Childhood memories ... or some of my childhood best moments ...

Some of my childhood best moments were spent on stage ... whether they were ballet dancing, performing folk adapted dances, playing piano or being the narrator of performing stories ...

If being on stage  meant being looked at, as well as acknowledged and praised for what I was doing or had just done, the whole preparation for those performances provided me with the necessary self esteem I needed in terms of excelling in whatever I had to do (and did) in a permanent effort to bring out the best of me ... and be recognised as an Arts "dedicated" person.

At the age of six following a ballet performance at the Casino of Figueira da Foz

Being photographed was the worst part of the whole thing ... because it was in the movement  and in the theatrical gestures that I felt to "be myself" ... and that's where the secret of my successful appearances used to lie ... not in the momentarily "impersonated" moves in front of the camera ...

At five years of age (following a folk adapted dance exhibition).

We (my brothers and I) always had access the best possible teachers (I now know that at the time Maria Helena Freitas Branco was considered one of the most exigent ballet teachers and so were the others) ...

My mother, the mentor of all of my "artistic ventures" was also the encouraging character, who pushed us forward (though she never saw any of our public performances), aware of the importance of the developing skills ... what she was maybe not aware of, is ... that when we performed, she was the one we wanted to "impress" most and it wasn't until very recently that we realized she was ...

She has kept all the photographs and newspaper references ... and when she proudly talks about our "achievements", it is as if she was there ... (and I am sure she was ...).

At the age of eight, being the narrator of a fairy tale.

Lyon ... this time

Lyon has put a (certain) magic spell on me ...

The fact that I visited it  on the second day of the year under a freezing cold weather has not diminished that spellbound sensation ...

I don't exactly know why that is ... because  this time ...

... The bright light over the Saône river was not there ...

... The shops in the old medieval quarter of Saint Jean were all closed ... and so were most churches ...

... The strolling around the city squares was more of an unimpressive incursion type ...


... and yet ... Lyon continues to have this special mysterious quality ... that makes me want to come back (again and again) ...

Place Bellecour with the Basilica of Notre Dame de la Fourvière on the hill (Left).

View of the Fourvière hill by the Saône river with the Basilica (Right).

Solidarity gestures (cont.)

I must openly state that I have been overwhelmed by the number of recent contributions towards the Cape Verde project.

Cristina was the first person to bring some second hand toys for the children of Calheta, followed by Helena who brought in three brand new 500, 1000 and 2000 piece puzzles, having heard that the children really enjoyed doing them.  It was then Elsa's turn having brought a whole bunch of toys and books sellected by her little daughter Beatriz from among her own. 

Puzzles brought in by Helena (Left) and two bags of toys, puzzles and books by Elsa (Right)

Some of these will be "travelling" with me next March to be handed to the children of the village who have never had a toy or a book of their own. I will document the distribution of these precious goods, (as always), because I believe it is important for people to "witness"  the children's happiness, together with the fact that it will be as equally important for little Beatriz to see who the new owners of her toys and books are.

Elsa (Left) and Cristina (Right).

Helena

These colleagues of mine have shown me their solidarity side but I am sure they will soon be "touched" by the difference they will have made in some of the children of Calheta's lives ... and that  in itself is going to be their utmost reward for having been generous ... 

On behalf of those children all I can say is thank you ...

The Jongieux house ...

I have never been particularly attached to material things ... and especially houses, unless there  are eventually some strong memories or special moments associated to them. This might therefore be the most probable reason as to why I have grown attached to the Jongieux house.

Foto taken on the 1st January 2011

Tributes are to be paid to humans, but because I will unfortunately not be able to continue using its premises and moving freely about it as I have in the last six years, I feel I need to praise its "characteristics" for future record.

I have known it throughout the inclemency of all sorts of meteorological conditions, and there it stood always proud, whether surrounded by centimetres of snow or embellished by rose buds and little yellow wild flowers.

It harboured a few of my  most intense feelings and witnessed many of my intimate moments, having always been discreet about  them.

Some of my best cooking moments were experienced in it and I almost felt that it did (passively) enjoy the  "creative" flavours, which literally took over the whole rooms as I  pationately strolled round the kitchen.

Photo taken on the 2nd  September 2010

I had never imagined that I would have to do without it as part of  my life and a "home" to come to, when being in France, but I  do believe that the next house, though naturally different, will be as equally friendly, allowing me to establish the same sort of "relationship" I developed with the Jongieux house ... the house I will remember ... forever.

Annecy lake ... or the beauty in the eye of every beholder ...

Annecy lake has this kind of harmonious beauty that draws our attention and virtually takes our breath away, irrespective of which season of the year it is.

I remember having visited it for the first time  five years ago during Spring and being overwhelmed by its images, but the ones taken on the first day of the year have had a similar effect on me.

Being the second largest in France, it is also known as Europe's cleanest lake. It is said to have been formed about 18,000 years ago following the melting of large alpine glaciers, but no encyclopedia has accounted for its beauty, and although it is often said that being a subjective "experience" is't but in the eye of the beholder, how many (if any) would not be touched by the incomparable "beauty" of these images?...

Under the perspective of my past experiences as a child ...

I would lie if I were to say that I have not been influenced by my past experiences as a child in regards to the way I organise my workshops for the children of Calheta.

Having been to Escola João de Deus kindergarten in Figueira da Foz strongly influenced me artistically and although I left at the age of six I still remember when we used to fold those strongly vibrant coloured fine square papers into beautiful origami figures ...  to paint some tiny glazed tiles (all of which my mother has proudly kept all these years) ... or  even to sculpt amazing figures out of clay ... or ...  or still ... (I can go on forever) ...

We were assigned projects of upgrading degrees of dificulty ... and in no time would be doing things which seemed almost impossible to be successful and thoroughly done by 4 and 5 year olds ... 

The enthusiasm I used to grab the pencils with ... brushes or whatever was needed to bring to life those incredibly beautiful "pieces of Art" is the same enthusiasm I have seen in the children's eyes, as I open boxes with lifeless sketches they have to colour, cover with coloured sand or even stitch tiny shining stones onto ...

I have got to know the taste ... the artistic skills and even the "mood"  of every child I have been working with in Cape Verde for the last two years ... I feel I  almost instinctively know how to encourage them to bring to life their "pieces of Art"  (the ones they now have hanging on the walls of their relativelly small houses ... as if to brighten up the dullness of their daily rotines) ...

Jardim escola João de Deus, Figueira da Foz (December 2010)

I have virtually become a fan of DJECO ... they have just about everything I need to make those children happy, whilst doing their artistic projects ... and then there is always something the African children can relate to, be it the designs themselves or even their bright colours ...

The material I'll be taking with me for the next "Arts and Crafts" project in March is almost exclusivelly Djeco ... and so are the puzzles.

I can't ignore the fact that  I sometimes wish I could go be a child again and do a few of these (though I must confess I have done one sand picture, just to get to know how the whole thing worked) ...

DJECO material bought for the forthcoming "Arts and Crafts" project in Calheta, Cape Verde.

I am really looking forward to going to Calheta, where there will be a significantly bigger number of children attending the workshop this time ... but I feel confident  that by the end of those six days, we will all have created beauty ... the beauty that goes beyond the one the eyes can see ...

The happiness behind a gesture ...

I have just been sent a few photos from Calheta, which (needless to say) convey the happiness of four families who were given some second-hand clothes that had been collected amongst some of  my colleagues and later sent by postal parcel to Cape Verde. 

Benedita holding the postal package (Left) and opening it together with her daughter Djamila (Right).

Little Aniza holding two "new dresses" (Left). Nha Francisca and Nelsinha (her great grand daughter) wearing the "new" blouses (Right).





Benedita and her daughter wearing the "new" blouses.



Benedita's two sons, Vivi  (Left) and Mito (Right) holding and wearing their "new" T-shirts and hats respectively.

 



Nate (Left) and her daughter Lou (Right) wearing the "new" clothes.

How a little gesture can turn some of people's moments into "moments of happiness" ...