I have said this before, but for me, the most meaningful and life-changing part of learning to paint over the past year has been the friendships that have evolved from it: It has opened up so many new worlds. One of those has been with the brilliant and ridiculously multitalented Dr Ailsa Snaith, who began pairing her poems with my paintings. Collaboration is such a wonderful and empowering thing. Our hope is to one day have the time to put together a book, but for now, here are just a few of them:
HOLDING HANDS
Staring at the held clock of time
Her index finger jammed to the long hand
The mechanism whirred, straining
She stared intently at me
And whispered
"You have time.....I am creating it for you"
Clouds hung in the sky
The sun remained in the east
Birdsong quietened
I witnessed time standing still
A moment of hesitation
Over hours and days I raced
To where I knew they all were
Briefly I held each and all of their hands
Silently saying goodbye and wishing them luck
The world as we knew it was about to change
STEEPED
Steeped in words - deliverables
Black coffee
Swirls ominously
To still
Ignoring the exhibit
‘Earth’
THE VOICE
I swim in the blue oceans of life
Collecting thoughts with each wave
After a while I realise
With each new wave and thought I have swallowed water
I struggle to breathe
I hear the voice
That tells me to lie on my back
Still Arms and legs outstretched
To watch the clouds part and pass
Breathing becomes easier
It was the Universe
She spoke to me
STANDING STONES
If mystery could be measured
What might it say of the standing stones
Ritual tools and upright thrones
If abstracts were all answers
What might they say of a cyan splash
Laser lines, a dot, a dash
If climate was not treasured
What might it say of our silent voice
Desert minds, diminished choice
Images: Becca Thorne
Words: Ailsa Snaith
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