Baby Brain (Adventures of L-Plate Gran)

Absence makes ... something do something else, they say. Little G and I have been on a break from each other as You must be mad's husband has been spending some deserved quality time with her. Initially this announcement was received as somewhat of a relief: Two consecutive days of eleven hour shifts are fun but exhausting, and I welcomed it as a chance to recharge run-down batteries.

But.

It is only when you are NOT with a very little child that you realise how enmeshed you are in their small world. Walking the same routes that we usually do together, I find myself in possession of two redundant arms as I am no longer required to push the Purple Buggy With A Will Of Its Own. I stand at traffic lights, waiting patiently for the green man because that's what happens with a child-in-crossing-roads training.

The running monologue is currently surplus to requirements. It still goes on in my head though. Occasionally it escapes back into the public domain, bringing funny looks from passers by. Life loses its sparkle. The delight in finding a WHOLE unpeeled satsuma on the pavement is diminished as there is no small accomplice to delight in it with me.

Everything is run on an 'I bet Little G would like this' basis. I now realise that far from being the knowledgeable adult in the relationship, I have actually learned so much from her: how to slow down, take my time, see the smaller picture. Next week, normal service will be resumed.

I'm counting down the days.


To be continued ...     ....