Sunday 8th January, 2012

So. How do you like the first drawing I’ve done “free hand” without a background photo to work from? These are three decorative eggs kept in the house. The little brown striped one is made of agate and started the whole “dragon’s egg” thing off. I gave it to my niece and we’ve been keeping it in a little nest, waiting for it to hatch ever since. The blue egg is ceramic and a Christmas present from Jen this year. The black and grey one is some kind of rock with fossils in. I’ve had it a number of years and I forget exactly what it is. The information was filed away in the back of my brain but got lost at some point with all the moving and changing of jobs that I used to do. At some point, I will be sorting out a better nest (i.e. prettier) to go on the hearth (which doesn’t have a fire, but the thought is still there).

Yes, both Jen and I know it’s all ‘tend, but we like looking to see if they’ve hatched yet, anyway. Like any tall tale, fairy story or imaginary game, it’s the possibilities – the “what if”s – that keep us entertained and coming back. And it is possible to dress it up as a responsible adult thing to encourage. Not only is Jen using her imagination but she is actually learning some grains of truth – just as we do from tall tales, fairy stories and other imaginary games – because a real egg needs particular care and attention to be able to hatch and the closest things to real dragons all come out of eggs. (Fine, I’m reaching a bit far, here.)

And it’s fun. Did I mention that?

Anyway, the picture isn’t perfect and I didn’t work it all out properly but it’s good enough to share. Unlike those short story ideas I thought I’d have a crack at over the holiday period. None of them kept me coming back after the first paragraph. It could, of course, just be that I’m not in the mood to write but that doesn’t explain why the ideas themselves are just not working out. I’ve distracted myself with some reading – some of it research for my Guineveres idea – but really do need to get back in the flow, if only to prove I can. Time to start acting on some of that research, I guess!