I was going to see a film yesterday at the Cinema Nova and was side tracked by running into Elaine an acquaintance I haven't seen for quite a while, who has recently submitted her PhD thesis in Illuminated Manuscripts. Elaine has white hair worn in a bob. She's about a decade older than me, and with her kind words was always a source of comfort whilst I was undertaking my PhD. We spoke for a while and I decided to have a long walk rather than sit in a picture theatre. I always find it fascinating why I run into some people and why I just miss seeing others. Later, I was on the tram going down Swanston Street and noticed Frank and Leonie Osowski coming out of the State Library where they often do research for their various projects. I stuck my head out of the window and waved wildly to attract their attention, but they didn't see me. Crossing the road on Tuesday near RMIT I said hello to Godwin Bradbeer (artist and lecturer at RMIT, who taught me drawing when I undertook my BA there) all the while thinking that he wouldn't recognise me with my white hair, but he did. He waved and kept walking. Whenever I see Godwin and it's not often, I remember that for years when I lived in Hawthorn we had one of Godwin's triptych (three panel painting depicting sexual intercourse) on our wall. We were looking after it for Pete Spence (visual poet) who didn't have enough space in his flat to display it. Godwin spoke about this piece of work that he'd lost track of in one of his lectures. When I said that it was hanging on our wall he was astounded and arranged to come and view it. It was a memorable day (I think it was in 1990) not only because the work that we'd got use to seeing everyday for about seven years was to be removed but because images from the Gulf War were saturating television reports and I was reduced to tears watching reports on the civilian casualties and deaths. I'm not exactly sure of the purpose of this post - perhaps it was just about fleeting moments and memories that remain. But I ask myself: Do we move through life or does it move through us?
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*Do we move through life or does it move through us?*
ReplyDeleteIf life is a river then at times we are in the water watching the banks go by, and at other times we are on the bank watching the river go by. Either way, there is movement.