Winter Sensations

Birds on a tree, A painting by Amanda Taylor who writes:

'I love the way watercolour can be used to such an effect that the water does a lot of the work and the white of the paper lightens the image.  In this watercolour painting the birds are communicating with each other – considering flying away to a warmer climate!'

'Blend of Autumn and Winter',  an Acrylic painting by Seena Vadassery who says:

“still the Autumn holds the hands of Winter,

as we hold  the hands of our beloved ones.

but expecting the time for the separation

that is beauty but that is strange”

'Transitions' a painting by Elly Shadman, a service user, who says:

'Winter is a season of transition for all beings. This galactic butterfly done in oil pastels symbolises this transition. The cold blue colour that I have used gives a sensation of this cold season'

'Grey seal pup on a Norfolk beach' , a photograph taken by Liz Adams, who says:

'A winter walk along the Norfolk coast will often lead to seeing grey seal pups at this time of year; a great way to relax'

. 'Winter Sensations' a poem composed by patients and staff on Ellington ward (older adult inpatient mental health ward), who says:

We made it for our ward magazine, winter edition and thought we'd send it in to the competition too.

This is a painting by Caroline Appel, Clinical Lead Physiotherapist in Camden Neurology anbd Stroke Service who wrote:

"I am recovering from coronavirus since March and started painting. This picture is about a diver coming up from a deep dive and became a metaphor for my recovery so far. It resembles my journey from darkness to light; breathlessness to breathing; restriction to movement; confusion to clarity; fatigue to energy. 

I am emerging from a deep dive and have recently returned to a graded work routine whilst being supported (and protected) by my wonderful colleagues and managers who tell me not to rush. I hope you like it! "

A photograph by Gemma Bow, who writes:
"As someone who has been shielding for much of the year and has limited mobility as a result of disability, I’ve had to get used to making the most of my very brief daily walks. I’ve started to find beauty where I never knew it existed, like on a Milton Keynes Redway, when the fog illuminated the beams of the street light, dispersed around a leafless tree. This photo reminds me that if you can’t find beauty around you, sometimes you need to change your position; one step to the left and I lost the light beams!

'Winter Robin' a painting by Susan Hale 

“This was painted during an online painting workshop which I started participating in during first lockdown and have continued almost weekly since.  It is 2-3 hours of painting with friends virtually and a chance to forget about the world for a little bit.”

 'Peanuts' an artwork by Jacqueline Smith:

"I am a service user of Art Psychotherapy... Creating my drawings brings me many hours of serenity and peace"

'Pathways', digitally edited photograph by Jason Fardoe, a service user

"The tree reminds me of our own neural pathways, and especially its plasticity".

 'Serendipity', a photograph by Deborah Onabajo

 "This photo was taken December of last year in Reykjavik, Iceland. I have been reminiscent of this trip during these times when we cannot travel, plus this has become one of my favourite destinations to date. I always come back to this particular photo as it feels particularly peaceful, hence the name"

Corona

A world without shops

And touches and faces

A world without human graces

Just press the button and slide the screen

Everything you could ever want before your eyes

Can be seen

What happened to the world we love?

I pray the vaccination will bring it back

I can’t see it ever being the same

Most people will stay this new way

Oy Vay!

Festive time in a Pandemic!

Nights get longer and days get shorter

Imprisoned amongst bricks and mortar

Casual look on what happening outside

Makes me feel like I’m going out of my mind

I look through the window to see what I can see

City folks and tradesman being busy bees

Autumn leaves disembark leaving a blanket of them on the floor

Early Christmas shoppers and bargain hunters advance to the stores

Christmas spirit is no longer here

Now we are restricted to even go for a beer

Will this world ever be the same?

Many internal battles to overcome

As night falls and darkness envelopes us like a closing curtain at the final bow

Christmas lights glisten in people’s windows and many houses putting on a show

Everyone is trying to get into the festive cheer

Trying to keep a brave face but we are living a life of fear

Newscasters announcing another tier

Which is not what we want to hear

Cooped up like a barrage of hens

With foxes waiting to pounce from their dens

Will I be next? is the questions I often ask

Coming from a person that is quite sick keeping healthy is a mammoth task

The only blessing in this madness is that I have a very supportive partner

Without him things would definitely be harder!

"Winter tells a story of hope.

The trees, now void of leaves, will soon be touched with envious green!

Snow and wind is a melody of the violin,

That even the stars fall asleep."

"Going through shorter days" a photograph submitted by Jorge Camarena Altamirano,

Natalie Hickman (Peer Support Research Coordinator, Camden Baby Feeding Team) submitted this photo from Iceland and writes:

"I took this photo in February 2018 during a trip to Iceland. This was taken in the early morning, watching the sun rise over the glorious snow-covered landscape.

As the sun comes up, a new day unfolds and the snow fall overnight erases evidence from the day before, offering hope for a fresh start."

Rainbows outshine the Shadows", a photograph submitted by Sarah Jane Kipps, working with Harrow 0-19 Team School Nursing Team

"This photo was taken as I stood up on the first day following a stroke which meant I couldn’t walk. As a School nurse in CNWL used to be active dashing around different schools I have been working throughout the pandemic and the Rainbow has built more significance to the nation. Shadows come and go and cast a shadow over the light however the beautiful colours always win! The light always finds a way to shine through. This time through the window, through the water jug and onto the famous red socks 😊!"

Our invisible enemy

Nobody knows what the future holds nobody knows what’s in store, feeling so trapped within our homes not even able to venture out of doors.

Everyday is pretty much the same we Can’t concentrate on tv or books all I do is play online games

Right now the world is a very uncertain place loneliness isolation fear hits us fast, how long is this terrible invisible war going to last.

We have never experienced anything so terrible in our lifetime so many people will die, all we can do is rely on each other for help and support to get through but somedays all we can do is cry

Please god if you are really there take this horrible virus away and show us that you care

We can’t take this much more it’s driving us mad 

We all miss our friends and family and the life we used to have.

The Third World War is among us just only not caused my man 

Just make sure that you wash your hands as much as you can.

One day we will party and see each other again

The lucky ones that live will remember their family and friends

One day this will be all over 

Just remember the world is not going to end

So many people have come together 

And we have made lots of new friends.

We have to tell ourselves this is not the end.

It’s amazing how much support and help to for us all

Everyone take care love each other and be safe 

And hopefully not in the too distant future we can have a massive party and start to live again.

A memory we do not want to remember but will always remember the loss of our families and friends. 

But it’s not the end  

By T G Heart

 a song along with the lyrics entitled 'Signal Hill'. It is about a ship from his home town that went down on Christmas day off the coast of Newfoundland.

Vapour

That day,

a week before the solstice,

we met beside the Tattershall Castle,

the Humber ferry

now arrested on our Thames.

At the close of a year cold with isolation

we sang songs of union

and were woven

two metres apart

into embrace.

We forgot the cold.

And for the first time since March

our breath was not a threat.

And when my breath is laboured

the memory of that day

will kiss me into life.

Prisms of snow they sparkle and glow  with blue and violet light. The snow lays silent and crisp. The skies are clear, the deer are near Creatures all out of sight. When the light dims and the snow glistens the moon it shines so bright, turning the day into the night".

"They’re mixed media including recycled things, found objects, ink, paint, wax and quartz crystals. They have moving parts; they’re designed to be interacted with – one picks them up and peers inside to see the details, a bit like looking into an artist’s studio or perhaps a short glimpse into someone’s thoughts and dreams. We’ve all dreamed more in this year and I decided to process some of that with art.

They’re meant to be thought-provoking but also shimmer and shine, almost jewellery for the wall".

A snowflake dances across the air

With its carefree partner

The cold winter wind

guiding the swift journey

To its final resting place, it alights

Upon a young child’s reddened nose

As is the annual tradition,

The trees stand bare but proud

For they are encrusted with these white diamonds

And though they have fallen heavy overnight

The burden is weightless

For the long, strong arms of the trees

Have prepared for this moment since

Time immemorial

The pond too, is not be spared by the season’s shenanigans

The water alive,

but suffocating underneath

the glass-like sheen painted over it

by nature

where skaters merrily perform pirouettes and double axels

in bitter-cold bliss

Elsewhere the creatures of the forest

Become somnambulists

Under winter’s slumbery spell

They’ve gathered their nourishment and curled up with their young

Until they know it’s alright to say hello

Signalled by the growing power of the sun

as the winter wanes

Knocking of the summer for another time

Let us now enjoy the long winter stime.

A painting by Yana Kessel, Community Speech and Language Therapist, which reminds her "of an unforgettable scenery and serenity from her trip to Dorset".

"They are taken from my walk to work which has been so important this year.

Two show the view over London from Harrow on the Hill. Both taken this week.

The third shows sunrise over Northwick Park, my daily destination"