The strangest toy in the world.

Children play with the strangest things: to them, a toy may be anything.

A week or two ago, I found Fintan and Tiarnan playing at sword fighting with a long, blue object. They were not being particularly rough, and were using the side of it to nudge each other. However, lest it be sharp I took a closer look.

It was part of a car. In fact, from its colour, it looked to be a piece of a taxi. It wasn't sharp, however, so I let them continue to play with it.

Fintan had found this relic of a car crash by the side of the road, and judged it worthy toy material and so had taken it home.

Thus, Singapore's road safety issues have the unusual side effect of creating free and abundant toys for children, and leaving them scattered by the side of the road for them to find. How enlightened of the car owners to be so generous to the children of Singapore. Or, how thoughtful of those whose duty it is to clear up after car crashes, to be sufficiently derelict in their duties to ensure that plentiful roadside toys are there to be found by young children.

Now, I know why the detritus of crashed cars is never cleared properly from the roads. They are just thinking of the children and their toys. How thoughtful of them. They are the unsung Santa Clauses of Singapore.

(If you would like to learn more of Ainan Celeste Cawley, a scientific child prodigy, aged eight years and one month, or his gifted brothers, Fintan, four years and six months, and Tiarnan, twenty-three months, please go to: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html I also write of gifted education, IQ, intelligence, the Irish, the Malays, Singapore, College, University, Chemistry, Science, genetics, left-handedness, precocity, child prodigy, child genius, baby genius, adult genius, savant, gifted adults and gifted children in general. Thanks.)