Fintan's very own season's greetings.

Fintan, 8, is a young boy of much whimsy. He has his own particular way of expressing himself that often leads to bizarre, or comic results.

Today, I phoned home to the UK to let my children speak to my parents. Just before the phone call went through, Fintan made a remark, which the others paid particular attention to.

I asked the boys to sing my parents, the song that begins: “We wish you a Merry Xmas...”

My father answered the phone.

The boys duly began singing.

“We wish you a HAIRY Xmas, we wish you a HAIRY xmas, we wish you a HAIRY xmas and a Happy New Year!”

“Could you hear them?”, I asked my father, wondering if he really had.

“Yes. They were wishing me a Merry Xmas.”

He seemed quite pleased at their singing.

“No.”, I said, “they were singing you: “I wish you a HAIRY Xmas...””

He laughed. “Oh were they?”

He turned to my mother, to explain what they had done.

Now he seemed even more impressed.

I have no doubt it was the first time, in my father’s life, that anyone had wished him a Hairy Xmas. That was what Fintan had remarked upon, before I put the call through. He is always coming out with off the wall remarks and reinterpretations of things he sees and hears. It is refreshing to hear his thoughts.

As for me, it is certainly a Hairy Xmas, since I have a beard at this time.

Anyway, in the spirit of Fintan, I would like to wish you all a Hairy Xmas, and a Happy New Year.

Posted by Valentine Cawley

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Children and Christmas Celebrations.

It is long since Christmas could make me jump with excitement, and anticipation - but today I was brought back to that time, by watching my children.

It was time to open their gifts. The children had risen early and huddled around the tree - but refrained from opening them: they just looked. It was not until we rose that they allowed themselves to pick up their gifts, one by one and begin to unwrap them.

If I were to pick one memory of today, to take with me into the future, it would be a single snapshot image. It would be of Tiarnan, so excited at the prospect of opening the gifts, which he had foreborn to touch, these past few weeks, that he could not open them. He was so consumed with the thrill of it that he jumped up and grabbed Syahidah's legs, encircling them with his arms. He held on tightly, suspended above the ground. In that moment did I fully understand how exciting this was for him. He did not know what to do with the excitement that he felt and could not express it in any better way, than that movement. I was touched.

He finally let go and set about opening his gifts, periodically jumping in excitement or smacking the table, as each wonder (to him) was revealed.

The other boys were also excited, but their response was somewhat more mature and less expressive. It was Tiarnan, twenty-two months, who showed best the spirit of the day.

I feel that it is moments like this that my young children will recall when they are adults, themselves. It makes me smile to know that they will remember this day.

(If you would like to learn more of Ainan Celeste Cawley, a scientific child prodigy, aged eight years and no months, or his gifted brothers, Fintan, four years and five months, and Tiarnan, twenty-two 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, 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.)