We are pleased to share that Carol Sorhaindo ran another fantastic community workshop with Touchstone’s Hamari Yaadain Dementia Café members. This time, Carol used the resilient buddleja plant as inspiration to think about our roots, migration and what gives us strength in difficult or uncertain times.
The buddleja plant, which is common in Britain and Asia is known for its ability to thrive and adapt to many different climates, and has unusually long, tough roots which support it to flourish. This stimulated discussion of what ‘feeds’ our roots. The group discussed their reasons for migrating to the UK initially, and shared stories about the things which helped them to settle here.
“When we came to the UK we made friends from all over the world, some from Sri Lanka and some from the West Indies…”
“We moved here for our children’s education… it was good in India but we moved here so our children could have a really good education…”
Carol also introduced the concept of flags as significant materials which represent who we are and where we are from. The group set about designing their own individual flags and included drawings of the things which had helped to keep them strong in difficult times.
The flags featured partners, families, children and homes. We discussed how family and friends play a huge part in our lives and help to make us feel strong. Some members of the group drew pictures of churches, temples and places of worship, and we discussed how religion and faith had been a powerful way to find strength and build a happy life here in Leeds. Some members of the group discussed how education had been a big part of why they moved to the UK and this was something which helped them to thrive in a new place.
We are very much looking forward to our next session, which will focus on film, sensory experience, culture, history and a discussion around these themes.
For more information, please contact Georgina (Arts Worker – Dementia Service):
georginab@touchstonesupport.org.uk
0113 219 2727
