
Toast, my drawing challenge
Welcome to my drawing challenge with Toast.
I’m so very happy that so many people could come toast something this week.
We artists, writers, friends and strangers are: Katrin, Barbara, Marian, Kristen, Roberto, Renee, Nadine, Patrice, Lucia, Anneke, Eric, Joke, Linda, Sabine, Tammie, Mano, Stefanie, Carole, Renilde, Susan, Kelly, Dawn, Becca, Jennifer, Melodye, and Catherine and Dot
I hope everyone can manage to swing by the blogs, FB pages etc. Such wonderful people as we are should really all know each other.
When I was five years old my father put his cup of coffee down on the breakfast table, reached into his pocket and handed me a small test tube full of fossilised sea shells. I shook it like a rattle.
“Gently”, he said, “these have been dead a long time. Little things, little things are fragile.” He said.
“Remember”, he said, “time kills everything”, he said, “time kills everything.”
Those were the last words I remember him saying.
From time to time, I spill the seashells into my palm and count them. There are 146 sea shells in that test tube spiralling perfectly in simple geometry, according to the golden mean, by the law of nature.
I tip them from one hand to the other listening to them click against each other. They leave traces of prehistoric sand in my palms.
I close my eyes and I see the test tube on the breakfast table, I see my father’s tired eyes. I hear him speak.
Time kills everything, he said that day at the breakfast table while I sat beside him holding the test tube in my hand.
And the dead world inside the test tube remains exactly as before.
And he said nothing more and looked at the sky through the open window. On the table, an uneaten slice of toast, a half empty bowl of cereal, a cold cup of coffee, crumbs.
A little story, half fiction, half real
A little collage half fiction, half real: a page made from various bits of pages, on an old ledger, directions for a swift chess win (not quite fool’s mate), a bit of music, a bit of a toast recipe, charcoal, a stamp, gold crumbs.
The page and the little story were inspired by this little test tube of prehistoric sea shells. It used to belong to my birth father and he gave it to me when I was very little. It’s about the only thing I remember of him.
Carole
Listening to the shells. I wonder what they talk about inside their test tube?
Thanks for the fun challenge Veronica.
Lucia
Dear Veronica, I love your Story. For me the Story is sad and magical. I can picture such a Moment. Thank you for this, for your Collage and especially for this drawing challenge. Lucia
Marian Bonelli
Wonderful story, I can feel that moment of the time you remember, and he was wrong, even that moment in time has never died, and now we too will keep it alive, and in passing on will remain so…
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Catherine Llewellyn
hey – what about my entry?? 🙁 XX
Veronica
Oops, sorry!!! Let me see how I can link that FB post. X
Veronica
Yay! It worked. 😀
Catherine Llewellyn
yay! thanks 🙂 XX
Becca
Hi, V! Thanks for inviting me to participate! It was a lot of fun and pushed me to do something new and creative.
Just posted my “toast” over on my blog. Come see:
http://rebeccabarray.com/2015/01/toast-veronicas-drawing-challenge/
Becca 😉
mano
oh veronica, it’s a wonderful little story, a bit sad, but you have these beautiful seashells in memory of your father. your collage is really great, I like it very much!
🙂 mano
Joke Konings
That’s a beautiful memory. The words he said to you… You remembered it well and also have a special gift from your birthfather. I think about my mother. When she died we liked to give our sons a gift from her. They chosed it themselves. Both wanted that limonadeglass. They could choose a lot of different things, but they wanted that glass.
Linda G Hatton
Beautiful story! Beautiful image!
renilde
from the sea to the land, from the land…… in a test tube by a hand, from his hand to yours, to this touching post.
that’s transformation at it’s best!
the golden crumbs…like bits and pieces of a memory, glowing somewhere in our brain.
such a wonderful mix of fiction and reality.
thanks for being our host Veronica, i did have fun.
dayphoto
A lovely story, emotionally sad, yet full of color and the shells from long, long ago!
Linda
http://coloradofarmlife.wordpress.com/?s=The+Adventures+of+Fuzzy+and+Boomer&submit=Search
http://coloradofarmlife.wordpress.com
Bungalow Hostess
lovely, evocative and poignant….the uneaten breakfast and the shells in the tube…the last words.
A beautiful and thoughtful piece of writing….
Tammie
that is a wonderful story
have real and half made up
i have a small vial full of miniature shells as well
you make me want to share it with my grandsons when they are old enough
to count each one, i have no idea as to how many there are
thank you for being our lovely host!
Patrice A.
beautiful but sad story…..
those old sea shells
your drawing
the golden bread crumbs
a memory to cherish
xx
Patrice A.
tinyWOOLF
perfect poetry, a little fiction, a little real… life! and a circle, if one. the symbolism doesn’t go amiss. and how lovely , your intro on how we {should} connect while we last; your collage illustrating it all. powerful, veronica…. n?
eric
Your wonderful childhood memory spoke to me. Love your collage. Thanks for hosting. – eric
Stefanie Seltner
such a beautiful andt touching story, dear Veronica, life is fragile
thank you x Stefanie
bkdonegan
Wow! what a story Veronica- beautifully written as well- and your piece is wonderful too- the little flecks of gold- so delicate and mysterious- I had such a feeling of warmth and wonder …I’m going to have to look at it agin- thanks for the fun theme- everyone has had such great responses!
barbara bee
Hi Veronica, phew I’m late.
I like your story in sounds at the same time magical, tender and sad – all what a good story needs.
Your collage with the different papers and little sprinkle of gold fits perfect to theme story and shells.
daryledelstein
beautiful and touching .. and image/imagination provoking xo
Norma
Holy cow you had me going there. This story grabbed me and if it were a book I’d be pages and pages into it by now. You have a writing talent, never mind your wonderful art. This collage beginning promises. It feels vital. What a great launch for a drawing challenge Veronica! Now I must push off and go see others’ toasts. *smiles* Norma
roberto
Hi. Veronica. I come to ask your apology. because I said I would participate in your DC. and finally, all this week passed and I could not do my “Toast” , This week I had a lot of work. and I had not a minute to think something with your proposal! I´m so sorry! 🙁