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DETERMINATION |
DEDICATION |
COMMITMENT
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CHOP CHOP |
PATIENCE, PERSEVERANCE & CALMNESS |
TRUST |
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NEXT STEP |
EXTENDED |
WELL BALANCED |
NEXT STEP
2015–2016
Commitment, Determination, Dedication & Trust
This range started from the piece ‘3 Girls’ that I made in 2014, which is homage to when my daughter was doing competitive gymnastics.
I can’t do handstands now and actually I don’t even think I could when I was Torie’s age, especially not with the precision and control that she developed through gymnastics.
The long hours of training were huge. By the time she retired at the ripe ‘old’ age of 7½ years she was practicing eight hours a week at her gymnastics club.
These pieces are a tribute to the mental and physical attributes that a gymnast needs: commitment, determination, dedication & trust.
Patience, Perseverance & Calmness
Patience, perseverance & calmness; these are the qualities I assume a gardener needs when creating a well maintained garden.
Recently I have needed to gain these qualities in dealing with my child.
I have been treading the fine line between giving her the independence that she desires without shadowing her every move or decision, trying not to squash her self-confidence but still ensuring she is accountable for the decisions that she makes.
It is a delicate stage and it will be a few years before I know if all my ‘patience, perseverance & calmness’ is successful.
Through the Looking Glass
When I read the title of the show, my first thoughts went to – reflections of me…mmmm… my vices.
On the days I go running, I get up early and I am on the go for around three-and-a-half hours, before I get a chance to have a sit down. So when 9am arrives I am hanging out for ‘my cuppa’ and a ten minute break. It’s my ‘arrrhh’ moment and it gets me over the hump so that I feel calm and ready to tackle the rest of my ‘to do’ list.
A few years back I decided I wanted to limit my alcohol; now a bottle of wine can last from Friday - Sunday. I don’t think I was drinking excessively but I just didn’t want to become reliant on it giving me relief from all the crazy days you can have in a week. So when Friday arrives and I do have a glass - bubbly is my first port of call.
My other vice is ‘chocolate’, I haven’t been able to control this demon and have limited neither my daily nor weekly intake…
Next Step, Well Balanced & Extended
In the past year we have been concerned about what is the next step in our daughter’s education. We want to provide the best foundation for her before she enters college.
It’s not that the school that she attends is not working - it’s more that she is a bright child (in comparison to what I was like at her age).
I want her to be challenged and extended rather than the next couple of years being in a holding loop. Due to the large class sizes there is a lot of crowd and noise control, and the school can only focus on the basics – reading, writing and arithmetic - throughout the year. At the end of the day a teacher can physically cover only so much during school hours when they have a class that has a wide range of learning needs.
‘GO PRIVATE’ has been swimming in my head so that she will not be just another child lost in a crowd (or class room). EXPENSIVE! Can we afford it? Not secondary, but we could justify the intermediate years and put on hold the planned big overseas trip, new carpets, drapes for a few years.
In the end I just want her to have the opportunity to do her best, be extended and work to her fullest potential… and be grounded, well balanced and happy.
I hear you laugh… with puberty and the teenage years just around the corner!
