I Please Meet My Alter Ego: Vessa Ull Dottir`

Hello my friends, I would like to introduce you to my alter ego, Vessa Ull Dottir’. I am a Viking maiden, half-breed of god and man. You see the “Ull” is a Viking god of archery and Dottir’ means daughter. Like many people throughout the United States, I too participate in reenactment groups. I was a member with the Society of Creative Anachronism (SCA) for many years. My fellow geeks in history reside in this world and we all can be who we want to be. One event at a time.

Ladies and gentlemen, I am a sight to see. Almost a contradiction. A Native American, who is also a Viking? I am the darkest Viking I know. Actually, my brother is also a Native American Viking so we walk proudly in our love of our persona. Afterall, a Viking ship was found in North America so, maybe, I know a long stretch, that I and he was a result of that union? I am okay with being a half-breed and proud to be Lady Vessa Ull Dottir’.

I am a diverse person. I am a true Gemini. I love to explore and I have an interest in many things. Archery is one of those things I fell in love with. To be honest, I paid a lot of money to learn archery in college. Yes, I took an archery class for a P. E. class and became hooked. Many days I would go and practice at the range just to blow off steam. I found it very therapeutic and a great stress reliever. I practiced so much that I had no issues in passing my class. I was seriously sad when the class ended.

My Brother, is lovingly called “Fetch” in the SCA by his family, the Vars. He lulled me into joining him in attending an event near Grand Rapids, Michigan. Being newly divorced, I needed something different to do so I packed up my kids and camping gear and off we went.

Camping is always enjoyable. Meeting new people was a good thing too. My brother showed me the archery field and told me to join them for some fun. I borrowed a bow for the day and had a good time completing the task. I finally had a place to use my archery skills and I looked forward to the creativity of the range master.

The archery activities that the range master plans for the people really are a test of skill. Points are kept through out the day and at the end of the day, a champion recieves a reward. I love archery, but in my 20+ years, I had only won one championship. However, I was useful for my points and could help by raising my team points. Those points added up and counted for the Midrelm competition. Any team with a vacancy, could buy my loyalty and skill. Believe me, I had received many trinkets in trade for my skill.

The SCA is a place where many people come together to share their skill. I had learned many skills from other scholars such as basket weaving, mead making, cooking in a cast iron, finger weaving and many more things. I loved the trinkets people would make as a bribe. My favorite trinket was a corn doll with a little bow and arrow. How could I say no to that? Really amazingly creative people reside in the SCA.

My favorite part of summer events is the evening activities. Dusk falls into darkness and fireflies blink off in the distance. Children laugh and giggle as they dart too and fro chasing after those bugs. Drums and horns sound from various camps as people celebrate friendship. Group of friends meander from camp to camp offering libations. Fellowships are made and others fortified. We all felt safe walking around in the dark on a midnight adventure.

If I had pledged loyalty to a group in the competition the next day, there would be no drink for me the night before. If I was a free agent, then my friend and I would sup a nice bit of raspberry cordial. There is nothing more blissful to me as a homemade cordial. Okay, I lied earlier, I would have one small glass of cordial after an excellent meal. I mean really, one glass will not affect my aim the next day.

Morning, one wakes to dew on the grass and a cold chill in the air. There is nothing like a hot cup of coffee from a percolator. By time one stoked the fire back to life, a wif a freshly brewing coffee taunts the nose bringing a moment of happiness and anticipation. While I wait, I pour myself a cup of blackberry brandy and Pepsi to start warming the soul. A quick prayer, a change of clothes, and quick check of gear, I would be off for the day.

Many didn’t know I ran rouge. If I was a free agent, I looked to see who I would be shooting with or against then make my choice. Sometimes, I would choose to compete against the best and support the lesser skilled groups. Sometimes, it was fun to put power with power. I really admire the skill of the champions and I was just good enough to be acknowledged by them. It was alway so fun to run rouge.

As I sit here, I could tell a tale of many a’ archer. However, there was one that I really admired. Dillon, an individual of many championships, seemed to appreciate my skill. He helped me many times to correct my form so I could improved my accuracy. After a few years, he gave me a gift he made on his loom. The gift was a for obtaining the title of “Ladyship”. There, tucked in a wooden box, four yards of garment trim woven with wool contrast. The design he made was zigzagged and he matched the colors with my markings on my arrows. If you look closely at the picture above, you can see his truly amazing work. I was so touched that he made it just for me and gave it to me at my special event. I felt more honor in that action than I did the title.

I am sorry to say dear reader, that bow has not been strung since 2013. Life was not good and I was in survival mode. The SCA was put aside after a major disappointment. The memories are good and some people just failed me. So, I left for many years.

I am writing a book called, “Wind Witch” and archery is a skill being used in the books. I thought, I better get the feeling back for shooting before the snow flies. Yep, I went to the basement, grabbed the bow, prepared to string it, and…. Marshmallow arms couldn’t string her own bow. Great, now I have to build up my strength again.

The pictures included in this article was taken by Cynder Rose Photography. I remembered she posted a picture of me shooting arrows at an event one year. So I contacted her and asked her if she still had some pictures of me shooting. She said she would look. Now, to inspire her to find the pictures I sent a note: “To inspire you, I will return for one event of your choosing.” I opened the door for a brief return. Amazing, she found them rather quickly and I love her for it.

Now, marshmallow arms needs to get busy. She has a book to write and an archery event to attend next summer. All of this work for a story? Absolutely, I want to give the reader the best experience I can write. If I can see hear and feel the moment, I work to weave the words so they can too. Writing is sharing a piece of ones self. I can share the thrill of a competition, hitting moving targets, aiming through castle wall windows, hunting rats, shooting fake running rabbits and who knows what else. I get to remember all the fun I had on the archery range and put it in my book. Remember, I do love the challenge of a skillful release and an excellent execution so it’s not all fun and games. I do need to play again and shoot a few rounds but none of that is going to happen though if I can’t get that bow strung. Ugh…

For one event, Vessa Ull Dottir shall return. The date and event is not of my choosing. I will just go with the flow and make the best of it all. Just another thing to look forward to this coming up year. Who knows, maybe another story idea will emerge or the current one gets better. Seriously, I am happy to face this challenge. Oh, I like that. This challenge I can win.

Thank you for reading. I would like to invite you to read other stories previously written. Just click the link below and it will take you to my platform page.