An imagined Brisbane life for Cora inspired by The Names by Florence Knapp. Just a little bit of book club fun!
Cora slid on her sunglasses and lifted her face to the warm afternoon sun. She loved Autumn in Brisbane. It had been twenty-five years since she’d arrived here to join the Queensland Ballet. Where had that time gone?
She checked her watch, she was still a few minutes early to meet her friends Dee and Sam. She had chosen the meeting point for today so that she could pop into her office and finish some work on a tricky piece of choreography she was planning on teaching her new intake of QB Teen participants in the coming week. It was always a thrill to meet the new dancers, full of hope, enthusiasm and a lust for movement.
Cora had met Dee and Sam just after she’d arrived in Brisbane. She’d tentatively arrived at a Bar & Books event, hoping to meet some new people, but thinking that if she didn’t, finding a new book while wandering the shelves of her new local bookstore sipping a glass of wine would still make for an enjoyable Sunday afternoon. It turned out Dee was also a dancer, though hadn’t pursued it professionally like Cora. A meaning attributed to the name Deanne is ‘valley’, which was fitting. Dee was a deep thinker and a thoughtful friend. Being with her made Cora feel safe and supported.
From that first day onwards, they’d made a pact to meet on the last Sunday of every month. Cora relished this ritual and was grateful for the presence of these women in her life. She loved it when it was her turn to plan their activities. And today was going to be extra special because it involved her beloved son, Milo.
The women would begin with coffee at Tom’s Kitchen, the excellent restaurant situated within the home of Queensland Ballet, the Thomas Dixon Centre. From there, they would walk down to Mappins Nursery. Cora loved plants and gardening. She would never tire of the sub-tropical climate of Brisbane and the little lush garden she’d cultivated in her courtyard. Later they would head to the Queensland Art Gallery.
First though, they’d stop at AVID Reader. It hadn’t been on her agenda for today, but Dee and Sam were keen to get their Global Book Crawl passports stamped. Cora grinned as she thought about how many times Sam had made them promise they wouldn’t let her buy a book but ended up buying one anyway. The name Samantha meant ‘told by God’, which was funny, because Sam would often say that she had no control once in a bookshop – a greater force out there in the universe was urging her to buy books.
Their final stop for the day would be at the Children’s Art Centre at the Gallery. Cora was so proud of her son Milo. He was a sculptor and painter and his work could be found in public spaces and galleries around the world. She missed him when he was off traveling, but for now she had him back in Brisbane, staying with her. It was bliss. Milo had been invited back for a residency working with the children’s program. Cora had seen his workshops in action and they were high-energy and joyous. Cora didn’t think she would have the patience to work with twenty children and their parents to create artworks, but her beautiful son had it in spades. Milo meant ‘merciful’ and ‘calm-hearted’. Milo was all of that and more. He was warm, friendly, laughed easily and gave the best hugs in the world.
She closed her eyes and let the gentle sunlight warm her face. It was so lovely to have things to look forward to.
Smidgeon 
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