Twins

A brief post from a partly sunny London.

Granny has seen them now, both twins, together still if only in photographs (photographs are encouraged these days and older brothers invited in; so different from when Granny's little brother died, aged one week, all those years ago. He was not shown to Granny and her twin, alive or dead. He might never have existed. Oh, but he did.) She has also seen and held the beautiful living twin; will see and hold her a lot more over the next few years. This twin was bigger at birth than her equally beautiful but no longer living sister, and looks very like Granny's twin. How, weird. scary, beautiful the passing-on of a family forehead, a family face, especially when revealed within the pathos of new born babyhood, in a child part of the world already, yet not quite part of it, gazing away, into some other place. Many tears around her. Of course. But families come together at these times which is as it should be.

Granny's lovely twenty-four hours with the other beloved baby - Beloved's granddaughter -was very comforting too.

So life is not all bad. If so so sad. So sad. Especially just now for Beloved Nephew and Niece-in-Law.

The inescapable fact of parenthood is that you cannot always protect or even save your children. A fact and a fear which lasts from moment you conceive - or at least from the first moment you feel the baby - or babies - moving and the real communication starts. And which won't end till you're dead yourself.

Back on the island the three dogs are finding ways of getting out of their run: the Tiresome Terrier climbs the fence, the Local Yokel squeezes underneath. Poor Mr Handsome scratches his head, and Beloved, on his way home now will shortly be scratching his too. Granny meantime is off to buy supplies to take back to the island; tomorrow she will be busy holding the beautiful two-in-one baby for one more time, before she has to return to the island herself.

A Japanese Yoga teacher said the very best thing of the lone twin. 'She will have the spirit of two.'

Oh yes. Of course she will.