The End........ALMOST

Last weekend marked a few things for me. It was the end of my art therapy course and also the “beginning” of Migrant Voices.

Part I – Art Therapy

We ended the course with each a presentation. There were a few angles with which one can do the presentation. I sat through a few the weekend before and it was my turn last weekend. I didn’t want to have to go through all the notes and be factual, regurgitating notes that we already know and I didn’t have time to do research and gain more in-depth views. I didn’t want to quote anyone infamous on the topic – I have always liked sharing things that people don’t know about. As I’m certainly no expert in this course, I shared myself. I let pieces of me be shredded much like tissue paper in nervous hands. My hands were Icelandic cold and at times I felt myself tearing. My voice, it broke, hoarse at certain points as I choke back the lumps. I could see the empathy and understanding in their eyes. I also wrote an impromptu poem when one of my course mates was presenting. I closed off the presentation with it. It is not the exact one I wrote then but you’ll get the gist of it:

Lines

squiggly, straight, thick, wavy
lines connecting
Red - it outlines boundaries
excitement “do not enter”
celebratory?
dashed lines
Yellow,
pause
A wait –
I guess that’s where I am
stomach in, containing.

Part II – Migrant Voices, The Beginning

I underwent training for a forum theatre piece that we were putting up as part of our International Migrants’ Day celebration. He wrote the script and was the director. I was his shadow, the co-director. We only had about 2 months to work on this, putting a lot of stress on the actors who are not professional actors. It put me under strain too because I’m not a trained theatre practitioner. But I can’t tell you how proud I am of the outcome of the whole thing. Everyone was there in full force, supporting and helping where they could. It was heartwarming to see everyone band together to make it a success. We have always partnered up with organizations such as DramaBox and SDEA to produce a drama piece. I am proud to say that this is the first Migrant Voices production that we weren’t partnered with such organizations. True, we had help with the script and directing but all the rest were entirely stamped with Migrant Voices’ mark. It showed me how far we have come from day one. I will always be grateful for the endless creative talents who are willing to work with us and the support from the arts’ community as well as the general public. It makes it all worthwhile.

Fast forwarding to Year 2008, I’ve already met up with some volunteers who will be running creative writing workshops. That’s about to take off in late January/early February. It has been on hold since October so it’s about ready to hit the ground running. I hope to also recruit more volunteers to run certain programmes that do not require too much off them. Hmm…plans plans plans….

I bought a digital camera recently and have already started taking pictures. This blog will be updated with some pictures taken. Be patient. I am thinking of starting a photo blog too. Look out for that.

Oh yes, I will be starting a beginner’s course in Javanese gamelan – that should be fun…Will update as I go along on that progress.

Till then, have yourself a good Christmas with your nearest and dearest and see you again sometime in January.

Hugs & Kissies,
Petal P. Rose

p/s: FINALLY! Year 2008 is only 2 weeks shy – can’t wait for it to begin. I’m impatient as to what it brings.