WRITERS ABROAD MAGAZINE : THE THIRD SPACE
A BEDTIME STORY
BY Laura Besley
Kim likes to line up all her soft toys on her bed along the wall . She says good night to all of them and gives each one a kiss . Then she climbs carefully into bed so as not to disturb any of them . If one of them is knocked over , it can result in tears . ' Story , Mummy ,' Kim says , climbing into bed . I tuck her in up to her chin and she holds onto the quilt with both hands .
' Which one would you like ?' I ask her . She has her favourites , of course , in amongst the vast selection of colourful picture books , but she also enjoys the stories I tell her . Some of them are fictional and others true . ' Can I have the one about the shoes ?' I smile and reach for the pair of baby shoes sitting on her chest of drawers . They are bright red with pink flowers up the sides . I turn them over . The soft soles are for babies who are too young to walk and these are clean and white . They have clearly never been worn .
' Once upon a time there was a mummy and daddy who loved each other very much and they were very happy . They decided they wanted to share their happiness with a baby and started looking for a very special baby .' ' Where did they look ?' Kim is grinning , knowing how the story goes . I got down on my hands and knees and looked under the bed . ‘ Kim ,’ I say ,
‘ were you under the bed ?’ ‘ No ,’ she shouts . I walk over to the wardrobe and open the doors . ‘ Kim , were you in the wardrobe ?’ ‘ No ,’ she shouts again . I open her bedroom door , put my hand above my eyes and look down the corridor . ‘ Kim , were you out there ?’ She nods . ‘ Yes , Mummy , I was far , far away .’ ‘ Yes , darling ,’ I say , sitting down on the edge of her bed . ‘ You were a long way away . Daddy and Mummy had to travel by car , by plane and by boat to find you . You were so far away .’ ‘ I was hiding .’ ‘ You were hiding , but we found you , in a small village in Vietnam . And when we finally found you- ’ ‘ I was a very special baby !’ I stroke her face . ‘ You were a very special baby . And I picked you up and said to Daddy : “ Here she is , here ’ s our baby .” And we brought you home .’ She yawned , big and unguarded . ‘ But the shoes , Mummy ?’ ‘ Because it had taken us such a long time to find you , the shoes were already too small , but we kept them because they were still your first pair of shoes .’ I reach behind me and put them back on the chest of drawers . I lean over and kiss her forehead . ‘ Goodnight , darling .’ ‘ Goodnight , Mummy .’
7 | NOVEMBER 2017