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Whenever I was called on to babysit my granddaughters, I found I enjoyed sitting and colouring with them.  At the start of it all I hadn’t done any colouring since being at primary school, but found a new interest in what I would have previously called ‘remedial’ work if chosen for adults.  It seemed to pass the time very well and we all got something out of it.  We would chat as we drew and coloured.  I’d use bright felt tip pens instead of the crayons of my youth.

Out shopping I started to buy felt tip pens and adult colouring books; no, not the type with naked men in to colour (are there any?), but those containing cityscapes or the like with intricate shapes and doodlings that took a long time to complete.  I found it very calming and therapeutic to sit there with my felt tips and let my mind wander.

When Sam had a 4 hour operation to repair a ruptured Achilles’ tendon, I sat in an armchair by his bed and waited for him to come back from the operating theatre.  To pass the time I picked out a page of elaborate swirls to colour in, which I never did get to finish.  Being worried at the time I couldn’t concentrate on reading, but the colouring took my mind away from Sam for a while.  Whenever I open my colouring book and see the picture below I am always reminded of my afternoon spent at the hospital.

swirls

Watching TV I’ve seen how colouring also has a calming effect on Ozzy Osborne, Black Sabbath’s ‘Prince of Darkness’.  He gets a kick out of colouring too, and he experiences the same calming effect.  When on a cruise a few years back, adult colouring was one of the activities.  I dragged Sam along to where a smiling member of staff gave out pencils and colouring books to mostly middle aged ladies.  Sam said he hadn’t done any colouring in 50 years, but quickly set to with his pencils to produce a passable masterpiece.

Do you like colouring?  We have several colouring books indoors now, as well as at the van.  Sometimes when I sit there making sure to keep within the lines, I feel like a little girl again!