Too Young To Understand
Jacob Coates
The daughter is too young to understand but this does not matter. She unwittingly does more for her mother than anyone else could ever do. She is a ray of sunshine in an otherwise dark and difficult world. She has to remain strong for her daughter, but this she finds easy to do she looks down at her daughter and is met with a beautifully innocent gaze. The fact that their relationship will be cut short means that the mother appreciates every moment that they share together. When and how they broach the subject of her illness is something that does not have to be dealt with now (and is beyond the scope of this piece of work). The pair did not stop smiling from start to finish during the consultation and as they leave the room they can be heard giggling away down the corridor.
This consultation reminded me of the powers that relationships can have. They were mother and daughter but also best friends. The daughter so naive and loving gave the mother so much strength. Her simplistic view of life reminded the mother of what was important in life. It is important to remember that every patient dealt this kind of news will deal with it and cope differently. Not everyone will have close family and friends to count on for support. For this reason it is important to support patients who are dealing with chronic and terminal diseases and try and introduce a new aspect into their lives to give them something to concentrate on/aim for during this time.
*details have been altered to maintain patient confidentiality
This is a moving piece of drawing and reflection that together express so well the immense power of relationship in a way that goes much deeper than any academic treatise on the subject. Thank you.
I was first drawn to this piece because of its intricate detail but then reading the reflection I can see there is so much more behind the image. I love the fact that a simple concept for a picture can hold so much meaning.
This drawing has truly had a great affect on me, and I am pleasantly surprised at how much it has managed to move me. The picture itself is so vivid and life like that I can�t help but feel as if I actually am looking at this little child for real, and that is a real credit to the artist. The story is even more touching and made me feel upset yet happy at the same time. I was of course saddened by the fact that the woman would most probably not be around to see her little girl grow into a woman, but at the same time I am warmed by the fact that the relationship that these two people share is so incredibly special, and is having such a positive impact on the mother. It made me realise that for the patient it is vital to have support, whether that be in the form of their child (as in this case), a partner, a friend, or even the doctor. You can never underestimate the power that a true, strong relationship can have on a person. In the future I want to be one of the people who is giving all the support possible for my patients, and ensuring their happiness, especially if they are, as the artist points out, alone. Thank you for sharing this inspirational piece, brilliant work.
This photo attracted me as at first i couldn’t see what’s wrong with the child- she looks perfectly happy! Then once reading the background information i realised there’s far far more going on in this little girl’s life then she can even start to understand. The story explains rather touchingly two approaches to an illness- first the sadness thats felt by all about the loss of the mother, but on the other hand the enhanced relationship now created between mother and daughter. Very beautifully drawn. H.T
I was drawn to this piece by the young girls eyes and just how content she looked. The reflection then really did move me, as I was saddened at just how oblivious the child was. It just goes to show that nothing can get between the love a child has for their mother and the love a mother has for their child. A very moving drawing.
This is a truly fantastic piece of art work that really emphasises just how blissfully ignorant and perfectly happy children can remain, regardless of what is going on in the world around them. Reading the reflective made my spine tingle as I realised just what lengths mothers will go to to protect their children. I was deeply saddened by the story and felt a great deal of sorrow for this child’s loss however find it incredible that this child is able to bring so much joy and happiness to her mothers life. A brilliant piece of work, thank you.
I found this piece of artwork very moving – the artist really captured the innocence of the young girls’ eyes. After reading the reflective, this gave me a mixture of happiness at the girls’ lack of knowledge and how this gave strength to her mother, but also intense sympathy at the thought of what she has yet to experience. It was incredible how this piece portrayed the protective nature of the mother and how keeping her little girl happy gave her the strength to live with her terminal illness. Thank you
This piece of work is very beautiful, it really captures the innocent nature of the child. Her eyes are very comforting yet saddening, and this perfectly portrays the relationship she shares with her mother.
I was initially drawn to this piece by the fact that the drawing itself reveals very little. There is no clue from the girl’s expression of the sadness of the story that unfolds in the reflection, which beautifully illustrates the blissful ignorance of the girl to the situation. I can imagine that the mother and daughter must have an incredibly unique and special bond, and that this provides immense support to the mother- her daughters innocence to what is going on must be refreshing for her during this very difficult time. After reading the reflection it is impossible to look at the drawing in the same way- as we lose the naivety that we shared with the girl prior to reading the reflection. It beautifully captures the essence of the story.
I was drawn to this drawing as I was intrigued into what illness the little girl had but to my surprise she was not the ill person but it was her mother. This is a beautiful piece of work and made me realise the importance of having a good support system for a person that is ill and the age of the people in that support system does not matter. The innocence of the little girl is nicely depicted in the picture and I empathise with her as her life is about to completely change within a certain time frame due to the illness of her mother. We do not know the age of the little girl in the picture but I wonder whether she would have understood the situation if her mother decided to tell her about it.
This piece of work moved me more than I initially expected. This connection between the mother and daughter reminds us of how disease and ill-health can bring us closer to our loved ones and friends, highlighting the importance of building stronger and more meaningful relationships whilst we are able to when we are not suffering from disease. This piece is particularly poignant in showing how medical professionals must protect children from traumatic experiences, such as dealing with the forthcoming death of this child’s mother, an especially challenging and potentially un-natural situation for the doctor to deal with, as they will attempt to ‘gloss’ over the very real outcome of death in order to protect the child, whilst also protecting the mother’s wellbeing and her perception of death. The doctor is simultaneously tackling two conflicting problems, the child and the mother. This piece is minimal yet shows that the doctor has succeeded in their job, as the child remains happy and joyful, continuing to bring light and support into the mother’s life.