so sad...

I made this little french chick this afternoon from a strange little drawing I had seen. Just the thing I needed to make me smile.

This morning about 11 I took chicky Babe to work. I dropped her off and started on my way. I heard an ambulance coming up behind me so I pulled over to let it pass. It stopped about 200m up the street. As I passed I saw a poor old woman crouching over the very still figure of an old man. There were two cars parked by the roadside and a young woman and man were also there.

The young woman was attempting to comfort the old woman gently stroking her back. The young man was slowly walking in circles with his mobile phone to his ear. I saw all of this as I drove past the moment suspended in slow motion. The scene has stayed with me all day actually. I cried as I drove past so powerful was the grief and anxiety that was conveyed in that brief moment.

It was like viewing an artwork, in that the image told a story and you can connect with the emotions with the people in the scene. It evoked a strong reaction in me much like the sculpture at the WA art gallery of the aboriginal mother trying in vein to protect her daughter from the cloud of radiation following the atomic test blasts.
It didn't look as if there had been a car accident.

The old man was dressed in beige and brown. There was a dark brown hat on the ground. The old woman wore a light blue day frock. I imagine they were out walking and her husband collapsed. In my mind I decided they had been married and in love for 50 or 60 years and how awful it would be to lose someone you had shared your life with like that, but then how lovely it would be to have had that in your life. I felt compassion for them and thankful for the young people who stopped to give assistance. I hope he is Ok. Throughout the day I have felt teary about it.

Hence the funny french chicken. I needed to distract myself! (Craft, art and reading can be great 'distracters'- whether it is good or bad!)

On Thursday Chicky Babe and I went shopping, to spend the money and vouchers she had received for Christmas. We were browsing through the book shop and came across a book of soft toys. She expressed a desire to be able to make some toys like those. hooray! I'd love to teach her how! So when I dropped Bantam Boy at work this afternoon I headed to Spotlight to pick up some toy stuffing and then picked Chicky Babe up. Yep! I am at the mum's taxi time of my life. (Except for yesterday when I went out for lunch, after checking first to see that no-one required ferrying to work and back. She then realised that she needed to go to work. By that time I was well on my way through my half of a bottle of champagne! So I was no good to her plus the hotel/ restaurant was so noisy that I didn't hear the calls- all 8 of them! I felt like a heal when she told me she had been crying , she was so worried about how she was going to get to work and that I was not there to help her. What happened in the end! Grandmother to the rescue. So I guess it never stops hey? Lucky she was available to help!)

When I was part way through making the toy, Chicky Babe got out her sketch book and started to design some toy prototypes. I took the time to show her some techniques which she attended to distractedly.

"I'm just showing you what to do so that you'll know when you come to make your toy"

"I"M NOT MAKING IT! I'm designing, your making!" (That's my girl!)

So anyway the toy amused us all- goodness knows what I'll do with it my 'babies' are 16 and 14and a half! "We" have an Idea for a giraffe, a cow and a strange big footed creature. I am working on another handbag in my mind and am just searching for the right red spot! Plus I've made a vow to spend some time working on making some clothes for me. That won't get done if I spend too much time doing this!!!!