This is from an old sketchbook, of a few years ago when the little tornado was learning to talk. Like all new parents we were caught unawares about the new organism’s ability to absorb and regurgitate at opportune moments.
Soo: and then *** and then *** Brown Boy: Baboo! Mind your language!Soo: Oops. Do you think he heard it? Brown Boy: Let’s ask him…Brown Boy: Guto, what did Amma say right now? Guto: Kissy kissy kissy!
In the early days of being a mother I hardly had time or energy to draw. I went back to working full time when Orin was four months, and we had a nanny in the day time to look after him. Both the brown boy and I were lucky to have the choice to work flexible hours which is so important when you’re a new parent.
I started drawing again when Orin was about seven or eight months old and my drawing had of course suffered. Not only was my skill rusty but also lack of sleep had nearly killed my imagination – but I kept on drawing. The journals from those years were quite terrible, but I still needed to draw, to make sense of life unfolding. Here are a few scattered drawings from those years.
Happiness is early morningsIt’s nice to be the center of someone’s universeFriday 29th April: Orin’s baby steps and a giant leap in our baby proof scheme. It’s called peace
When we first started living together, years and years ago, I didn’t see much of the brown boy. He had a crazy work schedule and whenever we were at home together he would be asleep. So I had loads and loads of drawings of him sleeping from that first year.