Stories / A story · draft
We come for
one another.
This idea began with an account of a village farewell: people arriving in the night, bringing grief, relief and care to the same doorway.
Draft The account was told to us; where it took place and who told it are still being confirmed. The piece described here is a concept and has not been made.
Some moments, people walk toward each other.
One night, firecrackers went off at a family's home. An elderly member of the family, who had lived a long life, had died peacefully in their sleep. Hearing the sound, people from the village came, one by one, to see the family and to say goodbye.
In this account, the firecrackers carried the grief of losing someone, and also a kind of relief: a long life had been lived, and the end of it came without much pain.
The relief did not make the parting lighter. It only let a wish sit beside the grief.
People came to keep company, to say goodbye, and to share a meal. Those who saw the family often came. In the account, some who had been at odds with the family came too.
We stayed with that detail. Coming did not mean the past was gone, or that anyone had to forgive anyone. But at that moment, people were willing to be there for the end of a life, and to let those left behind know: someone is here.
Two feelings, side by side
Colour study using details from No. 06 and No. 12. The piece in this story has not been made.
So the idea we drew chose red and white. Two red beads on one side, two white beads on the other. White made us think of farewell, and of missing someone; red keeps the wish, and the relief that there was little suffering.
Red does not cover the white, and white does not erase the red.
We wanted both to stay: not wanting to let someone go, and being glad they were cared for; feeling grief, and still valuing the life they lived. This reading of the colours belongs to this design. It does not tell anyone how to meet a parting.
We thought of care
The idea also has two small pieces of wood shaped like bones. They bring the body's fragility into view, and they recall a discussion about healed bones and care: when someone is hurt and cannot move easily, recovery can depend on others giving time, food, protection and company.
Research on injuries and recovery in ancient human remains does support discussions of care. It is not proof that “civilisation began” with one healed bone.1
What we care about is the question it raises: when someone cannot give anything back for a while, will they still be looked after? In our reading, care is a relationship that is willing to stay: to wait while someone recovers, and to walk with another person as far as a farewell.
Back to a wrist
A deep brown wood is meant to hold the red and white in one quiet strand you could wear every day. Whether the bone shapes are too literal, whether red and white break the stillness, how it sits on a wrist: these still have to be answered with real sizes and a sample.
What it means to you
You might choose a piece like this for the idea, because it reminds you of someone, or simply because you like how it looks. The understanding we bring is only a beginning; what it means in your life is yours to decide.
You do not need an object to prove you have let go, or to complete a forgiveness for anyone.