I handed Sylvie a ball of clay and told her how to press her thumbs into the middle of it and make a Pinch Pot.
As she worked the clay with her hands it brought back a memory.
Then, Sylvie told us the story of when she lived in England and her neighbors dog died. Her neighbor was very upset, as was the three-legged dog who was friends with the dog who had died. Sylvie felt bad for her neighbor who was an older woman, so she dug a hole to bury the dog.
As she dug the hole, she found natural clay in the ground.
So Sylvie took some of the clay and made a sculpture of the dead dog. She had worked with clay in school so she knew what it looked and felt like and how to make animals with it. Her neighbor was grateful and had the clay sculpture fired so she could keep it.
I asked Sylvie if I could take a video of her telling her story. She said she didn’t think that would work, but she didn’t mind if I wrote it on my blog.
I though Sylvie’s story was beautiful.
Her burying the dog was kind enough. But using the clay from the hole to make a loving remembrance of the dog was such a creative and generous thing to do. I imagine it was healing for Sylvie in some ways too.
