Jenny Dolfen

A gift from the Wildmother

Added 2022-12-26 06:23:36 +0000 UTC

This wasn't supposed to be a "End of year, holiday season" type of painting, but time and eye constraints made it such, even though I wanted to paint this scene for two and a half weeks. Orym, who has held on to his non-magical sword until level eight because it was a gift from his late husband, receives a gift from Seraatani, the Wildmother, who imbues his sword with magical energy (and he can now shoot vines, Spider-Man style!)

Thanks to my daughter, who posed for Orym AND for the Wildmother statue.

Thanks, also, to each and every one of you, for sticking with me through another year full of ups and downs! It's been a scary one in many respects, and I'm incredibly grateful that, thanks in the largest part to you, it wasn't as financially scary as it has been for many of my artist colleagues.

The scary part will continue into the new year, as my left eye is still far from functional again. The blind spot may have shrunk, but it's still much larger than any other I've accumulated since this started in 2018, and I'm getting used to the thought that it will not go away. I'm also slowly getting used to the thought that I will not be teaching until retirement age, and that thought, too, is a lot less scary than it would be for others in the same situation. We'll see what the next clinic visit brings.

In the meantime, I wish you a wonderful holiday season (it's still Christmas in Germany! We put the obligatory in-law visit behind us yesterday, so, let the good times roll!) and a New Year that may bring us quieter, more secure and less anxious times.

And of course, that will bring us a very pretty Tolkien calendar! =D Who's got one waiting in the wings?