Dragon man
I am devoting this blog to the person who had a stall next to us at Pukekohe’s Mind, Body & Spirit event. I had met him before, as Willow had spent most of the weekend with him at the Whangarei event. And now, as I spied my name for my stall location, I saw he was next to me, with us taking up the two sides of the eastern corner of the hall.
The dragon man is a 29-year-old teacher, I think from Auckland. He has an incredibly calm demeanor, especially around children and one that is seldom seen. His stall was a collection of 3-dimensional printed objects, with the majority of these being dragons, while there were a few 2d items as well. These plastic creations came in all colours, sizes and shapes and were presented along tiered shelves, creating a beautiful and enticing display. Further along, a 3d printer hummed throughout the day as a new dragon was taking shape, a task that would take about eight hours. Some of the dragons were intricate with interlocking pieces and some of these were more than a metre long. We were told that those took several days to complete in the printer but it was actually the process to build the clay models that would be scanned to create these, that took the time.
Children and adults alike were drawn to this stall, which supported a constant presence of onlookers.
Every single child was welcomed to pick these items up, even the ones that took days to create. They were encouraged to play with them, drape the long dragons around their necks, open the printer door and view the work in progress.
It would have been so easy for someone to slip one of these pieces quietly into their pocket, or break one of the bigger ones, as often there were several items in different hands at the same time. But never once was there a cautionary word from the dragon man. He welcomed these children and encouraged their curiosity.
This is where my fascination with this man comes in. Who is that calm around their expensive creations? Who wants their valuable items to be handled and picked up? Who can be so trusting and relaxed and patient for two whole days as he was? Never a cross word, never even a sign of any exasperation. He just oozed patience.
I felt my mother’s presence strongly around me as I watched the items, particularly the larger ones, being picked up. ‘’Put that down, don’t touch, leave it,’’ would have been her words. Yet dragon man was encouraging this. Children would leave his stand with their parents, but sneak back as soon as they got an opportunity, grabbing each piece to feel and connect with. I know he is a teacher, but even among teachers, I think this incredible gift of patience and calmness would be rare. He says he teaches people and children how to make 3d items. Lucky them. And I can also say lucky us as this man kept Willow entertained for much of the two weekends we shared together.
Imagine how wonderful the world would be if there were more people like dragon man amongst us.