A few days in the company of granddaughter Jessica revealed some developing abilities not routinely found in an eighteen-month-old child.
How marvellous it is to view
How children grow from one to two.
Grannies and Granddads are allowed
To feel a little smug and proud.
But we can’t help a slight suspicion
That Jess has had advanced tuition:
Behind the many skills she’s gaining
Must be some intensive training . . .
How else could little Jessica be
So handy with an Allen key
And know the proper way to clamber
Up the flinty walls at Bramber*?
Her Mum and Dad, of course, say “No,
We simply let her have a go.
She watches everything we do,
Determined she will do it too.
“We climb, and we use Allen keys
With Jess around; so that’s why she’s
Picked up these skills herself, we guess.
We know she’s special – that’s our Jess!”
* A ruined Norman castle in Sussex.