“Alex…Wake up honey…” Alex snapped awake, she could hear her mother calling. Alexandra opened her eyes and saw her mother leaning over her. “Good morning sweetheart” her mother said. Alex smiled. Her mother was her best friend in the whole world. Obviously being four years old, Alex hadn’t met the whole world, but she didn’t know that. She smiled back at her mother. The lady wasn’t conventionally pretty, but she was nice to look at, well Alex thought so anyway. She had dark brown hair and really pretty brown almond shaped eyes. She was half Japanese so her skin was slightly tanned and she was slightly overweight, but Alex didn’t mind, it just made her so much nicer to cuddle. Alex hadn’t seen her father for a few months; he was in the Army and had gone over to Indonesia to fight, to make sure the unfriendlies couldn’t get into Australia to hurt people. At least, that is what Alex’s mum had told her. She could only just remember what her dad looked like; He had long blond hair, before the army made him cut it off, so now it was all short and shaven. Alex remembered how much she liked playing with it, man it felt weird, all spiky. He had blue eyes and a really big smile. Alex thought it was funny, how she thought that his name was dad, but then when they went to say goodbye to him at the marina, everyone had been calling him “Private Keller” She lay in bed staring at the ceiling and laughed loudly, Her mummy had told her that she had to wear clothes when they had visitors to cover her privates. He He her daddy was a private. “What’s so funny sweetie?” asked Alex’s mum as she walked back into the room. “Nothing mummy” Alex replied with a massive grin. “Well that’s no good is it?” Laughed Kerry picking her daughter up out of bed and swinging her around the room. She tossed Alex back on the bed and Alex laughed. Kerry got down on her knees in front of the bed and pulled a face at Alex. Alex laughed loudly and pocked her mother’s nose. Kerry stuck her tongue out. Alex screamed with laughter and Kerry rolled on to her back, acting like a dying cockroach. Waving her arms and legs in the air until Alex threw herself on top of her, forcing her to stop. Mother and daughter lay there laughing until Kerry said “Ok Honey, you better let mummy up now because you have to get ready for preschool.” “Wait” said Alex “You gotta tell me the story about why you love me so much first, and then I will let you get up.” “Alright” replied Kerry, “But what is the magic word sweetie” “PUHLEEESE mummy” Cried Alex
Kerry smiled “Well Munchkin, when you were born, it was 8 weeks earlier than you were supposed to be, so you weren’t quite ready to meet us yet. I think you wanted to get out of mummy’s tummy and see what was going on in the real world. Anyway, you weren’t breathing very well and they had to take you into intensive care, which is where the really sick babies go. Daddy and I were very worried that you wouldn’t survive, but you did, you are our little miracle, and now we don’t know what we would do without you. Alex clapped and then obediently stood up. “Thank you mummy” she said politely, leaning forward to help her mother off the ground. “You always know how to make me feel special.” “You are special sweetheart” Kerry replied, picking up her daughter and carrying her into the lounge room.
Alex got herself ready for preschool and Kerry loaded them both into the car at around 8:30. Living in the rural outskirts of Darwin, it took around half an hour to drive into town. Alex sat in the back of the car, singing to everything that came on the radio. When they finally pulled into the preschool car park around 30 minutes later, Alex jumped out of the car and ran inside to greet all of her teaches. The teachers loved Alex, since she was old enough to speak, her father had raised her under army discipline and she was always polite. She spoke well and always kept her room clean, which is more than can be said for most children her age. Alex attended a pre-school that, rather than the children attending half days, every day of the week, they would spend the full day there on alternate days. At three pm, Kerry picked her daughter up from school and drove her to dance class. Alex was always involved in extra curricular activities and if she wasn’t at school she was either at dancing or singing lessons. Such a packed social life at such an early age, taught Alex the benefits of being polite and tactful. Although she didn’t always win every argument that she became involved in, she never hurt anyone’s feelings. She made more friends at dance class than she did at school, the children at her preschool bored Alex, she was happier talking to adults, or at least to someone that understood her. Her best friends were both in her dancing class, Alisha and Sarah. Both of the girls were seven years old, but when a stranger saw the three together, they could have all been the same age. Sarah and Alisha were both small for their age whereas Alex had always been tall. They would sit together waiting for dance class to start and talk about everything, usually flicking through a ballet magazine or drawing on the back of Alisha’s school books in bright coloured textas.
Alex loved dressing up for her ballet performances; she was always a bit of a girly girl and loved having makeup put on her. At home she was always asking her mother if she could use her lipstick. After ballet, Kerry picked her up and drove her home. “How was your dance class honey” she asked Alex who was busy colouring in a picture of a ballerina in the back seat. “It was very nice thank you mummy” she replied. “That’s good sweetheart, that is very good”
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