Member Spotlight - Sue Jones

BELEZA SCHOOL OF SAMBA BLOG BATERIA MEMBER: SUE JONES

"As I looked around for inspiration one day, I realised I was missing playing my samba instruments with my friends in the Beleza bateria."

When I retired in 2018 after 42 years in an office, I was keen to find new, creative things to do. I hadn’t drawn since school, but my elder daughter Nicky is a scenic painter and she encouraged me with lots of art materials for my birthday, so I signed up for a life drawing class. Shortly afterwards I went to an open day at Silver Sounds samba band, loved it, and followed mestre Paul to Beleza School of Samba.

In March, when COVID19 struck and we went into lockdown, I decided to use a blank watercolour book to start a ‘corona journal’, partly to give me something to do each day, and partly as a memento to give my first grandson, Harry, who was only four months old so wouldn’t remember any of this. Each day I drew something that had happened and wrote about my day. In the beginning I hardly went out, so most of the drawings were about my flat, like this entry from Day 9.

My daughter Gill was great at calling me for breakfast video chats to help Harry to remember me, then as lockdown rules were relaxed, I was able to meet them for socially distanced picnics. This one in May was in Withdean Park.

On 13 June, after 84 days, I was finally allowed to form a social bubble with them and hold Harry. As it turned out, that was just as well, as they unexpectedly had to move house in July and I was able to keep him out of trouble during a hectic week.

I’m looking forward to the day when I can sit Harry on my lap with my journal and tell him all about this strange year. Here we are at Gill’s birthday party in June.

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Thank you for sharing such beatiful memories with our Beleza family Sue! The world is less strange through your eyes and we love it!

Lots of love

the directors

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If you would like to join in with the bateria or come and learn how to dance Samba, please contact us at info@belezaschoolofsamba.co.uk and we can get you started! Come visit us at our website and find out more about us: www.belezaschoolofsamba.co.uk If you like this story - please share and spread the samba love!