Adolf's funeral

Adolf often wondered what his life would have been like if Eva hadn't mysteriously appeared on his doorstep with a request for a portrait. His life would have been completely different, and not in a good way. He was sure of that, because Eva was such a blessing that he couldn't imagine anything better than to be with her.

The more he thought about it, the more he was inclined to think that Eva really was a goddess, and that she had come down from the heavens to save him. This thought was so eccentric that he kept it to himself. He would joke about it at times, but never did he let it slip that he had started to believe it.

Adolf's eccentric idea didn't jive well with his Catholic belief, and this bothered him so much that he brought the topic up over diner one day.

"Do you think angels and gods are the same thing?" he asked.
"Valkyries are angels as well as lesser goddesses, so yes. Some goddesses are angels."
"And these Valkyries come down to Earth?"
"Only to take fallen soldiers to Valhalla or Folkvangr as the case may be."
"So, they don't hang around down here with us humans?"
"No. That's more for regular gods. They come down to sort things out every now and again. But they're too busy to hang around for long. Lesser gods are used for missions that require more time."
"And how often does this happen?"
"There's always something that needs fixing, so there's always a handful of us down her on some mission or other."
"Us?"
"I'm your goddess, am I not?"
"Of course, you are. And would you describe yourself as an angel as well?"
"Yes. Why not?"

Adolf didn't know if any of this cleared up anything. But his priest had assured him that angels exist, so he could think of Eva as an angel without this contradicting his Catholic faith, and Eva was most definitely an angel in his life. He just wasn't sure where this angel had come from.

Complicating this further was Eva's tendency towards pagan habits and practices. She consistently referred to Christmas as Yuletide, she would use the word Seidr whenever she was talking about will or foresight, and she tended to swear at Odin and Thor rather than God when she got angry at something.

As they grew older, Eva started to obsess about their future graves, also in a most pagan way, much to Adolf's dismay. She insisted on having a monument in the shape of a ship built on their plot at the graveyard. This ship was to have the inscription 'Sessrumnir' engraved on its bow.

"Isn't that the name of Freya's palace in Folkvangr?" Adolf asked.
"It is. Because that's where the ship is heading."
"With us two on board?"
"The ship will speed up our passage to heaven. There are currents in the universe, and our ship will catch these currents and bring us to Folkvangr."
"And what about all those people who don't get buried in a ship. Where do they go?"
"They float and swim, submerged in the currents. They become like serpents in shallow waters. But they too end up in Folkvangr where they regain their human form. It's much slower than going by ship, and very unpleasant. They're also more likely to get stuck in Niflheim or Helheim on their way. Nasty places both of them. Especially Helheim where Hel holds court with her army of lost souls."

Adolf shook his head in disbelief, but Eva was undeterred.

"Why take any chances?" she asked. "People put up monuments in graveyards all the time. Why not put up one that could potentially help you in the hereafter?"
"You really want this monument, don't you?"
"I do."
"But how do we explain this to the priest?"
"That's easy. You've made a living from paintings set in Norse mythology, and you want to make a statement to that end. It's posthumous marketing."
"It's pagan."
"So what?  It's common to find pagan references in graveyard monuments. Nobody cares. We're going to be buried in sacred Catholic soil. That's all that matters to the priest."
"I'm not so sure about that, but I'll see if I can pass this wish of yours by him, and have this monument built for you. Since you insist."

As it turned out, the graveyard management had no problem with the proposed monument. To them, a ship-shaped enclosure sounded just fine. Adolf showed them a sketch he'd made of what it might look like, and they were positively delighted. They thought it a beautiful thing. Something that would elevate the graveyard's overall look and feel.

So, it came to pass that Adolf had a monument in the shape of a ship built for himself and his wife in their local graveyard. Roughly hewn stones were laid out in an oval. The bow was engraved with the word 'Sessrumnir', and lavender was planted in the corners to give the idea of water. The blue flowers grew up against the monument in such a way that the ship looked like it was in motion, cutting through a wild sea. 

The ship's interior was planted with wildflowers, also on Eva's insistence.

"It's a reference to the fields of Folkvangr," she said. "Why wait for the ship to reach the shores of that heavenly realm, when we can create those same fields here on Earth?"
"You make it sound very nice," Adolf replied.
"Because it is. Just look at it. It's beautiful."

Adolf had to agree. Folkvangr sounded like a beautiful place, and the whole ship idea had something to it. Those old stories weren't all that bad. In fact, it seemed to him that most people's idea of heaven was more like Folkvangr than some cloud in the sky.

Old age came to both Adolf and Eva. He was ten years older than her, so he aged before her. But she was not immune to aging herself. She too changed with the years. Little aches and pains set in. She was no longer as strong and fit as she used to be. But she aged gracefully. She accepted the passage of time, and so did Adolf.

When Adolf fell ill with chronic faintness towards the end of his life, Eva and Adolf decided to get a maid to help around the house. There was no way around it. Adolf needed more help than Eva could provide on her own. It was no longer enough to have people come once a week to clean the house, take care of the laundry and check on the garden. There had to be someone living in the house that they could call on whenever they needed an extra hand.

They found Heidi, a prim and proper young woman in her early twenties, with long blond hair, and a sincere face. She got a room for herself where she kept a low profile. She also made a point of dressing discretely and conservatively. She wore plain dresses, and she kept her hair in a tight little bun.

However, Heidi was not without vice. Although discrete and well mannered, the girl was nosy, and it didn't take long before she discovered Adolf's extensive collection of erotic drawings. Eva caught her red-handed one day in Adolf's atelier, curled up in a sofa with one of Adolf's blue sketchbooks open on a table in front of her.

The episode was embarrassing for both of them, but it didn't stop Heidi from returning to the atelier a few days later. So strong was the attraction that she wasn't able to resist another peek every now and again.

Eva wasn't happy about this weakness in Heidi's character, but it had its advantages. Heidi was content to spend her days close at hand. She didn't stray away from the house. She could always be found either in the house or in Adolf's atelier. The only inconvenience was that Eva had to knock on the door to the atelier every now and again to get the maid back into the house, and Eva could never enter the atelier without first knocking for fear of discovering the maid in some compromised position.

Apart from this nuisance, Heidi was of great help, and Eva grew a fondness for her as if she was her daughter. But Heidi remained reserved. She never lost sight of the fact that she was Eva's maid, and not a part of the family.

Adolf's illness became progressively worse. Within a year, he was completely bedridden, and unable to take care of himself beyond the most basic functions. He even needed help with his food because his arms were too weak and unsteady to feed himself.

That's when Freyr suddenly and most unexpectedly appeared at Eva's door. He looked no older than he looked last time Eva had seen him, some fifty years earlier. However, he wasn't wearing the fancy suit he had worn back then. He was in a blue overall with a badge stitched onto it. 'Freyr's Moving Service' it said.

"You? Here?" Eva asked.
"Yep, it's me," he replied. "Anything you want to take with you before leaving?"
"What do you mean?"
"Time is drawing near. If there's anything you'd like to get shipped to your next location, you must tell me so, so that I can arrange for transportation."

Eva couldn't think of anything off the top of her head but let Freyr into the house to have a look at the place himself.

"Those are nice painting you got on your walls," Freyr commented. "How about taking one or two of those with you? And look at that furniture! Nice stuff."
"Thank you, but no, I don't want any of this. I'm not the sentimental type. Once I leave this place, I'm gone. I had a good time, but I don't need this stuff to remind me of him."
"A cynic would've taken all their treasures with them. Only a romantic is satisfied with memories alone."
"I'm struggling with the idea of Adolf's death. It will be unbearable for me to be constantly reminded of him as I move on. All these treasures will be but an anchor, holding me back from future adventures."
"So, we leave it all here?"
"Yes. Adolf's family can have it. Except... My gold might come in useful."
"Gold is currency everywhere. You better not leave that behind."
"Okay. Come with me."

Eva showed Freyr into the kitchen where she kept an old toolbox in the woodshed. She opened it, and showed Freyr two pouches of gold coins hidden under a false bottom.

"Excellent," Freyr said with a satisfied smile. "I'll take the toolbox. Saves you the bother of finding some other container to hide your stash."
"That's very kind of you."
"It's the least I can do. I was prepared to take all your stuff with me, but all you want is this box. You're making things easy for me."

Freyr and Eva were about to leave the kitchen when Heidi came in through the backdoor, her cheeks flushed from having spent time in Adolf's atelier.

"Ah. Let me introduce you to my maid, Heidi," Eva said with a smile.

Freyr shook Heidi's hand, and her face went bright red from the sheer electricity of his touch, his intense eyes, and his smile.

"Pleased to meet you," she said.
"My pleasure entirely," he replied.

"He's taking this old toolbox to the scrapyard for me," Eva continued in way of explanation. "Very kind of him don't you think?"
"Yes... but why?"
"Ah, that's a bit of a secret. But now I need to show Freyr out of the house."

Eva followed Freyr to the main door, leaving Heidi in the kitchen to calm down and make her excitement a little less visible.

"You haven't forgotten the signs to look for when it's time to go?" he asked.
"No, I haven't."
"It's only a few more days now, so keep an eye on things."

Freyr stepped into a van that he had parked in the driveway. Then he drove off with Eva's toolbox on the seat next to him.

Two days later, Adolf died peacefully in his sleep, and his funeral was arranged for the following Wednesday.

The funeral was a small private affair, with Adolf laid to rest in Sessrumnir, surrounded by family and a handful of friends. The reception was held at home, in the living room. It was a toned-down affair with coffee and cake.

Friends of Adolf and Eva gathered in one corner of the room while Adolf's family sat down around another table. The conversations were hushed.

Eva excused herself from her little group of friends. She went up to her room where she opened a drawer in her dresser. The gold necklace she had worn on coming to Munich was there. The ruby pendant shone bright.

She hung it around her neck. Then she went down into the library, unlocked the door to the garden, and went out for a breath of fresh air. There was a distant rumble. Wind rustled the trees. Two ravens swooped down from the sky. They landed on the grass.

Eva walked into the garden. Her time had come.

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