pequenos e de vida curta. Por ser limitada em tamanho, sofre coletas frequentes. O GC utiliza aqui o algoritmo Scavenge, que copia objetos vivos entre duas áreas de memória e descarta os mortos. Objetos que sobrevivem a vários ciclos são promovidos ao Old Space.

Old Space – concentra objetos de longa duração, como caches, sessões ou estruturas persistentes. É bem maior que o New Space e sofre coletas menos frequentes, mas mais custosas. Nessa região, o V8 aplica algoritmos como Mark-Sweep, que marca objetos vivos e remove os mortos, e Mark-Compact, que reorganiza os objetos restantes para reduzir a fragmentação.

Large Object Space (LOS) – usado para armazenar objetos muito grandes, como arrays extensos ou buffers volumosos. Cada objeto ocupa um segmento próprio de memória, evitando movimentações desnecessárias. Porém, o uso excessivo dessa região pode levar a um crescimento rápido do heap.

Code Space – armazena o código das funções JavaScript compiladas para instruções nativas de máquina. É a única região marcada como executável, sujeita a restrições de segurança específicas.

Map Space – guarda metadados internos conhecidos como hidden classes, que descrevem a estrutura de objetos JavaScript. Essas informações permitem ao V8 otimizar o acesso a propriedades, aumentando a performance da execução.

Outros spaces especializados – além dos principais, o V8 mantém áreas adicionais, como Cell Space, Property Cell Space e Allocation Sites Space, voltadas para valores globais, variáveis de escopo e dados usados em otimizações de caching e profiling.

Em resumo, o Node.js delega ao V8 a gestão fina do heap por meio de memory spaces especializados. Essa segmentação permite aplicar políticas de GC adequadas a cada perfil de objeto.

O que são vazamentos de memória e como o Node.js lida com isso?

Agora que entendemos o que é gerenciamento de memória e como o Node.js executa essa tarefa por meio do V8, podemos avançar para um ponto crucial. O que de fato significa um memory leak.

Um memory leak ou, vazamento de memória, acontece quando a aplicação mantém referências a objetos que já não são mais necessários, impedindo que o Garbage Collector os libere. Em outras palavras, a memória é retida sem utilidade prática, o que provoca um crescimento gradual no consumo de RAM. Esse acúmulo geralmente é silencioso, não gera erros imediatos, mas ao longo do tempo pode degradar seriamente a performance e até levar o processo a falhar por falta de memória.

No contexto do Node.js, isso é especialmente crítico, pois estamos falando de um runtime orientado a longa execução, como: servidores HTTP, APIs, filas de mensageria ou workers que ficam ativos por dias ou semanas. Diferente de um script curto que encerra logo após a execução, um processo Node.js exposto a vazamentos vai acumular consumo de memória a cada requisição, evento ou tarefa mal gerenciada.

No modelo de concorrência do Node.js, a maior parte das aplicações roda como um único processo, ou em alguns casos com alguns workers rodando em paralelo, que compartilham o mesmo heap de memória. Isso significa que o mesmo espaço é continuamente reaproveitado para lidar com todas as requisições que chegam ao servidor. O detalhe crítico é que, se cada requisição deixar para trás uma pequena quantidade de memória não liberada, por exemplo, entre 1 e 2 KB devido a um listener não removido, um cache sem política de expiração ou uma referência esquecida em uma closure, esse consumo não está associado a um único usuário, mas a cada evento processado. O efeito, portanto, escala diretamente com o tráfego. E como o Garbage Collector do V8 só consegue liberar objetos que já não possuem referências ativas, qualquer elemento ainda acessível no código mantém a memória ocupada, mesmo que os dados já não tenham mais utilidade.

Esse acúmulo aparentemente pequeno por requisição se transforma rapidamente em um problema sério. Imagine um servidor processando 200 requisições por segundo. Se cada uma delas deixar apenas 2 KB de memória retida, temos um vazamento de 400 KB a cada segundo. Em uma hora, isso significa cerca de 1,44 GB de memória que nunca é devolvida ao sistema. Em poucas horas, esse crescimento constante degrada a performance, aumenta a frequência e o custo das pausas do Garbage Collector e pode levar a aplicação a atingir o limite de memória disponível, resultando em falhas críticas ou até em reinícios forçados pelo orquestrador, como acontece comumente em containers no Kubernetes.

Embora o Garbage Collector do V8 seja sofisticado, ele não consegue adivinhar se um objeto deveria ou não ser mantido. Se houver uma referência ativa em algum ponto da aplicação, o GC assume que aquele objeto ainda é necessário. Por isso, o problema de memória em Node.js não é uma falha da coleta em si, mas sim de design e gestão de referências no código da aplicação.

Para ilustrar o problema de forma prática, vamos imaginar o seguinte cenário:

O time estava com uma meta de latência para o endpoint GET /products/:id: manter p95 < 200 ms sob tráfego alto. Em horários de pico, a consulta ao produto no banco oscilava entre 300–450 ms, puxando o p95 para cima. Como não havia Redis ainda provisionado para aquele serviço e o prazo do sprint era curto, a solução rápida foi criar um cache em memória do próprio processo

Objetivo imediato: aliviar chamadas repetidas para o mesmo produto por alguns minutos.

Implementação escolhida:

Estrutura: Map global, populado sob demanda.

Chave: req.originalUrl

Então temos uma implementação simples:

import express from “express”;

const app = express();

const cache = new Map();

// usa a URL completa como chave (alta cardinalidade) app.get(“/products/:id”, (req, res) => { const key = req.originalUrl; // ❌ anti-padrão let data = cache.get(key); if (!data) { data = getProduct(req.params.id); // ~24 KiB de payload cache.set(key, data); // ❌ sem TTL/limite } res.json({ cached: !!data, size: data.details.length, entries: cache.size }); });

app.listen(3000, () => console.log(“Leaky server: http://localhost:3000"));

A cada requisição com uma nova querystring (ex.: ?ref=promo1, ?ref=promo2), o serviço armazenava mais um objeto de ~24 KiB no Map. Como o cache global mantinha referências vivas para todos esses objetos, o GC não podia coletá-los. Com um fluxo de 80 req/s e destas 40 req geram novas chaves retendo ~24 KiB, chegamos ao número de 960 KiB/s, e em uma  hora de operação teríamos uma saturação na heap de 3 GiB.

Conclusão, o ponto crítico aqui não é o Garbage Collector “não funcionar”. O V8 continuava varrendo o heap em busca de objetos inacessíveis. O problema é que o Map global mantinha referências ativas a cada payload de produto. Enquanto houver referência, o GC considera o objeto vivo e não pode descartar.

Cada payload armazenado inicialmente entra no New Space, uma região otimizada para objetos jovens e de curta duração. Em condições normais, esses dados seriam rapidamente coletados pelo Garbage Collector. No entanto, como o Map mantém referências ativas, eles sobrevivem a sucessivos ciclos de coleta. Com o passar do tempo, esses objetos persistentes acabam sendo promovidos ao Old Space, uma área maior do heap, sujeita a coletas mais pesadas e menos frequentes. O resultado é que centenas de objetos que deveriam ser ciclo curto acabam se acumulando e tornando-se permanentes, fazendo com que o Old Space cresça continuamente e pressione o coletor de forma cada vez mais custosa

O resultado é um heap que cresce a taxas previsíveis (nesse caso, ~3 GiB/hora), até que o processo atinge o limite de memória e falha com OOM. O leak, portanto, não está no GC: ele está na política de retenção de referências no código. O V8 fez exatamente o que deveria — preservou os objetos que ainda estavam acessíveis. É a lógica de aplicação que enganou o coletor, ao manter referências sem utilidade prática.

---

config: theme: neutral

---

flowchart TD A[Request /products/:id] —> B[Payload ~24 KiB criado] B —> C[Objeto alocado no New Space] C —>|GC rápido| D[Normalmente seria coletado] C —>|Referência mantida no Map global| E[Sobrevive a múltiplos ciclos] E —> F[Promovido ao Old Space] F —> G[Old Space acumula objetos grandes] G —> H[Consumo de heap cresce ~3 GiB/hora] H —> I[Pressão no GC: pausas mais longas] I —> J[Out Of Memory OOM e reinício do processo] style E fill:#fdd,stroke:#f66,stroke-width:2px style F fill:#fdd,stroke:#f66,stroke-width:2px style G fill:#fdd,stroke:#f66,stroke-width:2px

There is a quiet ache that lives in people who are meant for more but are still surrounded by what no longer fits. It is not loud. It does not always show itself in tears or arguments. Sometimes it shows up as restlessness. Sometimes as exhaustion. Sometimes as that strange feeling that you are outgrowing conversations you used to love, dreams you used to settle for, and versions of yourself that no longer feel true. You can be grateful for the people who walked with you through earlier seasons and still feel the ache of knowing that something is shifting. God does not change us by accident. When He starts to awaken something deeper inside you, the walls that once felt safe begin to feel small, and that discomfort is not rebellion. It is invitation.

A circle becomes a cage the moment it stops stretching your faith and starts shrinking your future. That does not happen because the people around you are evil. It happens because growth is directional. You cannot walk into who God is calling you to be while constantly being pulled back into who you used to be. Familiarity is comforting, but it is also limiting when it becomes the ruler of your life. You can love people deeply and still realize they do not have the spiritual eyesight to see where God is taking you. That realization hurts, but it is holy.

God has always used separation as preparation. Not to punish, but to protect. Abraham was not told to leave because his family was bad. He was told to leave because the promise was bigger than their perspective. Joseph was not betrayed because he was arrogant. He was betrayed because his brothers could not imagine what God had shown him. David was not overlooked because he was unqualified. He was overlooked because those around him were still measuring worth by old standards. When God places a vision inside you, it will almost always exceed the imagination of the people who knew you before that vision existed.

That is why growth feels lonely before it feels glorious. When you begin to step into your calling, you will notice a widening gap between where you are going and where others are comfortable staying. Some people will cheer. Some will question. Some will quietly drift away. That is not because you are unlovable. It is because you are no longer manageable. You are becoming dangerous to the limitations that once defined you. The cage was never made of iron. It was made of expectations. It was built from the unspoken agreement that you would not change too much, dream too big, or believe too boldly.

You begin to realize you are in a cage when you start editing your dreams so they do not make others uncomfortable. When you shrink your faith so it does not challenge their fear. When you silence what God is saying in you because it disrupts the balance of the room. That is not humility. That is captivity. God did not give you a vision so you could hide it. He did not place fire in your bones so you could pretend to be cold. He did not call you forward so you could keep living in yesterday.

Spiritual growth always exposes relational misalignment. You cannot grow without friction. You cannot become without conflict. Every time God has moved someone into a higher calling, there has been resistance from the people who benefited from them staying the same. When you were insecure, people felt needed. When you were unsure, people felt important. When you were small, people felt big. But when you begin to stand in who God says you are, the dynamics change. Not everyone will celebrate that. Some will feel threatened. Some will feel left behind. Some will try to pull you back with guilt, jokes, or subtle discouragement.

That is when you have to decide whether you will obey God or manage other people’s comfort.

There is a holy loneliness that comes with obedience. It is not the loneliness of abandonment. It is the loneliness of alignment. It is the quiet space God creates when He is rearranging your life around a higher purpose. Moses had to leave the palace. David had to leave the pasture. Elijah had to leave the crowd. Jesus Himself had to step away from the multitudes to be alone with the Father. God does His deepest work in the quiet places where there is no applause and no interference.

When your circle changes, it is often because God is changing your assignment. You cannot build what God has called you to build with the same tools that built your past. Some relationships were only meant for survival, not destiny. They were there to get you through, not to take you all the way. And that does not diminish their value. It simply honors the season they belonged to. You are allowed to graduate from people. You are allowed to move on without bitterness. You are allowed to love them and still walk away.

The cage convinces you that loyalty means staying small. God says loyalty means staying true.

You do not betray your past by stepping into your future. You fulfill it.

A circle that is aligned with your calling will not be threatened by your growth. It will celebrate it. It will not mock your faith. It will multiply it. It will not remind you of your mistakes. It will call you higher. You will know you are in the right circle when you leave conversations feeling more alive instead of more tired. When you leave interactions feeling encouraged instead of diminished. When you leave gatherings feeling closer to God instead of further from who you are becoming.

The wrong circle drains you. The right circle builds you.

The wrong circle makes you doubt what God has spoken. The right circle confirms it.

The wrong circle keeps you explaining yourself. The right circle helps you become yourself.

God is not interested in you fitting in. He is interested in you standing out in obedience. You were never meant to be caged by other people’s limitations. You were meant to be carried by God’s promises. And when you begin to choose alignment over approval, your life will start to open in ways you never imagined.

There is a freedom that comes when you stop trying to be understood by everyone and start being obedient to the One who called you. There is peace that comes when you realize you do not need a thousand people to believe in you. You need God and a few people who can see what He sees. Jesus changed the world with twelve, and even then not all of them understood Him.

You do not need a crowd. You need a calling.

You do not need to be liked. You need to be led.

And when you let God break the bars around your becoming, you will discover that the cage was never meant to be your home. It was only meant to show you how badly you were meant to fly.

There is a sacred moment that comes after you step out of a cage, and it is quieter than most people expect. It is not applause. It is not instant success. It is a deep, steady sense of alignment, like something inside you has finally stopped fighting itself. You may not have more people around you at first, but you will have more peace. You will have more clarity. You will have more courage. And those three things are more powerful than any crowd that ever kept you small.

When God begins to shift your circle, He is not removing support. He is refining it. The people who truly belong in your life will not compete with your calling. They will cooperate with it. They will not feel threatened when you grow. They will feel proud. They will not try to remind you of who you were. They will speak into who you are becoming. That is what spiritual alignment feels like. It feels like oxygen after holding your breath for years.

One of the hardest truths to accept is that some people are only equipped to love the version of you that needed them. When you start to become the version of you that God is building, the dynamic changes. You no longer need approval to feel secure. You no longer need validation to feel valuable. You no longer need permission to dream. That shift can make some people uncomfortable, not because you have done something wrong, but because you have done something brave. You have stopped shrinking.

And shrinking is a form of fear.

Faith expands. Fear contracts. Faith says God can. Fear says what if He does not. When you live by faith, your life will eventually outgrow the rooms you once fit in. You will find yourself sitting in conversations that no longer feed your spirit. You will hear jokes that once made you laugh now feel hollow. You will feel an ache to talk about deeper things, to dream about bigger things, to live for something that matters more than survival. That ache is not dissatisfaction. It is destiny.

God will not let you be satisfied with a cage when He has called you to a kingdom.

The cage is comfortable because it is predictable. You know what people will say. You know how they will react. You know the roles everyone plays. But predictability is not the same as peace. Peace comes from living in alignment with truth. And truth is that you were created for more than just getting by. You were created to reflect God’s glory in a way only you can. That requires growth. That requires risk. That requires walking away from what is familiar in order to walk into what is faithful.

Jesus said that anyone who wants to follow Him must be willing to leave houses, family, and old ways behind. Not because love ends, but because obedience begins. He was not asking people to abandon relationships. He was asking them to release control. To stop letting the past dictate the future. To stop letting the opinions of others drown out the voice of God.

Your calling will always be louder than your cage if you let it be.

There will be moments when you miss the simplicity of who you were before you started changing. There will be moments when you wish you could go back to being understood without having to explain your faith, your vision, or your growth. But if you are honest, you will also know you cannot go back. You have seen too much. You have felt too much. God has stirred something too deep inside you. You are not who you were, and that is a gift.

Do not confuse loneliness with failure. Sometimes God pulls you into quiet so He can speak without interruption. Sometimes He thins out your circle so He can thicken your anointing. Sometimes He removes voices so you can finally hear His. Every great transformation in Scripture happened after a season of separation. The wilderness is not where you die. It is where you are redefined.

You will meet new people when you walk in your new identity. They will speak your language. They will understand your hunger. They will recognize your faith. You do not have to go looking for them. Alignment finds alignment. When you choose God’s direction over people’s expectations, the right relationships begin to appear. They are drawn to obedience. They are attracted to authenticity. They recognize when someone is living on purpose.

And purpose is magnetic.

You are not losing people. You are making room.

You are not being abandoned. You are being prepared.

You are not outgrowing love. You are outgrowing limits.

The cage is breaking because you are rising. The walls are cracking because you are becoming. And what God is building in you is bigger than anything you are leaving behind.

Do not apologize for your growth. Do not explain your calling. Do not dim your light.

God is doing something new, and it will require a new circle to sustain it.

You were never meant to be contained. You were meant to be sent.

You were never meant to be caged. You were meant to be called.

You were never meant to stay small. You were meant to become who heaven already knows you are.

So step forward.

Let the old fall away.

Let God lead you into the wide open spaces of His purpose.

Your life is just beginning.

Your friend, Douglas Vandergraph

Watch Douglas Vandergraph’s inspiring faith-based videos on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@douglasvandergraph

Support the ministry by buying Douglas a coffee https://www.buymeacoffee.com/douglasvandergraph

What is restrained will never extinguish.

---

She was the sea. He was the land.

A story of never— for to join would mean ruin.

So they learned to ache in fragments: wave, shore, tide— stolen touches torn away.

Their lust was not gentle. It was the kind of force that bends planets, that births stars, collates matter.

To touch fully would be to release it— to break the world they loved.

Restraint became their magnum opus.

Forever.

And still—

look closely: wherever they meet you find traces of passion.

She is the sea. He is the land.

---

#poetry #wyst #star

How many of you have problems buying so many notebooks but never finish a single one? I always end up with two problems. One, I have multiple notebooks of separate topics but still have plenty of blank pages left. Two, I write anything and everything in one notebook and my mind gets so scrambled I start a fresh notebook.

It also doesn’t help I buy multiple packs of notebooks as if I’m expecting a nuclear disaster and all the world’s production of paper gets destroyed. Assuming I survive such an event, what am I going to do? Throw pieces of paper into my makeshift fire pit? Write my last will and testament? Or write “valuable” insight to revive human civilization?

Okay, got way off topic. So, this is my best system on how to finish a notebook. First, I buy a pocket notebook (3”x5” or 4”x6”) and keep it in my pocket or nearby at all times. What’s great about smaller notebooks is that I keep my writings short. Second, I use it only for my thoughts and blog posts so it’s easier to review back a topic. Finally, I don’t under any circumstances, use another notebook until I finish it. Once done, I write my name, dates started and finished, and a table of contents written on the inside book cover.

I buy larger notebooks (8.5”x11”), for long essays and book projects and leave them at home. Anything I write on my smaller notebooks that needs to be expanded I transfer to the larger notebook.

A small and large notebook is all you need. And don’t buy more than three notebooks of each size at a time. You have enough writing material without acting like a crackhead always needing a fix. If you have a better system let me know.

#writing #notebook #system

Il est difficile de croire que Wikipédia, l'encyclopédie libre qui a démocratisé l'accès au savoir universel, fête déjà son quart de siècle. Pour marquer ce vingt-cinquième anniversaire, la fondation Wikimedia ne s'est pas seulement contentée de souffler des bougies. Elle a profité de cette occasion symbolique pour dévoiler une série de nouveaux partenariats commerciaux avec la crème de la technologie mondiale et les pionniers de l'intelligence artificielle.

Au cœur de cette nouvelle stratégie se trouve Wikimedia Enterprise, un produit commercial développé par la fondation. Loin de trahir sa mission d'accès gratuit pour le grand public, cet outil est conçu pour répondre aux besoins titanesques des entreprises technologiques. Il permet une réutilisation et une distribution à grande échelle du contenu de Wikipédia et des autres projets affiliés. Si un partenariat avec Google avait déjà été officialisé en 2022, Wikimedia a levé le voile sur l'ampleur réelle de son réseau de clients. Au cours de l'année écoulée, des accords ont été conclus avec des mastodontes comme Amazon, Meta et Microsoft, mais aussi avec des acteurs émergents et disruptifs de l'IA tels que la start-up française Mistral AI et le moteur de réponse Perplexity. D'autres collaborations avec Ecosia, Pleias, ProRata, Nomic et Reef Media viennent compléter ce tableau impressionnant.

Ces accords offrent à Wikipédia un nouveau levier indispensable pour assurer sa pérennité économique. Nous vivons une époque où le contenu de l'encyclopédie est massivement aspiré et réutilisé par des modèles de langage et des services technologiques pour fournir des réponses factuelles et instantanées aux internautes. Plutôt que de subir ce pillage numérique, Wikimedia Enterprise transforme cette dépendance en opportunité. Le service ne se contente pas de faire payer ces entreprises pour l'usage des données. Il leur offre en retour un accès privilégié, rapide et volumineux, spécifiquement calibré pour alimenter leurs algorithmes gourmands en informations.

Il faut dire que l'enjeu est colossal. La fondation a rappelé dans son billet de blog que Wikipédia figure toujours parmi les dix sites web les plus visités au monde. Avec plus de 65 millions d'articles rédigés dans plus de 300 langues et près de 15 milliards de vues par mois, l'encyclopédie constitue le socle de vérité sur lequel repose une grande partie du web moderne. C'est précisément cette base de données humaine que les géants de la Silicon Valley s'arrachent.

Pourtant, au milieu de cette effervescence technologique, la fondation tient à rappeler une vérité fondamentale à travers l'importance du facteur humain. Selena Deckelmann, directrice des produits et de la technologie, a souligné avec justesse que le savoir est intrinsèquement humain et qu'il nécessite ces derniers pour être créé et maintenu. Dans un monde de plus en plus automatisé, la connaissance générée par les bénévoles de Wikipédia est plus précieuse que jamais. C'est grâce à l'aide continue des lecteurs, des éditeurs volontaires et des donateurs que la plateforme restera ce carrefour indispensable de la collaboration en ligne.

Les célébrations de cet anniversaire ne se limitent toutefois pas aux annonces corporatives. Wikimedia a lancé une vaste campagne commémorative incluant une nouvelle série documentaire vidéo. Celle-ci offre une plongée fascinante dans les coulisses, mettant en valeur les visages des bénévoles qui, aux quatre coins du globe, construisent l'encyclopédie jour après jour. Une capsule temporelle numérique a également été inaugurée pour explorer le passé, le présent et le futur du site, avec la participation narrative de son fondateur, Jimmy Wales. Pour couronner le tout, un événement en direct est prévu aujourd’hui sur les réseaux sociaux de Wikipédia, promettant divertissements et invités de marque.

Ces annonces dessinent le portrait d'une organisation qui refuse de vieillir. Entre la modernisation de son infrastructure technique, ses propres expérimentations avec l'IA et l'introduction de nouveaux formats comme la vidéo courte, elle prouve qu'elle est prête à affronter les vingt-cinq prochaines années avec la même pertinence qu'au premier jour.

Bathed her today and, surprisingly, she still doesn't hate me.

It's mating season for the cats these days and there are more cats than humans in Cairo, which is a city of over 20 million people, which makes cat-mating season kind of a warzone.

She may just be seeking refuge from all the horny bobcats out there, of which I can see four sniffing around the studio doors as I type.

In the process of recalibrating my daily routine; Bedtime reading just ain't for me, so instead I'm taking up reading first thing in morning. My place doesn't get any direct sunlight, which is a blessing in the hot summer months, but a frigid curse worthy of Norse gods in the winter. I may have to incorporate a daily noon-time stroll into my routine just to get some sun. I'm terrible at aimless walking though, and need to figure a destination into my plan to make it work.

In other news: I think I'm getting the hang of homemade egg pasta. No machines.

The plan to give up smoking will likely not come to pass, but I can at the very least attempt to heavily reduce it.

#journal

Zinspecteur Click Klak en de zaak met de Levensgevaarlijke Explosieve Materialen

In verhoorkamer 200.1 van de Smægmåånse Veiligheidservice zat Zinspecteur Click Klak tegenover de gisternacht opgepakte wereldberuchte terrorist Ali Neeja.

Na een tip afkomstig van notabene zijn echtgenote tevens partner in de terroristische huishouding W. Itlijn. werd het gezin metname Ali jarenlang op de voet gevolgd door de vaderlandse diensten verlenende kantoor opgericht voor alles wat veilig is en of daar voor door gaat. Gisternacht besloot de dienst tot actie over te gaan na een allesbehalve geheime bezorging van alweer een pakket vol explosief materiaal.

Met veel bombarie, lawaai, glanzend en flitsend materiaal, reden zinspecteurs Click Klak en zijn manschapen naar de Laan van de vrijheid nummer 666, gebouwd in een luxe wijk waar de rijksten der rijken woonden, dat wil zeggen een plek met enorm veel groen, leef optrekken met een grote leegte tussen muren, wijds uiteen staande en vaak verdomd weinig mensen bewegend tussen die muren, stevige wanden gemaakt van duizenden opgestapelde met mortel aan elkaar gelijmde gebakken stenen afgewisseld met hier en daar een kijk naar buiten gat. Al die huizen zijn altijd voorzien van de best betaalbare en meest eenvoudig instelbare bewakingsystemen om al het aangeschafte, binnen gegraaide spul daar binnen binnen voor eigen pupillen te houden, de huidige waard opgesloten in die huis zone verhoudt zich tot de soortgelijken buiten de eigen wanden wereld zoals hij is.

Dit systeem begon meteen nadat de dienstverleners de voordeur tot ontploffing hadden gebracht onderdeel te worden van Zinspecteurs Click Klaks 666e kakofonie, tussen de sirenes door klonk Da da da du liebst mich nicht, het lied van Trio maar dan in een illegaal verkregen acid house versie, Click Klaks mannen wisten dat dit zou gebeuren. Ze hadden deze inval van verre zien aankomen allemaal dankzij de online werk agenda en daarom ook tot die tijd in details kunnen voorbereiden zodat ze alweer niet voor verassingen kwamen te staan.

Het moment van de inval was weliswaar omstreden, de inval was net tijdens de school voorjaarsvakantie en velen wouden liever met hun gezin naar een huisje te Elders op aard dan hier een inval doen op onbehaaglijke naarlingen zoals Ali Neeja en W.

Itlijn. Echter ze kregen loon naar werken en op vakantie gaan naar Elders of Ergens anders hoort daar niet bij dat is slechts het resultaat van dit hele gebeuren, vakantie werk daar dankzij werk voor veilig voor zichzelf en anderen hier, al is het tijdens het beste moment voor zo'n vakantie.

De vele geluiden stapelden zich op, de commando voerder schreeuwde zijn commando re mi fa so ti do's zo hard dat zelfs de buren 110 meter verderop het zouden kunnen horen, de optocht ervoor hadden ze zeker niet gemist. De vijf kleurrijk uitgedoste wagens, de valse noten blazende speakers altijd gepaard met neon knipper lichten, het noodzakelijke lawaai opdat de vele onschuldigen levend hier in Smægmå zich ondanks alle slechtheid op de wereld zich een beetje veiliger voelen. Dat en cultuurlijk om die in en in slechten de stuipen op het anders zo rustige maar boze lijf te jagen.

De tot in de puntjes voorbereide inval verliep vanzelfsprekend vrij vlot, binnen luttele seconden na het inbeuken van de slaapkamerdeur werd Ali Neeja door de speciaal daarvoor ingehuurde expert Klaas Vaker wakker geschudt uit zijn immens diepe slaap, W. Itlijn was afwezig, op vakantie naar Benjemaleisië met de kinderen Fantasia en Fata Morgana en haar publieks geheim, minnaar “”! Op en naast het bed van de terrorist lagen vele explosieven, ook op vele andere plekken in de villa vonden de veiligheidsdiensten verlenende ambtenaren heel veel explosief materiaal. Deze net ontwaakte man was inderdaad een gevaar voor de staat.

Nu zat Ali Neeja klaarwakker tegenover Click Klak, de zinspecteur maakte tss, tsss, geluiden terwijl hij overbelichte foto's liet zien van bijna al het explosieve materiaal gevonden in zijn huis en in containers rondom naamloze villa 666 op De Laan der Vrijheid. Hij sprak “Terrorist Ali u was tot op heden een gerespecteerd lid van de vaderlandse elite met een peperduur contract, had alles wat u hartje kon begeren en aardig wat spul dat u hoofdje dacht te moeten willen, waarom bent u dan zo boos!” Het is zo dat Ali Neeja had van voor dit verhoor had gevraagd of hij zich alsjeblieft mocht beroepen op zwijgrecht, gebruik mocht maken van ijzige stilte in ieder geval tijdens dit verhoor, dit mocht, en daarom zei Neeja deze keer en alle komende keren waarop hij iets kon zeggen, niks, hij slaakte enkel zuchten op gepaste tijden.

Het veilige woord zou dus dit gehele stuk aan Click Klak toebehoren “U heeft uwer gezin, W. Itlijn, Fantasia, Fata Morgana en de Schildpad Stoffel meegesleept in deze blinde haat jegens ons, u denkbeeldige vijand. Stel dat u kind dit materiaal in de vingers had gekregen, wat dan! Het had massaal kunnen exploderen, enorme schade aanrichten, u opgezadeld met levenslange spijt” geslaakte zucht 2 De zinspecteur fluisterde iets in zijn mini microfoontje, het verhoor werd elders in Kantoor twee te Zęįst door een tweede virtueel aanwezige zinspecteur live gevolgd zodat Click Klak mogelijke verhoor fouten meteen kon herstellen en daarnaast stond hij in direct contact met zijn vijftien assistenten en hun secondanten aan de andere kant van de verhoor, bestudeer en doorvraag kamer deur, In dit specifieke geval schakelde hij de hulp in van de tweederangs secondanten. Even later bracht een gepantserde persoon een gepantserd koffertje in de praatruimte, opende deze metalen koffer en vertrok daarna schielijks met samengeknepen billen. geslaakte zucht 3.

In de koffer lag een klein deel van het gevonden explosief materiaal. Click Klak nam daarvan een nog kleiner deeltje in handen, keek even naar camera drie achter spiegel twee, zijn spontaan ingestudeerde actie werd na enig gekrakeel in de studio goedgekeurd door de VAZ. Het verhoor kon op deze wijze uren voortgaan. “Dit materiaal lag in de keuken meneer Neeja, op maar 15 meter afstand van Stoffel, 25 van Fantasia en 31 meter van Fata, dit ene stukje plastic had kunnen zorgen voor ernstige gevolgen, als je op zo'n gevuld extreem druk gevoelig bultje drukt is de ellende niet te overzien en op een zo'n stukje zitten honderden van die nopjes. Als u en u mogelijke handlangers dit spul samen tot ontploffing zouden brengen vrees ik dat de wereld in geen tijd ten onder gaat, in ieder induvidueel nopje zit valse lucht met opzet daarin geplaatst opdat het echt niet mag ontsnappen, nooit. Allemaal in het kader van onze veiligheid, stootvastheid, voorkomen van ellende oftewel waarborgen van de kwaliteit des levens. Zoiets laat je niet moedwillig ontsnappen. Geslaakte zucht 4

Zinspecteur Click Klak was wederom opgestaan uit zijn pluche zetel om te lopen ijsberen rondom de op een houten klapstoel gezetelde terrorist, zogenaamd diep in gedachten, turend naar de betonnen vloer, loenzend naar Ali, wachtend op een geweldige ingeving waarmee hij deze baksteenrijke misdadiger voor altijd op het goede pad zou brengen ver weg van deze levensbedreigende plastic lakens vol kwalijke staatsgevaarlijke lucht stukje voor stukje vastgeklonken in makkelijk te detoneren bubbels. Na vijf minuten rondjes rennen in de kleine ruimte gaf hij het op Dit keer werd geen zingeving door het dribbel ritueel opgeroepen. De volgende slaak zucht kwam op naam van Click Klak Geslaakte zucht 1 meteen gevolgd door Geslaakte zucht 5 opdoemend uit het keelgat van de terrorist.

In ongemakkelijke stilte werd het verhoor voortgezet tot aan de rust. Tijdens de rust bleef Ali Neeja in de grauwe grijze half duistere spiegelkamer. Click Klak vertrok naar de kantine vergader kamer voor nodig overleg met zijn inmiddels 50 assistenten en 50 secondanten. Een brainstorm rondom de grote hete koffie bron komt de staatsveiligheid altijd ten goede. De vergader eettafel was ruim voorzien van alle brandstoffen om iedereen actief en allert te houden tijdens de dagelijkse crisis situaties, slagroomgebak, borrelnoten, een plank met vele kazen, wijn, water erbij, hartige taarten, pasta schotel, rijpe vruchten, alcohol vrije frisdrank en een sorbet na, het land was bij de service altijd in goede handen. Dit soort bijeenkomsten waren altijd goed voor een doorbraak, hier kwam ieder overleg een persoon aankakken met de werkzame oplossing voor alle onze persoonlijke veiligheid bedreigende aardse problemen en bijpassende personen. Het is dan ook in het belang van ons allen, onze vrijheid, handelingsbekwaamheden, efficiëntie, koopkrachten oftewel het veilig heden dat ik hier verder geen woorden meer aan smerig maak. Het land zou anders teveel over zijn echte leiders komen te weten.

Terug in de benauwende ruimte was de zinspecteur voorzien van goede enerverende brandstof en hij zat redelijk vol goede bruikbare gedachten, zoveel als een net tot de nok gevulde maag mogelijk maakt dan. Hij moest en zou Ali Neeja breken, op de best mogelijke manier toespreken, zodat deze tot inkeer kwam, daarna als herboren met veel plezier zijn twintig jaar extra straf ging uitzitten, zichzelf zinvol ging maken in dat voor alle anderen, de onschuldigen in dit verhaal, afgesloten hol, samen werken met alle andere tot inkeer gekomen of komende terroristen aan de oplossing voor puzzels en of voorlezen van gedrukte bladzijden. Click Klak had dankzij jaren speurwerk hier aan vooraf al een helder beeld van het hele netwerk van deze eenkennige leider, vooralsnog leek het een lone wolf die zijn geliefde staat, land vol liefhebbend en goed volk, met deze valse lucht wou ondermijnen. Hij moest echter een volledige bekentenis aan Ali Neeja ontfutselen zodat hij ook echt kon worden gestraft voor de aangeschafte en uitgevoerde misdaden.

Tijdens het overleg was in alle haast Ali Neeja's bekentenis geschreven, Click Klak had dus alleen nog maar handtekeningen nodig onder dat document. “Dus” zei Click Klak. *Geslaakte zucht 6” “daar zit ik weer in mijn heerlijke relax stoel en jij nog altijd op je klap stoeltje, heb je al inkeer? Voel je de schuld opkomen, besef je wat je hebt gedaan Ali Neeja?!”

Zucht zeven ontsnapte uit het lippen paar van de terrorist lippen, meer niet. Er ontstond even een spannend moment toen de tl buis boven spiegel drie begon te knipperen, Beide heren werden nerveus door het probleem met wisselspanning in de lichtbuis. De zinspecteur meldde het probleem en een kreeg advies van een secondant. Click Klak liep naar het flikkerende licht en drukte op het aan en uit knopje, het licht ging weg en hield op met knipperen, De zinspecteur drukte nogmaals op het knopje en het probleem begon opnieuw. Het probleem was door deze interventie niet opgelost. Dit irriteerde Klak mateloos, de secondant van de secondant kwam na de reprimande de kamer binnen verwijderde de tl buis. Daarmee was dit tot overspanning leidende probleem in elk geval tijdelijk opgelost. Beide heren waren iets minder zichtbaar opgelucht.

“Wij, ik en mijn team van veilig deskundigen hebben tijdens het overleg aan je bekentenis gewerkt, ik zal hem voordragen dan is daarna het naamwoord aan jou, woorden, drievoudig, daar exact op die vooraf gefabriceerde locatie, onderaan de A4 om te erkennen dat je een misdadiger bent die ondanks al het goede dat dit land je gaf, dit volgeplempte begrensde levensgebied toch willens en wetens in gevaar hebt gebracht, oke?” sprak Click Clak die daarna een stap opzij moest zetten zodat camera vier Ali Neeja's knikje nogmaals, nadat de zinspecteur de verdachte wees op zijn onduidelijk toegeven, deze fysieke jawel kon registreren, tussen zucht 8 en negen kon iedereen die dat moest zien Ali nu wel duidelijk in beeld zien knikken. De voordracht van de bekentenis kon beginnen.

Ik Ali Neeja gehuwd burger van Smægmå met het burger dienstverlenings nummer 1234454345 wonend op De Laan der Vrijheid 666 geboren op een dag in een land ver ver van hier verklaar dat ik de thuisstaat, het pappieland Smægmå met opzet zin in gevaar bracht doormiddel van het kopen van onschuldig ogende producten waarom heen zat gewikkeld het eigenlijke gewilde explosieve materiaal, het object vol valse lucht onveilig opgesloten in grote en of kleine makkelijk tot ontploffing te brengen bubbels een welke u met geweld heeft laten, zie bewijzen 1 tot en met 123324, of nog wou laten ontsnappen en dus loslaten op ons, gedienstige, goed willende en gelovige inwoners plus bezoekers van dit geweldig gezellige en o zo vruchtbare belasting paradijs. U heeft aldoende gebruik gemaakt van en daardoor mede ontwikkeld een imposant netwerk waarin die zeer explosieve materialen, dit vreselijk gevaarlijke goed snel en efficiënt bij u thuis kon worden afgeleverd. Deze contacten staan bij deze bekentenis alfabetisch gerangschikt op bijlage 15 tot en met 83. U heeft weet van de gevolgen van het laten ontsnappen van deze valse lucht op u zelve als ook alle anderen, iedereen hier en daar, u beseft ten volste dat door u handelen iedereen vandaag de dag en alle op deze volgende in levensgevaar verkeerd.

Met vriendelijke groet ... (uw naam 3x)

geslaakte zucht 10 Een lange stilte volgde, Ali Neeja las de hele bekentenis ook de verzwegen stukken inclusief de duizenden bijlagen twee keer maar tekende het papier niet. De zinspecteur wees de terrorist op het vele werk door hem en zijn team verricht, de uren, het overleg, het plaatsen van apparatuur in zijn huis, de gevaren waaraan ze toen werden blootgesteld, het vele eten nodig om zoveel mensen dat werk te laten doen, de kosten voor de bouw van het veilig kantoor, de problemen daarbij, steeds meer geld was er nodig, de inkomens van iedereen noodzakelijk voor deze bekentenis kon worden voorgedragen en dat het niet meer dan normaal zou zijn dat Ali Neeja dus dat document de moeite waard zou maken alleen maar door 3 keer zijn naam te zetten onder dat witte A4 papier op exact de juiste plek. Op dat moment net na die lange speech begon tl buis twee boven gebroken spiegel één te knipperen, de spanning bij Ali Neeja was inmiddels door de druk om de waarheid te verhullen te hoog opgelopen om dit euvel nog te kunnen verdragen en zodoende zette hij hevig ademend reeks moeizame zuchten zo goed als vrijwillig met misschien een beetje hulp van de hand van Click Klak, we denken van niet, maar ja, door de spanningsproblemen in de lichtbuis was de beeld registratie apparatuur ook even uitgevallen, gelukkig meteen na bekentenis ondertekening hersteld zodat iedereen aan de andere kant van de spiegels en op het scherm Zinspecteur Click Klak triomfantelijk zag staan met de drievoudig ondertekende bekentenis.

Ali Neeja werd versuft, geblindoekt en lusteloos afgevoerd, vervolgens getransporteerd naar het zwaar beveiligde “Zijspoor” Bajes, Theater en Horeca complex. Click Klak werd op schouders genomen, een groot feest kwam op gang, hij en zijn team gingen met de bekentenis in handen op een boot door de grachten van Smægmå waar langs de kanten achter de omheining de wild enthousiaste veilige bevolking Hoezee, Hoezee roepende het leven voluit vierde.

Eind Veilig, dus Goed.

Nous adorons tous la magie de la technologie, surtout lorsqu'elle simplifie nos interactions quotidiennes. Prenez Google Fast Pair, par exemple. Ce protocole a été conçu avec une idée noble, permettre aux utilisateurs d'Android et de ChromeOS de connecter leurs gadgets Bluetooth en une fraction de seconde, d'une simple tape. Fini les menus de configuration interminables. Pourtant, cette quête de l'ultra-commodité vient de se heurter à un mur de sécurité inquiétant.

Des chercheurs en sécurité de l'université KU Leuven, en Belgique, ont révélé une réalité glaçante. Le protocole même qui rend vos connexions si fluides peut être retourné contre vous. Baptisée WhisperPair, cette collection de vulnérabilités permet à des pirates de prendre le contrôle de centaines de millions d'écouteurs, de casques et d'enceintes, transformant vos accessoires audio en outils d'espionnage redoutables.

L'équipe de recherche a identifié des failles critiques dans 17 accessoires audio utilisant le protocole Fast Pair, vendus par des géants de l'industrie comme Sony, JBL, Xiaomi, Nothing, OnePlus et même Google. Le scénario d'attaque est d'une simplicité effrayante. Un pirate équipé d'un équipement peu coûteux (comme un Raspberry Pi) et se trouvant à portée Bluetooth (environ 15 mètres) peut détecter votre appareil et s'y connecter silencieusement. Selon Sayon Duttagupta, l'un des chercheurs, l'attaque est fulgurante:

« Vous marchez dans la rue, écouteurs sur les oreilles. En moins de 15 secondes, nous pouvons détourner votre appareil. »

Une fois connecté, l'attaquant devient le maître à bord. Il peut injecter son propre son à un volume assourdissant, couper vos appels, ou pire, activer le microphone pour écouter vos conversations ambiantes à votre insu. L'aspect le plus pernicieux concerne la localisation. Les chercheurs ont découvert que certains modèles, notamment chez Google et Sony, peuvent être exploités pour traquer physiquement la victime. Si vos écouteurs n'ont pas été préalablement liés à un compte Google (par exemple, si vous êtes un utilisateur d'iPhone qui utilise des écouteurs tiers) un pirate peut lier l'accessoire à son propre compte Google via l'attaque.

Dès lors, vos écouteurs deviennent une balise de suivi dans le réseau “Localiser mon appareil” de Google. Le pirate peut suivre vos déplacements en temps réel sur une carte. Bien que Google et Apple aient mis en place des alertes pour prévenir le harcèlement, la victime recevrait une notification indiquant qu'elle est suivie par... ses propres écouteurs. La plupart des utilisateurs, pensant à un bug, ignoreraient probablement l'alerte, laissant le champ libre au stalker. Google a réagi en publiant un bulletin de sécurité et en déployant des correctifs pour ses propres appareils et pour le système Android. L'histoire ne s'arrête pourtant pas là. Les chercheurs ont déjà trouvé un moyen de contourner ce correctif concernant le traçage, prouvant que le jeu du chat et de la souris est loin d'être terminé.

Le problème structurel réside dans la nature même des objets connectés. Contrairement à votre smartphone ou votre ordinateur, qui vous harcèlent pour faire leurs mises à jour, vos enceintes et écouteurs restent souvent sur leur firmware d'origine. Pour vous protéger, vous devez généralement télécharger une application spécifique au fabricant (comme l'appli Sony ou JBL) pour installer les correctifs. Soyons honnêtes, la grande majorité des consommateurs ignorent même que ces applications existent ou que leurs écouteurs ont besoin de mises à jour logicielles. Tant qu’elles ne sont pas effectuées, les vulnérabilités persistent. Les chercheurs avertissent que des millions d'appareils resteront probablement vulnérables pendant des mois, voire des années.

L'origine du problème semble être un mélange de spécifications techniques mal interprétées par les fabricants de puces et de faiblesses dans le standard Fast Pair lui-même. Bien que Google certifie ces appareils, les tests n'ont visiblement pas suffi à détecter ces aberrations de sécurité, comme le fait qu'un appareil déjà couplé accepte une nouvelle connexion sans authentification forte. Alors, que faire ? La recommandation immédiate est de vérifier si vos accessoires audio disposent d'une application compagnon et de forcer une mise à jour du firmware dès aujourd'hui.

Au-delà du correctif technique, WhisperPair nous rappelle une vérité fondamentale de l'ère numérique, la commodité a un prix. En voulant supprimer les frictions technologiques pour nous faciliter la vie, les constructeurs suppriment parfois les barrières qui nous protègent. Comme le conclut le chercheur Nikola Antonijević: « La commodité ne devrait pas signifier moins de sécurité. »

Casi marzo ya y aún no había escrito un resumen de 2025, así que me pongo a ello. Va a ser un resumen somero por varias razones:

1. La mayoría de juegos los he jugado en BGA, que ofrece generalmente una sensación distinta a las que se buscaba cuando fueron diseñados, así que mi opinión está sesgada. Jugar por turnos hace que sea difícil pillar las dinámicas y ver las estrategias favorables. Aunque en la imagen que acompaña al post aparezcan muchos juegos con una única partida, puede que el número de partidas que haya jugado sea mayor, pero si lo hago digitalmente sólo apunto una.
2. Se ve también en la imagen que tampoco he repetido mucho, por lo que la experiencia puede ser limitada.
3. No va a ser un texto en profundidad sobre cada juego, así que ni aún cuando sí crea que tenga experiencia con los juegos, es un buen análisis.
4. Esto lo hago para hacer dos chistes e intentar generar interés o curiosidad por si alguien se anima a jugar.

Voy a agrupar algunos títulos en categorías porque si no estoy aquí hasta mañana.

• Juegos de deducción que parecía que sí, pero no: Orapa Mine, Zoogitives, KronoLogic, Digit Code. Yo entiendo que no todos los juegos de deducción pueden ser Búsqueda del planeta X, pero esperaba que estos fuesen juegos, y no un Clues By Sam nivel Medium, ni siquiera Tricky. Que me encanta Clues By Sam, para hacer aún mientras desayuno, la única victoria segura del día, oye, pero no es una caja que ocupa lugar en casa y es un dinero y hay que hacer con gente para, en última instancia, estar pensando en silencio y ya el colmo de KronoLogic, que sean casos que no se pueden rejugar y no se reinician a media noche NY time.
• Combate de judo contra un profesional: Tuve un profesor de ed. física en el instituto que fue entrenador profesional de judo, y como anteriormente había hecho karate, me cogía como voluntario para explicar los ejercicios de las 2 clases que vimos judo. Pues me hizo una contractura en el cuello. Esa es la sensación que se debe tener en un buen juego para 2, la de que alguien que sepa te puede reventar el cuello aunque aún no hayas empezado. Tampoco digo que sea una sensación maravillosa, pero hay algunos juegos que me la han dado, incluso en la primera partida por internet: Agent Avenue, Duel for Cardia, Stalk Exchange, Herbaceous, Mythicals, Tag Team, Pagan y Nanga Parbat, con mención especial para este último porque es bastante minimalista en su funcionamiento y eso me gusta. Bueno, es que realmente podría estar en un tipo de juego que normalmente es para 2, como son los abstractos, donde no hay ningún azar y toda la información es pública. Se ve que he jugado poco este año, y solo están aquí Trench (en BGA hay varios portugueses que invitan a cualquiera que haya jugado alguna vez a ese juego en su lucha por ser el número 1), Hive, Kamon, Yinsh, Carpniches y Medu, siendo mis favoritos Kamon y Yinsh por el buen ratio entre parafernalia y profundidad.
• Modas en los juegos de mesa modernos que no traen nada bueno: Entiendo que esto además de ser un medio cultural implica cuestiones económicas y logísticas que van más allá de que los creadores tengan un sustento para vivir, con lo que muchos de los problemas vienen de que la gente quiere comer y el porcentaje de beneficios se reduce cuando hay una cadena tan grande. Aún así, tiendo a mirar con recelo que, como sucede en videojuegos o el caso flagrante del cine, las principales apuestas sean retematizaciones de juegos antiguos, copias más o menos descaradas o mejunjes de las cuatro cosas que funcionan en un momento dado, pero con más plástico. Quicir, reaprovechar para comer me parece bien, pero hacerlo con un juego que atenta contra el medio ambiente por la cantidad de plástico ya no. En esta categoría está Crafting the cosmos y ya. Un juego de crear una galaxia y vida, porque la actual se ha quemado para producir tales materiales. Bueno, realmente hay más juegos en esta categoría que podría ser que para este viaje no hacía falta semejantes flamantes alforjas, como Coffee Rush, Cathood, Coatl, Four Gardens, Monolith Arena, Pergola, Pioneer Days, Piña Coladice, Pyramido, Spectacular, The Game Makers. Juegos (casi) todos ellos con algo positivo, pero creo que no con la suficiente originalidad o interés como para justificar traerlos desde China.
• Refritos con buen sofrito: Al igual que pienso que la tendencia que he comentado en el punto anterior significa el estancamiento del medio, también hay buenos diseños, ya sea porque encajan bien el tema del juego, de manera que sea más sencillo entender las reglas, o bien porque encuentran cómo usar una mecánica de manera que el puzzle resulte realmente interesante: Fromage (a quién no le va a gustar hacer quesos), Pirates of Maracaibo (un concentrado del juego Maracaibo, que ya comenté que me gustaba, pero como los dueños de la editorial en español son fascistas, pues no se van a llevar mi dinero) que conserva todas sus propiedades y The White Castle (¡tomas 9 decisiones en el juego y ya desde la primera sabes que has metido la pata, como cuando cada día te levantas de la cama para currar!)
• Ah, es cierto, esto eran los juegos de mesa: Simple, efectivo, pensar mucho sin que parezca que hay ningún motivo, como al comer techo por la noche. Arboretum, GlassRoad, Kilauea, Livingstone, Mexica Skull Kingy y, el mejor para mí en este aspecto este año, Tower Up.
• Tampoco pasa nada si te lo pasas bien: No siempre está disponible la opción de no quedar con mucha gente, y un servidor no tiene voz como para explicar un juego medianamente complejo a más de tres personas que no pongan de su parte manteniendo silencio, así que también hay que considerar juegos de pocas reglas y que incluso pueden hacer que lo pases bien: Hitster, Smart10 (por favor, STOP Trivial) y, el juego más proclive a querer echar otra partida tras perder estrepitosamente la primera, Carnival of Sins.

Ya sé que medir todo no es lo mejor para la cabeza y tal, pero también es bueno hacer check, y es una forma de comprobar si tiene sentido comprar según qué juegos para que estén pillando polvo. Y esto tiene como resultado saber que he jugado menos a menos juegos distintos (también está sesgado por cómo apunto las partidas online), así que tocará aprender más juegos este año.

Para 2026 me he propuesto varios retos, como jugar al menos una partida a todos los juegos que tenga en casa con reglas para 1 jugador, así no tengo excusa de no tener amigüitos y me fuerzo a no perder el tiempo de maneras menos satisfactorias.

Y eso es más o menos todo el resumen, ¡pasadlo bien!

Tags: #boardgames #juegosdemesa

Skiathos är en grekisk ö som ofta beskrivs som liten till ytan men stor i upplevelser. Här möts frodig natur och klart, ljusblått hav på ett sätt som känns både lättillgängligt och genuint. Ön är känd för sin gröna vegetation, sina många sandstränder och sin avslappnade atmosfär där semesterlivet får ta plats utan att kännas stressigt. Samtidigt finns ett levande vardagsliv med små tavernor, hamnpromenader och byar där tempot är lugnt men aldrig sömnigt. Kombinationen av naturskönhet, badvänliga stränder och grekisk charm gör Skiathos till en plats som passar lika bra för total avkoppling som för den som vill upptäcka nya miljöer i sin egen takt.

Skiathos är en av de grekiska öar där stränderna inte bara är många, utan också väldigt olika varandra. Det gör att ön passar lika bra för den som vill ha stillhet och natur som för den som söker liv, musik och rörelse vid havet.

En av de mest älskade stränderna är Koukounaries, ofta beskriven som en av Medelhavets vackraste sandstränder. Den långa, mjuka sanden sluttar långsamt ner i ett klart och lugnt hav, och bakom stranden breder en grön pinjeskog ut sig som ger både skugga och en speciell doft som hör platsen till. Trots sin popularitet känns stranden sällan stressig, och det är lätt att hitta sin egen rytm här.

En helt annan upplevelse väntar vid Lalaria, som nästan känns mer som ett naturfenomen än en traditionell strand. De vita klipporna, de runda stenarna och det mjölkigt turkosa vattnet skapar ett dramatiskt landskap som etsar sig fast i minnet. Eftersom stranden bara nås med båt blir besöket ofta kort men intensivt, och känslan av att ha kommit till en avlägsen plats är stark redan när man kliver i land.

För den som uppskattar öppna ytor och ett lugnare tempo är Mandraki ett utmärkt val. Här möts man av sanddyner, vidsträckt strand och ett hav som kan vara både spegelblankt och lekfullt beroende på vinden. Atmosfären är avslappnad och naturlig, och stranden passar lika bra för långa promenader som för stillsamt badande.

Agia Eleni är känd för sitt varma ljus och sina solnedgångar som färgar himlen i mjuka toner av orange och rosa. Det är en strand som inbjuder till att stanna kvar längre än planerat, kanske med något kallt i glaset medan dagen sakta övergår i kväll. Kombinationen av fin sand, lugnt vatten och en behaglig stämning gör den till en favorit för många.

Vill man istället ha mer puls och energi är Banana Beach svår att motstå. Här finns musik, strandbarer och vattensporter som ger platsen en livlig och social karaktär. Samtidigt är vattnet klart och inbjudande, vilket gör att stranden fungerar både för bad och för den som vill umgås och känna semesterkänslan på hög volym.

Si vous pensiez que la période de l'efficacité chez Meta était terminée, détrompez-vous. Mark Zuckerberg et sa garde rapprochée viennent de dévoiler leur dernière arme pour presser le citron jusqu'à la dernière goutte avec un nouveau système d'évaluation baptisé “Checkpoint”. Sous couvert de simplification administrative et de récompenses financières alléchantes, ce programme, qui entrera en vigueur d’ici mi-2026, semble surtout marquer l'avènement d'une culture d'entreprise impitoyable où la compétition interne prime sur la collaboration.

Selon des documents internes obtenus par Business Insider, l’entreprise américaine promet désormais des bonus pouvant atteindre 300% du salaire de base pour une poignée d'élus. C'est le miroir aux alouettes classique, agiter une carotte dorée pour faire courir l'ensemble de la meute plus vite. Mais derrière ces chiffres qui donnent le tournis se cache une mécanique bien plus sombre, celle d'un darwinisme corporatif assumé qui ne laisse aucune place à l'erreur.

Le nouveau système divise les employés en quatre catégories distinctes. D'un côté, l'élite, les “Outstanding” (environ 20% des effectifs) qui toucheront un multiplicateur de 200% et une infime minorité recevant le nouveau “Meta Award” avec un multiplicateur de 300%. De l'autre, la masse laborieuse classée “Excellent” (environ 70%), qui recevra 115% de son bonus cible. L'excellence est donc devenue la norme, le minimum syndical. Ce qui était autrefois une performance louable est désormais considéré comme le point de départ, la ligne de base.

Mais le véritable danger réside dans le bas du classement. Environ 10% des employés se retrouveront dans les catégories “Needs Improvement” (50% de bonus) ou “Not Meeting Expectations” (0% de bonus). Dans un contexte où Meta a récemment exigé de ses managers qu'ils classent de force 15 à 20% de leurs équipes dans les catégories inférieures, ce nouveau système ressemble moins à un outil de développement qu'à un algorithme de licenciement déguisé. Être classé dans ces catégories revient pratiquement à recevoir une notification de préavis.

Pour vendre cette pilule amère, la direction utilise l'argument fallacieux de la bureaucratie. Le mémo interne déplore que les managers passent 80 heures par an sur les évaluations et que les employés perdent collectivement 330 000 heures en feedbacks. L'objectif officiel est de sauver du temps. En réalité, en réduisant l'importance des retours entre pairs, Meta élimine l'un des derniers remparts d'humanité et de nuance dans l'évaluation du travail.

Le passage à deux cycles d'évaluation complets par an (milieu et fin d'année) avec la même échelle de notation ne va pas réduire la pression, bien au contraire. Il va instaurer un climat de surveillance perpétuelle. Les employés ne pourront plus jamais relâcher la pression. Ils seront constamment sur la sellette, jugés tous les six mois avec la menace implicite de voir leur bonus fondre ou leur poste disparaître. C'est l'institutionnalisation du stress chronique.

Ce virage n'est pas là par hasard. Il trouve sa place dans une tendance lourde de la Silicon Valley, où Google et Amazon durcissent également leurs processus d'évaluation. Mais chez Meta, le cynisme atteint des sommets. Après avoir licencié des milliers de personnes et qualifié 2025 d'année “intense”, l'entreprise transforme ses bureaux en arène de gladiateurs.

En promettant des sommes astronomiques aux “super-performants”, elle brise la cohésion d'équipe. Pourquoi aider un collègue si cela risque de permettre à ce dernier de vous voler votre place dans le top 20% ? Ce système “Checkpoint” est conçu pour extraire le maximum de productivité par la peur et l'appât du gain, sacrifiant au passage le bien-être mental des salariés et la culture de l'entraide. Sous les dehors brillants d'une réforme moderne, c'est un retour aux méthodes de management les plus archaïques et déshumanisantes.

JOURNAL 15 janvier 2026

Je suis devant Tôdai, ma princesse, mon soleil va apparaître sous peu, éblouissant la nuit, chassant l’ombre autour d'elle. J’ai eu une grande consultation aujourd'hui, je ne reviendrai plus voir mes psy avant un mois, puis on verra disent-ils, mais peut-être plus du tout. J’ai cerné et éclairci mon dernier problème, le plus profond, ça s'est fait tout seul, tranquillement pendant les vacances et ces jours derniers, je suis capable de le voir maintenant clairement et calmement. J'en parlerai plus tard. C'est drôle j'avais totalement étouffé ce trauma-là, plus profondément blessant que tous les autres. Je développerai. On m'a fait des compliments insensés aujourd’hui, que je ne répéterai pas, en résumé je suis physiquement une “athlète discrète” et mon mental est celui d'un moine zen, je suis “désespérément saine”. J’ai réussi tous les tests, je n'ai aucun trouble psychologique, j'avais juste une accumulation de traumas empilés et se masquant les uns les autres. Les psys me disent que sans eux j'aurai certainement réussi à tout régler seule, mes mécanismes mentaux me le permettaient ça m'aurait juste demandé plus de temps et aussi de douleur.

* * *

Je suis en mesure maintenant d’en parler J’ai vu et compris quel était mon traumatisme majeur, celui qui a dépassé tous les autres et que j'ai refoulé au point de l'oublier totalement sous l'empilement des traumas successifs. je peux le regarder calmement maintenant de manière objective et dépassionnée. À partir de la mort de maman je me suis accrochée à mon frère aîné malgré sa dureté malgré les coups. Je suis devenue une enfant prodige du sabre pour lui plaire. Il était devenu ma référence, le point central de mon univers. J'avais pour lui un amour total. Ce jour que sortant d’une profonde dépression d'un an après le viol, je n'avais pas encore 16 ans, devant toute l'assemblée familiale les cadres de l'entreprise et autres réunis pour la cérémonie anniversaire du décès de mon grand-père, le criminel de guerre, soudain j'ai pris la parole pour dénoncer ce qu'on m'avait fait subir. Je m'attendais à être soutenue, consolée par mon modèle… au contraire répondant à la rage de mon père ce sont mes frères, l'aîné en tête qui m'ont fait taire, maîtrisée dans ma colère et enfermée dans le placard du garage. Là dans le noir et l´incertitude du sort qu'on me réservait, mon cœur s'est brisé, je me suis effondrée comme une poupée de chiffon. J'étais incapable de pleurer depuis ces jours où mon entraînement interdisait toute plainte toute larme. Le choc était si violent que mon esprit a créé un masque, fermé la porte de ce souvenir. Tout m'est revenu, tranquillement, comme un vieux film oublié petit à petit en douceur pendant nos vacances. J'ai aimé follement mon frère et il m'avait trahi froidement, mécaniquement, sur ordre de mon père probablement, lui ne m'avait jamais vraiment aimé d'ailleurs et certainement pas avec l'intensité que moi j'y avais mise. C’est sans doute la vraie raison qui m'a conduite à le provoquer et me battre avec lui il y a quelques années le bokken en main faute de tirer le sabre en vrai. Je pensais devoir lui en parler, et puis il m'apparaît clairement que non je n’en ai pas le droit. Il culpabilise déjà énormément à cause de ce qu'on m'a fait je ne veux pas rajouter ma peine, d’ailleurs évacuée, à la sienne. Je respire librement maintenant. Le passé ne pèse plus sur mon âme je n’ai plus de cauchemars, plus d´hallucinations éveillée, ma pensée est claire, il n’y a plus de recoins obscurs, je ne crains plus mes démons, la lumière dans mon cœur les a chassés. Je suis heureuse en compagnie de la femme que j’aime plus que tout au monde plus que moi-même et qui m'aime en retour sans limite. Je vois son sourire calme tandis qu’elle travaille sur son laptop. Je la regarde et mon amour explose dans mon cœur des larmes d’amour me viennent. Vous connaissez ça les larmes d'amour ?

#douleur