Member Spotlight: Rhed al'Tere

Author: Taelinn Dolivras, November 2014

This month's Member Spotlight features a special interviewee: our newly-minted Amyrlin-Elect!

Rhed al'Tere has been a member of TarValon.Net for over 12 years. For about 11 of those, she was a member of the Red Ajah. She has held several positions over the years, including Sitter, Head of Ajah, Director, and a member of the Board of Directors. In Real Life, she is an Editorial Associate for a medical journal, where she, in her own words, 'help[s] the review process flow smoothly and in a timely manner, along with other tasks my bosses assign [her].' In her spare time, she enjoys knitting, reading, hiking, and sewing. She also admits to having a fondness for afternoon naps. "My two cats do their best to drive me crazy, and my husband, Nethanel of SDS, helps them from time to time," she added.

As always, we began with the essential questions about the Wheel of Time series. Rhed found out about WoT when she was a teenager. "When I was in high school, my friends were having an in-depth conversation about Wheel of Time,"she told me. "I didn't know what they were talking about, asked, and they insisted I'd love it and should read it. I found the first book at a used bookstore (still have that copy, actually, even though it's falling to pieces now). I got stuck in the first chapter or two, and they told me to keep reading...so I did. And they were right: I loved it."

Next, we talked about her favorite book and character. "I enjoy The Shadow Rising, as it deals so much with the Aiel culture. My favorite character is probably Pevara. She stands for everything that Red is, but is also willing to redefine that when circumstances change," she said. When asked how she feels now that the final book in the series has been released, she gave me a very pragmatic answer: "I feel like I need to do a re-read." Strangely enough, I feel the same way.

Moving along in our discussion, we broached the subject of TarValon.Net, and Rhed's reason for joining the site. "I was a freshman in college, and I was bored and on the Internet. I searched around for Wheel of Time, as I think I was doing a re-read at the time, and came across this little ezboards site. It looked like fun, so I joined!" she told me. "I've stuck around because of the people here. I've made some of my best friends here, and I continue to make friends." I continued by asking her about finding her home in Red. "When I was a wee Novice looking at Ajahs, I was torn between Yellow and Red. Within 10 minutes of meeting the Reds at the 2nd Anni party, I knew I belonged there. So when I was raised that weekend, I chose Red. I identified with the core values of Red, the harsh sense of humor, the independence, the sisterhood. But more than all that, I identified with the women of the Ajah, the women who make up that set of core values," she said.

Next, I asked her about the story behind her Tower Name, and I was particularly looking forward to her answer, having not known the whole tale myself. "When I first joined," she revealed, "I was Adriana al'Tere. Adriana was a name I always liked, and al'Tere was suitably WoTish. I changed my name to Rhed fairly recently, since I'm known as 'Red' in real life. I was at a local event one summer, lying on the floor reading the latest Harry Potter book, and Cataia, Gwynidon, and Penryn were trying to get my attention. They'd forgotten my name, and kept saying, 'Hey! Hey!' I was deep in Hogwarts and didn't hear them. Finally, either Cataia or Gwynidon (who actually said it is hotly disputed between them) said, 'Hey Red!' That got my attention. And it's stuck ever since."

We moved on by talking about Rhed's favorite thing on TarValon.net. Her answer didn't surprise me much, as it seems to be the same for most of the people I've had the pleasure of interviewing. "I keep giving the same answer over and over: the people," she told me. "It's always the people. The silly and serious interactions on the boards, the events where I get to put faces with names and personalities -- these are the things that make this community real to me, and make me want to see it thrive." When asked about her favorite memory, however, answering wasn't that easy. In fact, her initial response was "Oh lord." Instead, she told me about a memory that stands out and makes her smile. "At Anni '12, I had a conversation with Jeffan about why I couldn't bond him. IT WASN'T GOING TO HAPPEN. Never ever." She paused, then added, "Less than a year later, we were bonded."

I then asked her about the Real Life Events she has attended, and which one was her favorite. Given that she has been to 26 official events, I didn't think that it would be an easy question to answer either! "They were all special in some way," she said. "Anni 2003 was my first, when I first met my Internet friends, and I was raised to Accepted there. Anni '04 had the flood and mud, and it was the first event my little sister went to with me. Fall Ball '07 was the cruise, which was a lot of fun. I was Local Liaison for Fall Ball '09, and I got to share my love of Kansas City and its bbq with my friends." All in all, a lot of fond memories.

To round out the interview, I asked Rhed two questions about her new role on TarValon.net. First, I asked her how it felt to be Amyrlin-Elect. "Very odd," she admitted. "If you'd told me 10 years ago I'd be applying for this position, I would have laughed at you. Even 5 years ago, I wouldn't have considered it. But now that I am Amyrlin-Elect, I'm excited and looking forward to my term and to leading TarValon.Net." Secondly, I asked her about her vision of the future of the site. "I wish I had a soundbyte to give you!" she lamented. "However, I do not. One of my biggest focuses will be communication: between Departments, between admins & general membership, between TarValon.Net and the wider Wheel of Time community. I very much hope that we are still a thriving community 10 years from now, and I will do everything in my power to help get us there." I have no doubt that she will.

And finally, I asked her what else she would like to add. Her answer:

"The only good cheese is melty cheese. Or pepperjack."

Yum.