♫ Take me to church
I'll worship like a dog at the shrine of your lies
I'll tell you my sins and you can sharpen your knife
Offer me that deathless death
Good God, let me give you my life

If I'm a pagan of the good times
My lover's the sunlight
To keep the Goddess on my side
She demands a sacrifice

Drain the whole sea
Get something shiny
Something meaty for the main course
That's a fine-looking high horse
What you got in the stable?
We've a lot of starving faithful

That looks tasty
That looks plenty
This is hungry work ♫

Hozier - Take me to Church - 2013

GORKY, RSFSR; APRIL 30, 1976- Springtime finally arrived in the city. The bright yellow sun shone its warmth down to every corner of the neighborhood. Another long, cold month of winter ceased to exist for the year in the Volga River Valley. People from all walks of life filled the city square and rejoiced in the warmth of such a fine day. It was like something out of cinema, and I thought the townspeople were going to sing a big musical number. Me, I sat outside my favorite café on the corner of Rozhdestvenskaya Ulitsa, overlooking the Volga. Once I finished my morning java and read the paper, I wanted to go for a walk as to take in the view. I feel as if this a whole different city in the spring and summer months, as it resembles that of a coastal town. So I wave to a few folks along the way and my first stop is at Stroganoff's Cathedral. I knew this place already as it was a familiar sight in my lifetime, as I used to pray here back in the day with my family. Tucked away on a small hill, I hid here until my break was over in which I still had quite some time. Memories from the past struck me hard as I just stared into the heavens, taking in the sight of its colorful onion domes. The rusty golden crosses represented my strong, undying spirit. So I put my hand on my heart and tried to think happy thoughts, at least for a while, as to not remember the tragedies following Magadan. And I whispered this phrase to myself, "Be proud of what you are, now it has come freedom at last... turning the tides of history and your past."

The last time I checked, I hadn't one of these headshot pictures of Valentina and now was the time for one. Ironically, I started work on this at the end of March and finished it in early April, but life was kicking my ass this whole month. But that's beside the point, and I have to say I'm very proud of how this one picture came out. Aside from this older picture of her, this one shows the most accurate and detailed emblems of her white uniform to be drawn traditionally. I am also proud of the shading I gave to Valentina's fur as it is the most realistic looking fur texture I've drawn to date. Of course I struggle in drawing clouds and skies, yet I really love the contrast in color. And in the background shows the famous Baroque Stroganoff Church of Our Lady, as it is arguably the most recognized symbol of Nizhny Novgorod and loved the sheer detail of its appearance.The photo I linked here is what I tried to reference off of, but neither the scan not filtered pic could capture the shade of pink I used to color the facade of the church. That was a bit of a sacrifice I had to make in order to emphasize Valentina's fur and hair color. Anyways, I wish you all a happy spring equinox and I welcome the summertime with open arms as well.

Valentina © SpetsnazKaz