Bonjour Madame, said Chloe. Chloe’s mermaid.

“Bonjour, Madame,” said Chloe, aged 6.

“Bonjour Chloe,” I replied.

In her hand she held a piece of paper and a pencil.  She flapped these in front of her.

“Please could you draw me a mermaid?” she asked (but in French).

I had about 3.4 seconds to spare, so I sat down at the table and drew.  Chloe perched on the chair rung, hopping on and off as six year-olds do, and making little snuffly noises as she watched.  Every now and then she gave me some instructions: long hair, seaweed, and that sort of thing.  Being French she wasn’t remotely perturbed by the nudity.

When I had finished Chloe said merci nicely and stood and studied the picture for a moment.

“Why is she holding a comb?” she asked.

“Because she is doing her hair,” I replied.

“But her hair is too wet !!!” she exclaimed.

 

Catherine Broughton’s books are available from Amazon/Kindle or can be ordered from most usual sources.