A Moment of Stillness

During our delicate process of embracing the life cycle of butterflies, we sadly encounter a heartbreaking moment. One of our butterflies grows a broken wing ...

This moment halts us. 

We pause ... for sensing that something is not quite right. The flutter we have been waiting for falters. The quiet joy we expect is replaced with concern. 

We witness the beauty of transformation touched by fragility. Still, in the stillness, there is a learning for us. Even broken wings have stories to tell. Even grounded butterflies teach us how to care more deeply.

“Right now it has a cut wing .. that’s why it cannot fly”, Emily shares her thoughts on the above situation. She continues, “And when they have no cut wings outside, then I am happy”.

Tvisha associates her feelings, either sad or happy, with the environment butterflies live in. She shares, “I feel sad … I think I feel happy .. when butterflies go outside, they feel hot! Very, very hot!”.

Facing this reality we choose to take a moment to honour a butterfly with a broken wing. It symbolizes resilience, courage, and the ability to overcome adversity. It too represents our human’s spirit’s capacity to endure challenges, find strength in difficult times, and persevere through hardships.

While a broken wing might initially suggest fragility or weakness, the butterfly’s ability to continue flying, even with a damaged wing, highlights its determination and ability to adapt to change.

We offer an analogy for this experience with a different kind of beauty - that of creatures who don’t take life for granted or give to setbacks. Their wings may be torn, but these butterflies are not broken. They are still flying, and still trying. They are survivors.

Luka deciphers his work with moisturized bath soap dough. He explores his ideas using malleable medium, soft dough-like material, allowing texture and form to guide his understanding.

After finishing his work, he delightfully phrases it as a tower. Now the tower is not just a personal act of expression, but something that enters the world and is perceived, categorized, even simplified - especially by us, who are still learning how to interpret meaning.

Day by day, our drawings change, too. Kai's black fine marker sketches more than outlines now. Body parts appear, more facial expressions on our faces, the sun and grass as part of our natural environment. Feelings tucked in between lines.

Fides and Kai in this way learn not just to label, but to layer - to build stories of their own, from thought to form, with details as their scaffolding.

This is the car
This is the bike
This is my house
This is the grass where I like to play tag and soccer with Dad
I am on the left and my Dad is on the right side.
(Fides, May 2025)

When we know something important is coming, we honor the way process art works. We dip our hands in the sun-gold mix - turmeric brightened with vinegar's tang. We press down, palms wide, leaving shapes like little suns on paper. No two the same.

Some of us swirl our fingers to turn into invisible prints. Others layer hands, side by side, until the pages hum with movement. No one says what it should be. It simply becomes. The room smells warm and earthy. The colors stain our fingers, but not our freedom.

​Not rushing, not correcting. Just noticing. Just allowing. Growth happens in the hands, and sometimes in the pauses between them.

We use clay tools to firmly press into the surface of salt dough, creating prints of our initials and our Dad's. We also carefully choose special objects to make additional impressions - each one meaningful connection between ourselves and our Dads.

Once our messages are carefully crafted, we patiently layer our artworks with chosen paints - each brushstroke adding color, emotion, and meaning to our creations.

As we add each layer, we take control of our directions - making choices that reflect our voice, and our connection. With every brushstroke and imprint, we tell a story: one of who are and how we feel. These artworks become more than just a painted salt dough - they become symbols of the bond we share with our Dads, shaped by our hands and colored with love.

And as our days are getting hotter, our excitement to dip into the water gets higher! Our waddling pool has become a source of laughter, refreshment, and joyful splashes - a perfect place to cool off, connect, and celebrate the sunny days together.

Kindest,
Children & Friends.