Difference between revisions of "Talk:Mystica Ari'Yena"

Revision as of 07:26, 17 September 2022

Wheel of Time

I came across the Wheel of Time at my then boyfriend's house. He was busy playing computer games so I picked up a haggard looking softcover book. It had two horses on the cover, a guy and an important looking mysterious woman. I remember being a bit bored by the beginning, but having nothing better to do I kept reading. Several months later I ditched the boyfriend, got my own copies of the books and didn't look back.

The books have had quite an impact on my life, even though I came to them at a much older age than your average WOT-reader. It took several years but I eventually did become part of the online communities which took on a very big part of my time, commitment and dedication. I've learned a lot during those years, gotten some lifelong friends out of it and gained some focus and direction on things that had always been part of me but I could never quite identify. The concept of being a 'Servant of All' resonates with me on a very deep and personal level.

Favorite Book

The Gathering Storm is by far my favorite book. It's been a while since I read it though, so I can't say much about it. But this one is responsible for both having a great deal of hope for the following books as well as the disappointment I felt when they finally came out.

Least Favorite Book

A Memory of Light is my least favorite. I get that they've tried to stick as much to Robert Jordan's original writings, but that caused so much to go wrong. Especially in the character development area. I almost didn't recognize some key characters like Nynaeve.

I also had already started to dislike the sudden overly clear link to religion since the previous book. It cheapened the whole thing for me.

Tarvalon.net

5 years after I started reading the books I (finally) got curious enough to check out the online communities related to Wheel of Time. I first joined Dragonmount.com in 2006 and after a few months became curious about this other site people were talking about and I came snooping around Tarvalon.net. In the beginning I hesitated to join, but eventually I did and became a Green Sister. A notoriously wandering Green, at that. One of the (still) unbonded ones.

For many years I've been in and out (mostly out), doing my thing (mostly on Dragonmount) and living my life (in Ghent, Belgium). For many years I kept to my Green quarters because I had the hardest time feeling part of the community (long, boring story, won't go in to that now). The Greens never judged me (at least not in my face, which they totally would), instead giving me the space and time to find my own way. It's one of the things I like about them. They're fiercely supportive but won't smother you with support. It's up to you to indicate how much you need/want. I like that.

Since some time now I've returned and (am trying to) picked up several roles. I've been a Sitter since my return, am currently the Head Ibis (newsletter person and since recently-er also library coordination person thingy) and I'm involved in the City as an Architect.