Soapy Sam goes on an adventure down the plug hole, at bathtime, and what does he find down there? This was a buntin made especially for Handprint’s production of Soapy Sam, and it tells of many creatures that can be found down the plug hole…down the pipes…down in the dark…
This is Lucy, one of the lovely Handprinters. After the children’s performance on Sunday, there was a puppet making workshop for the children…and this, here, is one of the puppets that we can now add to our growing collection!
Matilda. On stage. It’s wonderful. This mug came home with us, and we all love it. I think it’s my new favourite mug at the moment…
A leap for joy. On Saturday, at around 5pm, we had finished the first project as part of the inclusive theatre group. It was a lovely 6 weeks, challenging at times, but extremely rewarding. Looking forward to a few Saturdays that are free…and then hopefully throwing myself back into it next term. Reach for the stars…
This was the exciting, special project that I’ve been involved with for the last few weeks. Handprint Theatre, which is the company I work with, were commissioned to facilitate two accessible workshops for deaf children, prior to their visits to the theatre. The theatre in question was the Lyceum Theatre, in London’s West End…where none other but The Lion King lives. It was a great experience, and the children seemed to gain so much from the workshops. Handprint is slowly but surely helping to make the world a more accessible place. If you want to read/see more from Handprint, then head over to the blog I set up, which chronicles the Handprint adventures.
Planning workshops with Handprint is a lot of fun. It’s a bit like creating our own shade of paint colour; we have a big mixing pot, and people all add their own colours to the mix, and at the end, we have just the right colour for the final workshop. Monday was a “Planning Day”, ready for the workshops on Wednesday…
On Sunday afternoon, I went with my family to see Chickenshed’s latest production (which ends it’s run tonight). As much as I love going to the theatre, I always find that towards the end of shows, I begin to feel hot and stuffy…and this happened on Sunday. I couldn’t wait to breathe in some fresh air. It was a release. Lately, it’s been a little in-between; the daffodils are beginning to come out, with bursts of yellow, and yet the trees are still bare. Nature is beautiful, though, and I am grateful that I live on the edge of London…I get all the hustle and bustle of the city, but the countryside is only a stone’s throw away…oh, bliss.
Tonight, I was at the beloved theatre company (again, twice in one day…?), and it seems that for the last couple of years, I’ve had mixed emotions whenever I’m there. As I posted on Tumblr:
“The ‘shed, where a large chunk of my childhood was spent. Where I grew up. Where I learnt to include everybody, no matter who they are. Where I learnt that my deafness does not define me. Where I learnt to throw labels out of the window.
It’s difficult, sometimes, to go back as a visitor, just to see a show or to see my mum, because I’m reminded of all the memories. There are so many stories inside of those walls, so many tears, and countless smiles, and they all make up that glorious time that was my childhood; and now…? Now it is different. There’s a whole new generation of children, new students, unfamiliar faces.
Of course, there are many faces I still know, and love, and many of them belong to the staff, whom I have known for what seems like forever. They watched me grow up, they helped me along the way. There is a part of me that misses it, but there’s the other part of me that feels uncomfortable and out of place, and that was never the point of the ‘shed. It’s a place where you should be accepted, welcome, and never isolated. That, after all, is what inclusive theatre is all about. That is what I learnt. That is how I strive to live my life.
Perhaps one day, I will return to the ‘shed…I just don’t know when. I guess, if, and when, if ever, the time is right. You’ve got to do what is best for you, and I need to allow myself the time and space to grow into who I need to be. But the lessons I learnt, and the ethos of that special place, well, they’ll never leave me. They’re rooted in me, they’re in my blood.
That magical place. That special old Chickenshed.”
(That’s another piece of my identity, right there…since I’ve revealed my face, I’m not as scared to reveal the other parts of my life now. And Chickenshed…that’s the name of the beloved theatre company. It’s the place that I was lucky enough to grow up within, and I know that some of my readers might have heard of it before; well, yep, that’s the magical place.)
As much as I love the place, I also know that I need to keep facing forward, and right now, I need to be free. I need to be able to commit to things that will help me find my footing as an “adult”. I need to explore what it really is that I want to do, because I am still not completely sure. There’s nothing wrong with that, not at all, but I feel like I really want something to aim towards now; a solid goal, a path that I can follow. You see, for some people, following the wind, and seeing where life takes them…well it suits them, but for me…? I need to know where I’m heading, at least roughly; because even if I don’t reach the destination, I will at least know what the journey is for, and I can enjoy the journey so much more if I can see the purpose in it.
I did another post on Tumblr tonight:
“What makes me excited about the day ahead, each and every day? Besides from the people in my life…it has to be the act of taking photographs. However, I have always been a bit wary of pursuing photography as a dream; and just now, I was looking through the photographs of Theo Gosselin…and something inside of me was set on fire. It’s a little fire, but it’s one that I predict will turn into a blaze. Maybe this is what I need to follow? Maybe I should just follow my heart, and not worry so much any more? Maybe I can do this…? Following your dreams is scary; so, so scary, but I feel like I owe it to myself to at least try, right? I am 22, and for the last few years, I’ve been a little lost; but it’s always been that I feel at my most comfortable when I have a camera in my hand, so…what am I waiting for? I need to follow my own advice…”
So much to think about right now. I feel like I have unearthed some deep rooted memories and dreams from within myself, and all in the space of one day. Sometimes you need to take a good look at yourself, and take note of all the things you are good at; for example, I know that I have a way with words, and it’s always been something I’ve liked to do…play with words, write scripts and stories…and I know that I have an eye for photography, which is another thing that I’ve loved since I was fairly young. My Pop (my Mum’s Dad) was a keen photographer, and it was one of his main hobbies; and I feel like he’s passed it down to me. A few years back, my Granny gave me my Pop’s SLR camera…and I feel so grateful that I have this as part of my possessions; it is a huge connection to my Pop. He left this world when I was 6, but I remember him, and I remember the special, lovely relationship we had; so to have something that he treasured so much, it keeps him in my heart.
I do not know if I will follow photography professionally, but I can at least keep the memory of my Pop alive, by continuing to pursue my own love of photography. I can continue to write, by fusing my words together right here, on this blog. I can keep threading my photography and my words together, to create narratives; something I will be doing for each and every day of this year. There is so much that I can do, right now, and I know that I must keep on doing all of this. For although I do not know exactly where I am heading, I know I must be on the right track if everything I am doing now is keeping me happy, inspired, energised…excited for the next day.
Perhaps it’s something in the air, perhaps it’s the fact that Spring is so near…but I am feeling so…so…I don’t know…renewed, maybe? Fresh? Motivated and creative, and holding all this hope in my hands, and facing forward with a big sense of expectation. I know that it will deliver. It will deliver because I have to do it myself, and that means that I am holding the reins, and I get to choose where I’m going. Giddy up, it’s going to be one hell of a ride.
The sun came out to play yesterday, and I love those days when the sun is out. The sunshine casts a warm glow over life, and it feels as though people are more prone to smiling when the sunshine is present…so yay for the sun! It was a nice day yesterday, culminating with a trip to the West End with work…who says work can’t be fun? Most things I have done thus far have been fun, with the occasional stress thrown in; you’ve gotta keep yourself on your toes, y’know, tic for tac, fun has to be balanced with stress…otherwise, how would you ever appreciate the fun, if you had never known stress? It’s the balance of life…and without the clouds, we would probably not appreciate the sunshine as much as we do…
On Wednesday, the boy and I went on a mini-road-trip. I had to get out of London, to go to a big event that the theatre group was involved with, and there was a mix up with cars (oh, the joys of car sharing with your mother), and I was left car-less. So, the boy, being an absolute sweetheart, decided that he would drive me there… The bonus of this, for both of us, was that along the way, we stopped off for food, and it just happened to be a Mac Donald’s! Fillet o’ Fish…come to meee…
|
