Monday, January 6, 2014

Lost no more.

I have been looking for a sculpture
that has been lost in my garden for more than a year.

It was a child student who made this and it has become
 a symbol of differing ability and proved a learning lesson 
in teaching for me.
 The other day I was very excited to see this

Last time I saw it was after a weeding effort
I looked for a new spot for it but decided to 
return it to the original spot so I knew where it was.
I have spent much time looking for it ever since as the garden
once again became out of control and overgrown.

In fact I have done some serious cutting and pruning 
over this past year in this area just looking for the figure.
The soil has coloured the raw clay, no wonder it was hard to find
Oh my goodness, a winter flowering gladdy in a most inappropriate place
Would it have forced up the sculpture as it tried to grow,
we will never know
This is such a genuine naive piece
There was a student of the same age in the same after school class.
she had made a figurine of her grandmother
in a rocking chair, wearing bunny rabbit slippers and spectacles
It was amazing, such detail, such fine work....it was finished with the same
attention to detail, beautifully underglazed.
I enter all students work in the local agricultural show and I try
to ensure that every child will win a prize for their efforts.
Most of the sections are divided by age group which means
the students are always competing against each other
I was aware that the student of the above work had an aide 
in her regular classroom to assist her with her learning.
It was with the best of intentions that 
I entered this piece in the disabled section.
She won first prize, as did 
the Grandma in the rocking chair with bunny slippers.
She asked me what disabled meant when I gave her her prize.
I stumbled over the teachers aide rationale.
I never saw her in class again and as you can see she 
left her winning figure behind.
I love it, 
however it reminds me that perhaps she should have competed
with her age group, we will never know how she would have gone,
Maybe third prize or award of merit may have 
kept after school pottery as an option for her.


6 comments:

FlowerLady Lorraine said...

That little sculpture has so much character. I'm glad you found it, sorry she didn't come back for more lessons.

We all learn lessons in life, whether we are the student or the teacher. May we all keep learning.

Happy gardening, happy living ~ FlowerLady

Gary's third pottery blog said...

wow, a tremendous story and well photographed! btw, another person down under sent me a message about your 40+ degrees c versus ours below zero f...and I just looked at the thermometer, showing that it is a 60-70 degree c difference or, 110-120 degree f difference, oh MY! Perhaps it would be better for humans if we met in the middle :)

Gardeningbren said...

Reminds me of a sculptured fertility goddess. Quite lovely JB. Glad you found it.

Annie said...

Lessons are everywhere if we are open to learning...lovely treasure in tour garden

Unknown said...

Hmm a bit hard to have a good comment here, having a child with a classified disability myself,we dont hide the fact he is and we talk to him about it and that a lot of people cant cope with those who are..different even if not disabled.I am curious to ask was she disabled or appeared that way? Not that it matters we learn and move on! Love your gardens too,my interest is sparking again after a lot of time hidden

JB said...

Catherine, I was teaching a group of disabled adults at the time, most of them did not look disabled. Lack of oxygen at birth was a common problem, (as was baby shaking) I enjoyed their classes immensely as they were not embarrassed to sing, dance and enjoy their creativity. Unlike the able bodied students who were very judgmental of their own and others efforts.This particular student did not look disabled (aside from her very deep voice) but to receive the assistance of an aide in class in Victoria means a serious assessment has been completed. I guess I need to forgive myself for this episode and move on.