M O S C O W Interview with Leonid Shishkin - Passport magazine

talents”, said Lisa. “Sit there.” The cubs went quiet while Lisa
ferreted around the burrow, and dropped an ever growing pile
of Good Things in front of them.
“Here are some ways to stretch not wreck your senses.
Choose a hobby for the holidays, and stick with it. Otherwise”,
she added menacingly, “I’ll choose for you.” The cubs were in
no position to argue.
“Masha, you first. Pull out whatever pleases the eye”. Paper,
brushes and pencils piled up. Dasha opted for Lisa’s old violin
(Nika – change that to any instrument you feel like drawing!) and
make songs from her verses. Sasha chose carpentry, to make a
rocking chair for Mum, with a side offer of finding mushrooms
and truffles. “Good luck to him (and me if it ever needs testing”,
thought Lisa). “Boris, what smells good?” “Easy, Mum”, said Boris,
relieved, “food, flowers and fragrance. I’ll cook”.
Groans all round. “Stop!” ordered Lisa. “We haven’t heard
your songs yet or seen your pictures, so give Boris a chance.
You can start in pairs. Masha and Sasha, get organised for
painting, before you go into the shed and sort out woodworking
tools. Dasha and Boris, you start in the kitchen and
I’ll teach you how to cook your supper, then you can make a
song about it”.
The cubs switched quickly from nothing to do to too much
to do. With a hint of competition, a dash of pride and no small
dose of fraternal jealousy as to what the others were up to, they
got going.
Early results were not encouraging. Sasha’s bashing and
hammering sounded better than the strained squeaks from
Dasha’s fiddle. Masha’s water-colour portrait looked uncomfortably
similar to Boris’s soup ingredients. There seemed to be
more wood-glue flowing than consommé, and they resembled
each other. Early on, Lisa’s five senses were telling her that this
was a mistake. It was hard to tell when Dasha stopped tun-
ing and warming up and started a tune. Sasha’s first chair prototype
failed to support... itself. Boris’ culinary creations were
clearly compost. Covered by Masha’s unintendedly abstract
canvases.
But, bit by bit, order asserted itself. Sasha foraged in the forest
for better ingredients for Boris. Masha found she could
draw good chairs, which Sasha then copied. They sang or whistled
while they worked, and Dasha picked up the tunes. Sasha
made a workable easel, then a music stand. Dasha’s ideas and
spices added to Boris’ dishes. Boris couldn’t draw or sing for
toffee (or make it) but he became adept at composing both
Masha’s pictures and Dasha’s ditties.
Best of all, they discovered that each creative skills offered clues
and encouragement for the others. And their vocabulary, calligraphy
and mathematical dexterity advanced along with their arts
and crafts.
By the time they were done, Lisa could relax in her new
chair, while enjoying her meal and being serenaded by pleasing
tunes and fantasy landscapes. The cubs helped each other
more and squabbled less. Their bedrooms somehow became
tidier, though she never worked out why. Next term, their school
grades improved, especially in the so-called core subjects.
Lisa asked the cubs what they thought of their busy summer.
The twins said that they had learned from their mistakes,
which prompted Sasha and Boris to declare: P
June 2010
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