Shika the mythical deer bird crochet

This is definitely my favourite project so far!

I call her Shika which means gentle deer.

I made her from a wonderful book called

Unicorns, Dragons and more Fantasy Amigurumi

by Ilaria Caliri

Daphne's moment of transformation

Isn't this tree beautiful.

It is especially gorgeous in

spring when the leaves are out.

I pass it on my walks through

my neighbourhood and I always 

stop and marvel at it's beauty.

To me this is Daphne, 

the beautiful river nymph in 

Greek mythology who was chased by the powerful 

and often ruthless god Apollo.

She realized that she could not escape from

him so she pleaded with her father to protect her.

He changed her into a laurel tree

 and wept knowing that 

he had lost his daughter forever.

There are many beautiful interpretations

of this moment in art. 

Apollo and Daphne by Bernini

I hesitate even posting a

picture of this statue since 

it doesn't do it justice.

If you could see it in person

you could appreciate how each

 delicate leaf that sprouts from

her fingers has been carved in marble.

 Daphne's face reflects her

sorrow as she realizes her fate.

Beauty and sorrow together.

Apollo and Daphne by

John William Waterhouse

I've not always been a fan 

of Waterhouse but he has started 

to grow on me lately.

 His subjects are often scenes from mythology 

so it is always interesting to see how he

interprets classic stories

through his romantic style.