Background
Geospin's Diary
Each week we would report to the hospital school at 10am and receive a list of children who were on the wards and had expressed a desire to participate in the writing of a song. We would then try and find our way round the labyrinth that is any modern hospital, follow the animal prints to Fox, Robin or Lion wards and meet young children and their families. We talked to the children about their interests and what mattered to them in the present.
We first met Geospin in Victoria Ward at Great Ormond Street Hospital 3 March 2005. It was the second week of our workshops at the hospital. We knew from his assigned teacher that he was depressed after an attack of a very rare form of meningitis had led to a long stay of almost three months in hospital. We knew he loved music and might be interested in writing a song, but no more. We arrived in the ward and were directed to a bed where a teenager lay surrounded by young children, most of whom were of nursery age.
He was quiet but spoke with a clarity and precision. He was always clear about what he meant to say and never changed a single word after it was articulated. He thought deeply about every question and sometimes we would wait for several minutes before hearing his response. He told us of his dreams of travelling and his memories of travelling to France with his parents. He uploaded the following messages to the website:
