Well, first -- congrats on the gift! I think the giver is hinting that he would love a picture done by your hand that he can hang in his home. Just a guess. The encouragement is all there.
If you wouldn't get too bored, you could do a version in ArtRage to work out all the bugs and get the composition and such just right and then use that digital image to paint from with real paints.
That way it's just a matter of a small shift rather than looking at a blank canvas and a ton of new art supplies and being daunted by thoughts like, "Holy crappola! I haven't touched anything like this in over 13 years!"
Go for it and have some fun!
"Not a bit is wasted and the best is yet to come. . ." -- remembered from a dream