Actually no; what you get is an afternoon of giggling, creativity and an impromptu game of "Cat's cradle" with members of the Penzance Memory cafe.
Start by dishing out the plasticine. Stand back (a there's no need to light any touch paper) and watch them relax, smile, communicate and engage with each other as they roll, knead and squeeze it. It seems that rolling it not only warms up the plasticine but warms up people as well!
Now push some short sticks into the plasticine, throw lots of coloured wool into the mix and watch people weave away their anxieties. Different weaving patterns come into play as people develop their own styles, partnerships build as people work together; sometimes as the weaver sometimes as the person stabilising the twigs until the wool forms a strong bond between them. For a final touch, add flowers and leaves.
All the while the room buzzes with conversations:
"I remember my mother putting pins in the top of an old cotton reel"
"Oh yes, they call that French Knitting; I remember my grandma showing me how to do that"
"Do you know the cat's cradle?"
"I know we used to do it at school but I can't remember how I did it"
"I'll show you, wait here"
A few minutes later that lady came back with a loop of wool and showed me how to play the Cat's Cradle.
Our activities aren't about the quality of the finished product (if there is one). They're about the journey you take through them; the person you spend that time with, the conversation you had, the things you learned about each other........that is what's important. If you happen to come away with a lovely object that you've made yourself, that's grand, but that's not where the power to make us feel valued and part of our group/community or society is lurking. That power is ours in that moment when we share a part of ourselves with someone else, whether through laughter, knowledge, a skill or a memory.
Wendy
Creative Spaces Project Manager
