As such, I am
happier than a sandgirl given caffeinated pop for the first time, to have
wonderful friends, past and present, who remind me of events, only part of
which I remember. My secondary school days at the Art, Ballet, Drama and Music
School were shot through with such kaleidoscopically vivid life experiences,
that were I to remember them at once, would be like walking through galleries
hung floor to ceiling with Picasso paintings. If you went to that exhibition at
the Tate, you will know what I mean. I had to sit down and close my eyes for
ten minutes every several galleries or so. These photographs are some of the most potent of all.
Wild, untamed, talented,
and often brilliant, I have stayed in touch with many of the friends I made at ABDM, though they have exploded like
fireworks all over the globe. One is a fantastically creative chef in South
Africa, another is an internationally recognised and awarded costumed designer, another
runs an inspired pre-school from a wooden schoolroom in her garden. Still
another studied in France, producing brilliant figure drawing after figure
drawing, became a make up artist and then a home designer - she is one of the
funniest, honest, adorable people I have ever met and I cling to her like a
rabid dog might to your arm. Just this morning she reminded me of how we used
to escape our first school hostel using an old tennis net - how did we find
that? Often she, or others, will remind me of things I have forgotten and the
flickering images become a part of a more cohesive narrative reel.
Friends, seemingly
randomly, picked up like gems, along the darkly unusual paths that we light up
momentarily through life, are indelible markers of time and we cherish them,
the ones from the past that remain, and whose facets continue to reflect our own
as parts of our very selves; and the ones that are new, from diverse and often
unexpected situations, such as a new friendship made through accidentally
meeting someone as I nipped to the loo during a church service, who introduced me
to his wife who nagged me (thank you so much for doing that B!) to go to a home
education meeting, where I met a mum and then some, from Zimbabwe whose first name is the
same as my own, who is writing a book that we are now in process to publication
with.
 |
| Friends, I salute you. |
Only last night, I
reconnected with a brief friendship (we met on a girls night out but lived in
other parts of the country) that has now restarted due to the fact that we are
writing similar material, and are currently in the same part of the world, though we are north and south, and now we marvel at old and new connections, too ‘coincidental’ to document
here. Today I salute friendship and all the friends who have adventured with
me: from Courtenay Selous School, Zimbabwe, ABDM School, Johannesburg, through life in London in art, music, writing and
teaching, being a single London and then a home schooling mum in Wales, and also my Christian
Kingdom friends, with whom relationship is multi dimensional! Life would be a
flicker of what it is without you all.
