How to grow up fast.

Little children seem to grow up fast, from their parents’ point of view. Yet, as most of us remember, that growing up doesn’t seem half fast enough when you are a little kid. Tiarnan, today, came up with a solution to the problem.

My four year old son, Tiarnan was talking to his elder brother, Fintan, seven. They were in the kitchen, near the refrigerator, which, perhaps unseen by me, Fintan had probably recently opened. For those who haven’t read long enough to know, Fintan is the big eater of the three sons. He is also the biggest and strongest for his age.

“I want to be you.”, said Tiarnan, to Fintan, as he looked up at his much taller brother.

“Then,”, Fintan began, considering the proposition, “You have to go to my school.” From the way he said it, he seemed to think that would put him off.

Tiarnan was undeterred. “Let’s change places.”, he continued, focusing more intently on his new idea, “You become me, and I become you.”

I interrupted him, then. “Why do you want to be Fintan? Is it because you want to be bigger?”

“Yes.”, he said, simply.

Then the two of them raced off, continuing some imaginary game or other.

To my mind, this encapsulated Tiarnan’s outlook so well. Tiarnan is ever imagining himself as superheroes, who are physically powerful – yet he himself is small. So, something in him wants that power and strength for himself. He sees that Fintan has some of that: he is stocky and well built for his age and quite tall – so, for Tiarnan, a very big step towards his goal of physical power would be simply to become Fintan.

Then there is the more conventional side to Tiarnan’s aspiration: he simply wants to grow up and have the requisite attributes and skills (and size and strength) of an older person. He wants to zip through his childhood and get to a mature stage overnight. This is, of course, a common wish in many children. However, of our three sons, the wish is strongest in Tiarnan, perhaps because he is the youngest and smallest.

What Tiarnan doesn’t appreciate is how we see him. He is most endearing just the way he is, growing up the way he is and changing day by day, the way he is. I, personally, would not see him fast forward through any of it. Simply seeing him change gradually, over time, is a delightful experience. Were there ever a technology that allowed children to become “adult” in form, in a much shorter time frame, I, for one, would not avail myself of it, for my children. Childhood is short enough as it is, without throwing it away entirely.

That being said, the adult like quality of Ainan’s mind is also something I would not change. That brings its own pleasures. However, I am pleased that Ainan’s mental advancement, does not also mean a shorter physical childhood. It is good to see him grow, in the normal way, at an expected rate. It is, in fact, a good reminder, that he is a child, still, however bright he might be – and such a reminder is good to have, lest he be misunderstood.

Tiarnan will just have to be patient, as all children must learn to be – and wait for his own access of strength, size and power to come at the biologically appointed time. As he waits, he can, of course, imagine his own superhero status, all he likes. That, of course, is fun, in itself, to watch – but that is another story.

(If you would like to learn more of Ainan Celeste Cawley, 10, or his gifted brothers, Fintan, 7 and Tiarnan, 4, this month, please go to: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html

I also write of gifted education, child prodigy, child genius, adult genius, savant, megasavant, HELP University College, the Irish, the Malays, Singapore, Malaysia, IQ, intelligence and creativity.

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My Internet Movie Database listing is at: http://imdb.com/name/nm3438598/

Ainan's IMDB listing is at http://imdb.com/name/nm3305973/

Syahidah's IMDB listing is at http://imdb.com/name/nm3463926/

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This blog is copyright Valentine Cawley. Unauthorized duplication is prohibited. Use only with permission. Thank you.)

The Prince and the Frog.

A couple of days ago, Tiarnan, three, came across a frog in the garden. He peered down, carefully, at his local resident amphibian.

"I would kiss you," he confided to the listening frog, "but I don't know if you are toxic."

How funny. He must be weighing up all those stories of aristocrats who have been turned into frogs and await a kiss from a handsome soul, to transform them back into a human being.

So, to Tiarnan it was not a frog he met in the garden, but an inconvenienced Princess awaiting her Prince. A pity, then, for the poor Princess that this Prince knew something of frog biology and wasn't overly keen on testing whether she was of a poisonous species or not!

(If you would like to learn more of Ainan Celeste Cawley, a scientific child prodigy, aged eight years and seven months, or his gifted brothers, Fintan, five years exactly, and Tiarnan, twenty-eight 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, wunderkind, wonderkind, genio, гений ребенок prodigy, genie, μεγαλοφυία θαύμα παιδιών, bambino, kind.

We are the founders of Genghis Can, a copywriting, editing and proofreading agency, that handles all kinds of work, including technical and scientific material. If you need such services, or know someone who does, please go to: http://www.genghiscan.com/ Thanks.

IMDB is the Internet Movie Database for film and tv professionals. If you would like to look at my IMDb listing for which another fifteen credits are to be uploaded, (which will probably take several months before they are accepted) please go to: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm3438598/ As I write, the listing is new and brief - however, by the time you read this it might have a dozen or a score of credits...so please do take a look. My son, Ainan Celeste Cawley, also has an IMDb listing. His is found at: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm3305973/ My wife, Syahidah Osman Cawley, has a listing as well. Hers is found at: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm3463926/

This blog is copyright Valentine Cawley. Unauthorized duplication prohibited. Use Only with Permission. Thank you.)