text and images britt-arnhild
I promised you to continue my Bath tale, and I will. Though I am not quite sure if this one will be of Bath or if it will be something completely different. What I do know is that it will be of colours. My love of colours. Love of colours shared.
Come, sit down on this charming back garden bench in secret Bath with me, will you? Accept the cup of tea I´ve made special for you, rest, and listen to the story:
Once upon a time there was a little girl who walked out into the world, searching for the rainbow. A bluebell here, a lemon butterfly there, a red dress, an orange sunset, green grass to dance on with purple dancing shoes, indigo for deep, wonderful secrets. Day in, day out she collected colours. Knowing that she was filling up her pockets with drops of the rainbow, made her smile a lot and gave her sweet goosebumps.
She loved her treasures.
She loved to find them.
She loved to collect them.
She loved to share them. Pour them out, trying her best to make the world a better place.
One day, after years and years of collecting, her pockets never overflowing, as she always continued to share, she met another women. Dressed in the rainbow, sparkling with every colour you can imagine, and beyond.
At first the girl was shy. She picked up words written by the rainbow woman, and again and again and again she read............about travels through the painbox, around the world. Dreaming that she was walk the bridge of colours with her.
The more she read, the more she dreamed, the more she dared.
Then, on a bright green day, she finally found the courage, looked directly into the eyes of the paintbox woman and told her:
"I share your deep love of colours"
The little girl had grown up. One colour lover meeting another.Together the two women sat down on the white bench, opened their pockets and shared secrets.
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This tale is inspired by an extraordinary meeting. Almost 10 years ago, I found, by chance (?) a book in a tiny little bookshop south in Norway, Colour. Travels through the Paintbox by Victoria Finlay. I bought the book, read it, then read it again, and again, lent it out to a friend, got it back and read it again, made sure my friend bought a copy for herself and continued to read my own copy.
The rainbow calendar in my Lent book was created when I slept with Victoria´s book as my pillow.
Two weeks ago I was in a meeting, preparing for my trip to England. We were a group of four from the church and the municipality of Trondheim who would travel to England to meet people from ARC, Alliance of Religions and Concervations, and the newly formed Green Pilgrimage Network.
Reading the itinerary, my eyes fixed on one spesific name, Victoria Finlay. I cried out "Victoria Finlay, DOES THAT MEAN THE VICTORIA FINLAY?????"
The others looked at me, not understading, but one of the men googled the name and said: "It says here that this woman has written a book called Colour"
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Well, to make a long story short. I met Victoria in St.Albans, we travelled to Bath together, she works for ARC with her husband Martin Palmer (who you met yesterday) and a few others. Along the road we shared tales.......
......and hopefully we will continue to do so.
Link to Victoria Finlay´s site
An image reflected in a mirror, a rainbow
in the sky, and a painted scene
Make their impression upon my mind, but in
essence are other than what they seem
Look deeply at the world, and see an illusion,
a magician´s dream
The Seventh Dalai Lama: "Song of the Immaculate Path"
Quoted from the preface of Colour.
