Wednesday 19 August 2015

Looks Like Me: Scrapbooking a School Story

Over the  holidays the big kids here have been taking a step back, slipping into the easy routine of summers when they had all the time in the world for whatever they wanted to do: card games, reading, Playstation, at a push. The Playstation works on the really big, ancient tv on the top floor. It's so old that its buttons make a satisfying clunk when pressed.

"That's the sound of childhood," The (Not So) Small One said, turning it off. "It reminds me of school television and the novelty of tv instead of timetables."

And just as she said that I got a flashback to my own school tv sessions: the closed curtains, because watching tv in the dark was bad for your eyes (or so they said in the 70's), the huge trolley the tv called home, and me, wishing I had a bag over my head so that no one would see the little girl who looked like me

From High In The Sky for Get It Scrapped

I'm not sure who noticed her first, or maybe it was everyone, all at once, the very moment she appeared. She was in the audience, one of the children picked to watch the singing programme we saw once a week, in the dark, with our legs crossed and our arms folded.

Or, sat there that way until she appeared, and then they all broke free to turn round and look at me. She had the same high ponytail, the same bow, the same glasses, and I could slid over the truth here and say her smile looked nothing like mine, but that would be wrong. She did smile in a Sian kind of way and everybody saw it, every week, all year. Even my own Mum, watching at home with my little brother and sister, could see. She didn't have an original child at all, not the only one in the world, there was another.

And maybe she's out there still. I wonder, where is she now? Might we still be mistaken for twins? Does she have contact lenses and regular visits to the hairdressers? Or did the wind blow a different way for her? maybe she became a six foot tall jet setting super model. I hope she's alright. And that she still remembers all the words to Streets Of Laredo. Just like me.

This page was made for the Get It Scrapped article Scrapbook Ideas and Techniques for Relaxed Geometry Elements

20 comments:

helena said...

oh yes I remember the TV arriving on the really big trolley. How strange to see your doppelganger in the audience - have you tried a google image search on you then or now to see if the other person comes up? might feel a bit odd?

Maggie said...

I remember the big TV on the big trolley. We had a special TV room which was all dark. I can imagine you wouldn't like a look a like . Every child wants to feel unique. It is bad enough if another child has the same name as you!
TV was so special then. The programme HAD To be watched when it was on. The schools programmes were really great. I used to like watching ALL of them if I was poorly at home and was allowed to lie on the sofa. Oh bliss! It's pouring with rain here if only I could lie on the sofa all day and watch school programmes today. I shall have to resign myself to just this lovely trip down memory lane. Thank you Sian!

Lizzy Hill said...

Hah! You took me back. To a piano recital with 3 little girls of 11. One turned up & I SWEAR she was my 'twin'....it was WEIRD......but no-one mentioned. I have a feeling Miss Watkins [the piano teacher] orchestrated the whole thing.....& yup....I Wonder what happened to her too.....LOOOOVE the 'white space' on this one and the angled photo down the bottom. BRILL!!!!

Jo said...

What a great story, took me back to TV at school :)

Patio Postcards said...

I really enjoy your stories and tales, such a gift. Nice layout to accompany the story. It would be interesting to see where and how the other Sian got on.

debs14 said...

I remember when watching a TV programme at school was a huge treat. The teacher would come out with that big trolley with the TV on it. There was always a delay between switching it on and the screen coming alive - and of course the picture was in black and white! What a great story - they say that everyone has a doppelganger don't they? Like you, I'd love to see what they look like now. I wonder if she's a scrapbooker? Or magnificent knitter - my socks arrived today and I love them! They fit to perfection and I am so thrilled - thank you SO much!

Fiona@Staring at the Sea said...

Gosh, this brought back memories. The school house had a connecting door with a corridor in the school and we used to watch our weekly TV programme in the Head master's sitting room! Can you imagine?

Karen said...

What a wonderful story! We didn't have a television until I was quite a bit older. Then we inherited my grandparents' set. It was a HUGE piece of furniture with a tiny screen. I wish I had a photo of it.

Sian said...

Now there's an idea: what if there are dozens of us?!

Linda said...

Great story Sian! Love your page too:)

Jane said...

what a lovely photo. The good old days when you couldn't record a programme or pause it when the phone rang!

Melissa said...

What a fabulous story to recall & record on this lovely page!

alexa said...

Oh, I could feel myself tear-ing up at "She didn't have an original child at all ...". Very beautifully told and very poignant. Your page is a visual delight too, with all that beautiful balance of shape and colour ...

Becky said...

What a great story and a lovely layout :)

Sandra said...

Talk about bringing back memories :) ... How funny to see your "twin" I suppose we must all have one

Deb @ PaperTurtle said...

I love this story, Sian, and you've taken me back to when Carrie was a little girl and had a playmate at school who looked just like her! In fact, on the first day of school I mistook the other little girl for Carrie when I went to pick her up! The child's name was Corie and they have recently reconnected through Facebook. They don't look a thing alike now! Thanks for the little flashback today!

Unknown said...

Beautiful story. The big TV being wheeled in, the excitement, the interest. I loved reading this.

Chantal Vandenberg said...

Brilliant layout!!

Missus Wookie said...

Great story and telling thereof. I like the b/w papers used here too with the yellow.

Gail said...

That must have felt really weird seeing your double in the audience. When we first got TV it couldn't be rolled in on a cart as it was a piece of furniture - big piece of furniture with a tiny screen. :)

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