Overheard in SmallTown

Yesterday, on our way to pick up Daddy from work, from the backseat of the car:

L: I'm so sorry, El-we.

E: That's okay, Lah-wen. You haven't done anything to me yet.

Modern Art

I'm not necessarily all that great an interpreter of art. I like art, but unlike a lot of people I know I can't tell you what the artist is attempting to convey or sometimes even the mood of a piece. It's a failing, I know. For example, I can look at a work like this and I say to myself "Look! Flowers! Also green apples and pears! Gosh, I'm hungry, but not really for an apple. Maybe M & Ms..." But the more abstract the art, the more likely I am to have less to say than one so obviously about candy. When I look at this, I am more likely to say "Umm, this person isn't happy. I don't think." Probably a great deal of my ability to interpret that latter piece so well though is because I'm a therapist- it's why people are so eager to come and see me, my intuitive grasp of the feelings of others. So imagine the difficulty I had with this, L's latest work of art and the one that she has been talking about for days:
When she first showed it to me, I was admiring (as I'm sure you are, too). I told her it was lovely and asked," What is going on in this picture, L?" And she looked at me pityingly (really!) and said "Mama, it's a cat taking a bath in the bathtub." I know all of you saw it immediately, as most of you are not art oafs, but I went ahead and labeled it so that her father would know how to best be excited when she showed it to him.
I am working on the promised post about the octuplets, but for some reason, it's turned very long and I still haven't finished talking. Since I'm trying to post more frequently, I may have to post it a little later in the week. Portrait of the artist as a young preschooler: