Rather than his surroundings being a symbol of the true Tom, I take this to be Tolkien's allegory of divine intervention, God himself reaching in and tilting the balance slightly, a little nudge while otherwise letting things play out. An extremely rare occurrence both in Tolkien's creation and his own religion, which is why Tom is not more widely known, except by Gandalf who rubs elbows with the Valar when not running around Middle Earth.
Rather than his surroundings being a symbol of the true Tom, I take this to be Tolkien's allegory of divine intervention, God himself reaching in and tilting the balance slightly, a little nudge while otherwise letting things play out. An extremely rare occurrence both in Tolkien's creation and his own religion, which is why Tom is not more widely known, except by Gandalf who rubs elbows with the Valar when not running around Middle Earth.