Swan Story

 I

It’s true I have a thing for small, shiny pieces of Japanese paper. I love them. They’re balanced, neat, delicate and brightly colored. M has been known to take a whole stack and write a word or draw an image and staple them into a little story. Often they just sit in small stacks in drawers or on my desk, but sometimes I like to try to fold. I’ll sit with a thin, delicate, shiny square in my hands and crease, un-crease, fold and smooth, trying to follow the instructions as they skip down their little white path. The more I read this particular story, the more I realized how much was going on, with the little lines and arrows punctuating the drama. It was very exciting. Of course, I couldn’t figure out how to turn my paper into a swan but I started to love the narrative. I think my favorite part is the climax just before the bird unfolds (see below). There’s a little white cloud of excitement and then the swan emerges.