Decade
Well here I am, a decade since my first faltering steps into the world of Wordpress and being Witchmountain. What started out as a student blog, documenting the last weeks of my degree at CCAD has morphed into...something else; part confessional, part diary, part ...I don't quite know. So much has changed, everything has changed. Looking back at that first post I feel the sadness of loss; some of the people commenting and offering encouragement back then are now no longer in my life ( the perils of having much younger friends who were bound to leave my path for their own sooner or later, I suppose) Times change and even my old art college has recently reinvented itself as The Northern School of Art (in my parent's day it was Middlesbrough Art College). There is happiness too of course; keeping a fairly regular record of things that have happened over the past ten years I can see that my work has continued to develop and hopefully improve, there are stories hidden between the lines that I thought would break me but didn't and there are joys which would never have happened without the sorrows. Fewer people read this blog now and the quick fix of social media has taken over but I still feel as though it was was of the best things to come out of my years at CCAD- I didn't get the dream graduate job and I haven't made a fortune out of my design work or become a superstar blogger but I'm still here making and creating. Writing has given me a place to work things out and attempt to order my thoughts, at times it has helped me make decisions and feel less alone - this blog has actually helped me make new friends and reconnect with old ones - so Thank You.
I'm sitting in the garden that isn't mine, my head aches but the breeze and birdsong are soothing, the air smells of something sweet. Two rabbits just ran over my feet not realising I was here, a vole popped out from a plant pot and the owl family in the ugly Thuja trees are calling to each other in broad daylight. I half expect Mrs Tiggywinkle to trundle past with her washing but today there has been a big fell race so she's probably keeping well out of the way ( actually in 3 years I haven't seen one hedgehog here in Newlands Valley which is odd) On the steep fell side opposite me I can see a crowd of people on mountain bikes being extreme, as is the fashion in these parts.
This is only going to be a short post because, as I said, my head is aching but it seemed important to make sure I posted something today to make things neat! I've been thinking about what to write for ages to try and mark the occasion and of course I will probably not say any of it now because I'm rushing. I'll just do basic housekeeping instead of rambling on and remind you that at the end of the month there will be an extra special draw for newsletter subscribers and website customers - so be one of those if you want to win something lovely. There are loads of events and exhibitions coming up starting with Art in the Shed in Osmotherley on May 26th. Always bittersweet for me but I can't wait to spend time with my very good friend Jane who puts this event on in her beautiful North Yorkshire garden to raise money for the Street Child Africa charity . I'll have new work with me including these Ghost Flowers in various arrangements ( pictured as work in progress) as well as some new card designs.
Now I'm going to close my eyes for a little while and dab some lavender on my forehead, hoping to recover enough for a little swim later this evening. Thank you for reading, especially if you've lasted the full ten years and traveled with me from North Yorkshire to this version of Witchmountain.... x
Reading :- The Dictionary of Animal Languages " Heidi Sopinka and "Wildwood" Rodger Deakin