Hello dear ones, I continue to feel better on this new medication thankfully. I am far from pain-free, but better than I have felt in perhaps two years or more. I continue to take things slowly as I am keenly aware my health is often fragile and tenuous, so gently I go with gratitude and cherishing.
I wanted to share a project that emerged out of this long season of my body flaring and sometimes feeling like my joy was being stolen from me. I turned to one of the things that has always served me well—writing. Specifically the writing of a fairy tale. I began it last winter as a story of a woman whose joy is stolen by a troll. She has to go to the cave guarded by a dragon to retrieve it. Then over the summer the story kept expanding with various images that came to me in meditation and now it is a story of a series of initiations into the mysteries of self and community, and ultimately claiming joy back again.
The act of creating the story has brought me so much joy and in sharing it with a few friends, I feel there is something here that might help meet others who are also struggling in various ways.
I decided I really wanted to have it illustrated, to bring the story to life visually. I found the wonderful Domenique Serfontein, an illustrator in Ireland, whose magical, fairy tale art at Maiden Moose Studio completely captured my heart. (Below is a sample of her art, not the specific artwork for the fairy tale just yet).
So all going well, the illustrations will be done by early spring and hopefully in late spring this book will be available. I am already envisioning an audio version of the story and a series of guided meditations to companion it.
Joy sometimes slips away slowly, sometimes it is suddenly stolen from us. Then we have to make the long journey to joy again, with story, myth, symbol, and dream guiding the way (and maybe a dragon too).
With great and growing love,
Christine
Christine Valters Paintner, OblSB, PhD, REACE
