Lessons in Lego

I was approaching three when my younger sister was born so I'm thinking this must have been one of my earliest opportunities to experience sibling rivalry...

Jess was born

upstairs

with the door shut

and Cousin Win

came to look after us

downstairs.

And when Jess had come

Cousin Win told us

we could tiptoe like mice

up the stairs and see

our new baby sister.

And Mum was there in bed,

and Dad,

and there was this baby

in a black carry cot

and Mum said the baby

had brought us things,

and if we put our hands

in the bottom end

of the carry cot

we would find the things

she had brought.

I didn’t know

how a baby

could get to the shops

but Mum said I needn’t

worry about that.

And there were things -

I got a little box of lego,

blue lego

roof pieces.

It was all right.

Then John opened his box -

when I saw what he got

fireworks went off in my head

and it was like

there was suddenly

a big crack in the world

that I might fall into

right in between me and Mum

and Dad -

John got

little yellow curved bits of lego

that made a fantastic round tower

when you put them all together.

Yellow bits

not blue.

Curved bits

not roof bits.

And they said the baby

was called Jessica Mary

and that she was the baby now

and I had to be her big brother

and teach her things.

I thought I should better teach her about

lego.

I expect she brought Kate 
something too

but she was six

and I didn’t want it

it was probably a doll

or something.

It seems my parents weren't too concerned about choking hazards in those days either!