All of us are familiar with the Little Red Riding Hood story of the little girl who wandered off the path to Grandma's house. She found herself in a sort of trouble that she had not anticipated or had ever encountered before. Things got pretty rough and it took a wiser, experienced woodsman to sort it out. The wolf had his come upance and Little Red survived, but she went on to live life from a whole other perspective.

Little Red grew up, being a shy sort of girl, drawing pictures during her youth. However, as she ventured into womanhood she saw that wolves were everywhere. Every time she stepped off the straight and narrow there was another wolf ready with the same old bluff. Little Red saw that she had to get tough. "Shy" just wasn't working. She had paintings to sell, magazines to edit, and books to illustrate. Little Red worked hard and made a living. She faced obstacles with grit and determination. She learned self defence when fighting battles with everyday wolves. No woodsman intervened as she got older. Little Red became wise and beautiful and her soul became large and visible through her work. 


Little Red is all cotton broadcloth with articulated fingers, embroidered face, handmade suede boots, velour cap, using the same fabrics that I used when I made a red hat with white daisy lining for Trina when her hair fell out from chemotherapy. The hair on this doll is a type of knitting fibre called "baby monkey" that I purchased from Mary Maxim. The belt is the inspirational item that gave me the idea for the doll in the first place. It is an imitation alligator strap with three charms on it that spell out "I love U". I purchased it for my daughter who explained that she is too old for that sort of thing so I saved it to do something else with.  Little Red is the "something else."

Little Red was my friend

One day another wolf came to call.  He was much bigger and badder than any wolf before. His name was Cancer. Little Red fought and the wolf went away.

"Bravo", we all cried for Little Red. The wolf was listening from afar.

Just as she became comfortable and confident again, the wolf came howling back... and she fought. This time there was a woodsman who was a doctor and the wolf left, and we sighed with relief.

Little Red began to draw again.  She painted wonderful pictures for books and wrote us lovely letters. We didn't notice the golden eyes watching from the wooded path.

One horrible day, Cancer reappeared and he had become very big and ugly. Even the woodsman couldn't make him go away. Little Red was brave, and fought until there was no more strength left in her.

Cancer did his worst but Little Red's very large soul wouldn't die.

She had gone but  left us so many treasures.

Little Red travels down the path in another forest now. There is no wolf in this woods.  She can wander wherever the sunshine looks the merriest. She laughs and sings and skips just like she did long ago. 

I have her books and letters and her memory....and I just know she's picking the flowers!

In this story, Trina Schart Hyman was Little Red Riding Hood.  When she was a child she believed that she was little red riding hood. Her dog was the big bad wolf, and her father was the woodsman. She was a very shy, frightened child.  As she grew up she did become a tough, and feisty, woman. She won the caldecott medal for St. George and the Dragon and was art director for Cricket Magazine.  She illustrated scores of children's books. She died of cancer in November of 2004. I loved her a lot.

Cancer is always a big bad wolf.

-- Deborah Downey artwerx@rogers.com

In front of the display at the Bruce County Museum in South Hampton Ont. Deborah was invited to collaborate with Bev White, the curator of this show to produce an item of a theme of our choosing. Bev is a quilter and created the forest background for Little Red to sit in.