The power of the unconscious

It was four months ago, now, when Tiarnan was but ten months old, and I haven't found a moment to tell the tale, until now.

We had become accustomed by that time, to see Tiarnan go comfortably down the stairs on his own. After all, he had first tackled the stairs successfully at five months and so we had come to see little reason to fear his meanderings up and down stairs: he had clearly mastered the skill.

That morning however, as I was talking to my wife, Tiarnan approached the stairs, a few metres away, in the background. Some uncanny feeling alerted me that all was not as it should be. There was something about his gait, about his angle and speed of approach that concerned me. Just as he stepped out into the air, it became clear that he had misjudged it - he was falling down the stairs, headfirst.

I don't know what happened in that moment. Some old part of me awoke. A more youthful part. A very much faster part of me that I had thought lost long ago, in my teens, aroused itself. I leapt forward with a speed I did not know I still possessed, crossed those few metres and reached out with my left hand and closed my fist tight about his shirt, as he fell down the stairs. To my astonishment, that of my wife - and no doubt that of Tiarnan himself - I found myself clutching my ten month old baby with his face suspended above the steps, inches from contact. He had not struck the stairs at all. All that movement of body and arm and snaring of baby had happened in a time too short to consciously observe - and yet there he was, floating in space above the steps, held by my reflexively tight fist.

It has been many years since I had moved like that - many years since I thought I still could. Grateful to whatever within me had saved him, I set Tiarnan down on the ground above the steps. He was completely unharmed.

Had he fallen down the steps headfirst, he might be another Tiarnan today - one very much lessened by the incident.

I am thankful that it did not happen.

(If you would like to read more about Tiarnan, or his gifted brothers, including Ainan Celeste Cawley, a scientific child prodigy, aged seven years and four months, and Fintan, three, please go to: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html I also write of child prodigy, gifted education, IQ, intelligence, child genius, baby genius, adult genius, savant, the creatively gifted, gifted adults and gifted children in general. Thanks.)

Tiarnan invents an alibi

About a month ago, when Tiarnan would have been eleven months old, he invented the alibi.

Our apartment is a duplex, as Americans call it, or a maisonette, as Singaporeans call it. It is split over two levels...well, three actually, one is a mini-level division of the main floor. In consequence, there are two staircases - a minor and a major one. The major one has two flights of stairs and would be quite a challenge for most babies (ie. they would probably hurt themselves). Tiarnan, however, has been training himself in the ways of stairs since he was five months old and is quite capable of handling them.

Although Tiarnan has long mastered stairs, being parents and naturally possessed of imaginations that conjure up all sorts of possible disasters if we don't intervene, we prefer it if he remains on the first floor, much of the time.

A month ago, Syahidah, my wife, caught Tiarnan half-way up the main stairs.

"Come down Tiarnan!" she said.

"Tido.", he replied, meaning he wished to sleep, in Malay. He immediately followed this up with a mischievous grin. Why? Well, it was the middle of the day, and "sleep" was the last thing on Tiarnan's mind. Tiarnan had invented an alibi - a plausible reason for why he was doing what he was doing, which, however, was simply not true.

Syahidah saw through it, of course and he duly came down. What was interesting, however, was that he had had the imagination to invent a plausible excuse for his action, that was likely to be accepted. This implies that he understands the perspectives of others - that he knows that to go upstairs to sleep would be perceived as a reasonable cause for his action.

Why was he really going up? Probably to play since there are many different and interesting places, textures and objects up there.

It should be noted that his behaviour is self-invented and not modelled on what others have done to him - since we haven't engaged in any sort of ploys with him. If he invents a ploy, therefore, it is his own doing.

(If you would like to read more of Tiarnan or his gifted brothers, including Ainan Celeste Cawley, a scientific child prodigy, aged seven years and two months, and Fintan, three, please go to: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html I also write of gifted education, intelligence, IQ, child prodigy, child genius, adult genius, baby genius, savant, the creatively gifted, gifted adults and gifted children in general. Thanks.)

Tiarnan walks downstairs, unassisted

On December 4th 2006, I caught sight of Tiarnan walking down the stairs unassisted. He stepped carefully from step to step and showed no evidence of fear - just an intensity at each movement, always appraising the steps with an attentive eye. Tiarnan is ten months old, so this is unusually young to walk downstairs. Needless to say, he didn't fall. Incidentally, for those who don't know babies well, walking downstairs is much harder and requires much more control, than walking upstairs - which he has already mastered.

At times he wants to climb into his cot - just like his elder brother Ainan used to do when he was eight months. He has long wanted to do this. When we catch sight of him, we stop him from doing so - for we are more concerned for the dangers of falling. It would be interesting to see, however, if like Ainan, he was able to do such a thing.

Tiarnan is proving to be very athletic and attempts things that show a certain bravado. Part of our apartment is split level. Tiarnan has devised a unique way of travelling from one level to the other: climb over a wall that divides them - and drop down into a couch, before proceeding to the ground from the sofa. He has done this quite a few times. At first I was wary, convinced he would hurt himself - but now that I have seen him do it several times, without mishap, I just watch and let him do it. He is happy to do so. He first did this when he was nine months old.

(If you would like to read more about Tiarnan or his gifted brothers, including Ainan Celeste Cawley, a scientific child prodigy, or Fintan, three, please go to: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html I also write of gifted education, intelligence, IQ, child prodigy, child genius, adult genius, baby genius, savant, the creatively gifted, gifted adults and gifted children in general. Thanks.)

Baby Tiarnan walks upstairs

Two days ago, baby Tiarnan Hasyl Cawley, took a calculated risk: he walked upstairs, three steps, on his own.

Long has he eyed the stairs and seemed prepared to walk up them...but only today did he gather his courage and do so. He is nine months old.

I was nearby in case he fell, but there was no need for my caution. I get the feeling with him, that he could have done such a thing a long time ago - but some early falls dissuaded him from being too adventurous too early. That and the hurtling comets that are his older brothers in the house, always threatening to knock him over at any time.

He was buzzing in excitement at his achievement. Sweet boy.

This follows his mastery of crawling upstairs at five weeks and two months - and crawling downstairs at eight months exactly.

To read more on these physical developments, of motor movement go to:

http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/09/baby-tiarnan-crawls-downstairs.html

For more links on Tiarnan Hasyl Cawley and his gifted brothers, including Ainan Celeste Cawley, a scientific child prodigy, six, please go to:

http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html

I also write of child prodigy, child genius, savant, the creatively gifted, gifted adults and gifted children in general.

Baby Tiarnan crawls downstairs.

Today Tiarnan Hasyl Cawley crawled downstairs, on his own, though watched carefully by his mother. He is eight months old, today, exactly. This follows his first crawling upstairs at five months and two weeks. Crawling downstairs is not easy: you should try it, yourself, adult or not - but be prepared to call an ambulance...it is really not easy at all.

If there is an award for "Bravery while crawling", I think he should get it. For the past three months he has assayed the stairs, mastering climbing it, quickly, after his first attempt...but, although he tried to crawl down it soon after, he would stop at the first step, after having placed his hands on the step below: you see, he had noted the problem - how not to fall down the stairs, head first.

Well, today he solved that one. He turned around and went down backwards. Hurrah!

(For more on Tiarnan and Ainan Celeste Cawley, six, a scientific child prodigy, and Fintan Nadym Cawley, a natural leader, go to: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html )