I think that one of the reasons I’m so protective of No 1 Son, one of the reasons I’ve always wanted to wrap him in cotton wool, is because he was quite delicate when he was younger. We had frequent trips to the hospital and some terrible scares.
Now of course he’s a strapping 6ft 2, but I don’t think that fear ever goes away.
One of my favourite photos of him was taken in Richmond Park very early one frosty morning, the light streaming through the trees. The bracken was this incredible copper colour, tipped with glittery frost. My precious boy is holding our old dog, Taupo, who was then just a puppy and as cute as a button. They already had that incredible bond which kids and dogs often seem to have. Now he has that bond with Yoda, but he’ll never forget his first dog.
*This is my entry for the Gallery – the theme this week is ‘declicate’.