Ancient History: Beyond the Hedge;The Lonely Only

10/3/06
The Lonely Only

I spent a lot of my childhood alone, looking out the window, waiting. "Children are to be seen and not heard" was a frequently repeated theme of my early childhood. So as I waited quietly, I observed.

The best observation post the year I was five was behind the curtain looking out the dining room window. It was out of sight but not out of earshot and had a magical view of the neighbour's wonderful overgrown garden which was filled with holly trees, the friendly chirping of wet sparrows, joyous robins , and wandering cats.

Other years, other windows.

One window somewhere, some year, was home to many lady bird bugs. I remember their earthy odour and the warmth of the sunny window where they congregated .
My favourite white t-shirt was a Lady Bird brand t-shirt. I didn't get to wear it often enough for my liking and I can remember being helped into it one lucky morning. After surfacing from the confusion of armholes and neck hole I happily recited~

"Lady bird, lady bird fl-y away home, your house is on fire, and your children are alone."

"We don't leave children alone" my mother said.