Conversations In Colour - Session 7

This week our activities included photographing images to complement our writing, editing group poems, developing them into performances - which we filmed - and writing about chocolate and medieval England. But, as we creative writers say, show don’t tell!  So here is the group piece that some of the members worked on during the session and below it, a lovely story that sprang from the storytelling activity a few weeks ago.

Tiredness

A heavy ball, a bowling ball rolling along,

an airless room, no life,

old worn sheets that could do with changing,

the lumpy pillow gives no comfort,

a very heavy ball, a bowling ball slowly rolling along, 

dull, heavy, monotonous, too much to carry,

the slow stirring of porridge,

the right to be put out of my misery before I lose myself,

a very heavy ball, a bowling ball slowly slowly

rolling along a long long road.

Karrie, Elaine, Sandra, Sheila, Lynda

Short Story - untitled

A cool wind was blowing from the sea, warm and welcoming as it touched my skin. The warm air  made it comfortable enough for me to sit outside dressed in nothing but my pyjamas, looking out over the hillside, sipping my cup of tea.

I hadn’t been in Goa long but already the quiet peaceful silence that the place has instilled in me already was a huge contrast from my normal everyday city life.

I hadn’t ventured from my cabin since I arrived here 2 days ago as I felt so desperately tiered and needed to sleep off the flight. Looking our over the hillside I could see the beach was packed with activity. There were people dancing to a rhythmic beat , muffled laughter and the smells from the shacks selling foods of all kinds was making me hungry.

As I took a warm sip from my cup and felt the heat of my tea ebb away my thirst. I got to thinking how the people below me on the beach resembled ants hunting through a picnic hamper looking for tasty morsels to carry away and feast upon.

My stomach started to rumble and the smell of the food began to feel so enticing that I finished my cup of tea and headed off into the cabin to get dressed. I just had to wander down to the beach in search of company and a good meal.

The sun was setting in the sky but the lights along the beach illuminated the place like a football stadium. Entering the crowd I made my way towards one of the shacks selling food to wait my turn in the queue.

Emma Cravitz

Meanwhile in the visual art studio…….. 
The gloom of the February, oh sorry it was May, was soon dispelled by unwrapping of the tie-dyed items, hats, bags, sample clothes etc… 

Since the dyes are fixed by heat from the iron, soon we were discussing the ironing, or lack of it in our lives – hooray!  We remembered the previous generation of women who ironed everything, and how as  girls we were all apprentices into this obsolete activity, by starting on cotton hankies, then progressing on pillowcases, and the last but not least – the shirt!

Afterwards, Sarah cut little lino blocks and printed them on top of dyed material, and I explained that next week we are all going to decorate textiles further by printing, stencilling and adding buttons, beads and sequins.  What was particularly nice was the enjoyment that all participants felt at looking at so many different and vibrant pieces of work.