Musings From Oblivion's Vault

I began the following tribute to Tanith Lee a few days after I had heard of her sad passing in May 2015. It grew out of a re-reading of one of her most re-printed tales, 'Bite-Me-Not or, Fleur De Fur' [1984] and the beautiful stained glass imagery of the opening paragraph. Serenity: A Song in Stained Glass Through stained glass of leaf-green peridot of pallid blue jacinth through silk-fine glass of storm-dark amethyst of an ancient dusk of charcoal through stained glass of a woodland of green crystal of a soft descent of blue perfumed twilight through stained glass she looks serenely… the silver snows of sleep have fallen of velvet petals hued with fluid moon pearl of the salving argent of slumber of the caressing wings of white birds… the sharp, the sable shades of a sepulchre have been salved away have been cast down into oblivion have had the fragrant balm of lily-white birds of snows of silver of slumber of argent of