Bubble’s beaut benefits

A four-week lockdown to counter the growing threat of Covid-19 can be a bit of a challenge but it can also throw up some amazing benefits.

Jill and I are in a bubble that includes my stepson’s partner and my stepdaughter, Rachel, and her 15-month-old son Nathanial (better known in the family as Nate or Natie).

Natie’s father and my stepson are essential workers and they are from their home bubble, while Rachel and her 15-month-old son have opted to stay with us, thus removing them from any danger of unwitting transmission.

It would appear as people try to keep boredom at bay that Netflix is taking a hammering and Chorus has had a record demand on its internet network. But we don’t have to worry about any of that. We’re not relying on television and computers for our entertainment – we have a toddler and a cat to keep us endlessly amused.

Natie and our ginger moggy, Flynn, have a somewhat guarded relationship. Well, it’s cautious as far as Flynn is concerned. Natie is far more enthusiastic about the affiliation.

When Natie first discovered Flynn, he was still crawling (Natie, that is, not Flynn) and he was captivated to find there was another living being at his eye level.

Consequently, he became extremely excited and let out loud shrieks of delight, which did nothing to alleviate Flynn’s initial apprehension. He took refuge on a dining chair, comfortably out of reach of an over-enthusiastic child and sat eyeing the newcomer with some disdain.

That was a few months ago and the relationship has since altered. Natie can now walk, which means Flynn’s options for staying out of reach have become considerably more limited. The dining chair refuge is now within reach of tiny hands.

The result though is that Flynn has eventually become more used to Natie’s presence and tolerates (it would an exaggeration to say ‘‘welcomes’’) the new-found attention.

Natie, in turn, treats Flynn with much more consideration and the cat only retreats when the stroking becomes unwittingly over-enthusiastic.

Natie has even learned to hold out cat treats on his palm to Flynn, who has been willing to shed his understandable reticence and prepared to take a risk to gobble up the savoury reward.

It could be said the relationship has progressed so much that Natie now has Flynn literally eating out of his hand.

But we are not just dependent on feline cooperation to take our minds off the potential boredom of a fortnight’s semi-imprisonment.

Natie also accompanies us on our daily walks. Usually this is in his pushchair but a couple of days ago he was playing in the front driveway when he decided to initiate a walk of his own, pushing his tiny trolley loaded with wooden bricks.

Now the road in which we live is quiet at any time but during the present lockdown traffic is virtually non-existent, so we accompanied Natie on his perambulation along the middle of the street and into a nearby cul-de-sac.

All along the journey we were pointing out to him the teddy bears that thoughtful neighbours had placed in their windows.

I should point out here that I won a family sweepstake on which day Natie would take his first faltering steps.

I had chosen February 29 as I felt Leap Year’s Day would be an appropriate date for Natie to take his first small step forward.

I proved right on the money – or I would have but I’ve yet to see the colour of my winnings, which have proved as elusive as Flynn on one of Natie’s particularly excitable days.