The Pottery Class

Hugo had always wanted to try pottery, so he signed up for a six-week course at the arts centre. On the first evening, the teacher, Mrs Lowe, showed the group how to prepare the clay. “If you add too much water, the clay collapses,” she said. “If you add too little, it cracks. You will learn the balance with practice.”

Hugo’s first bowl looked more like a hat. “Don’t worry,” Mrs Lowe said. “When you make the next one, you will already know what to avoid.” She explained that the bowls would dry slowly, and that nobody could paint them until they were completely dry.

At the end of the class, Mrs Lowe put all the bowls in the kiln. “I’ll send you a message as soon as they are ready,” she promised. “You can collect them on Saturday, as long as you bring your receipt. Unless you tell me otherwise, I’ll keep them here until Monday.”

The message arrived on Friday night. Hugo opened the studio door at nine on Saturday morning, and his bowl was waiting on the shelf. It was uneven and a bit heavy, but it was his own. “When I get home, I’ll put some fruit in it,” he thought.

He decided to sign up for the next course. “If you practise every week, you improve quickly,” Mrs Lowe told him as he paid. Hugo smiled. He had already bought a small notebook to record every mistake.