The bowmaker shakes the yew branch his apprentice has brought him to test its flex. His expression makes his displeasure evident.
'I said you need a supple branch.'
The apprentice shuffles nervously. 'Uh, what does that mean?'
'Supple?'
The apprentice nods.
'It means to bend flexibility and gracefully. The ideal qualities of a bow. Why, what did you think it meant?'
The apprentice shrugged. 'It reminds me of a woman. Soft. Curved. Sensuous.'
The bowmaker gives him a pointed gaze.
'It doesn't mean that?' asks the apprentice.
'No. It does not.'
Paddy Dobson
6th July 2022