There he is. The most beautiful thing I have ever seen. Look at the small fingers, so tiny and so perfect already. And the cutest feet, with the softest hair on them. He has my green eyes. And gaffer Ryngo was so touched that I named him after his pa, Lyshko's great grandpa Lyshko Shrubland of Staddle. Eek, he is crying, I gotta go.
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That was on the 24th of Thrimidge, just after little Lyshko was born. Now, more than two months later I am sitting here in Needlehole out in the sunshine, while auntie Iris is having little Lyshko on her lap, feeding him mashed catfish pie, his favourite, and I finally have time to fill this diary of mine a little more. Auntie Iris gives me a broad grin as she recognizes the diary that was a present from her quite some time ago. So much has happened. Where to begin?
I actually had planned to write down every tiny thing little Lyshko does. Every blink of his eyes. But apart from that something terrible happened that changed our lives in an unforeseen way, he also keeps me quite busy and the times when he sleeps are busy, too. Thankfully Gaffer Ryngo seems to be determined to make up for everything that he missed with me and helps where he can. He is a great gaffer. I often get an evening off to see my friends, play music with them or dance and play at the Dragon. And when I come home, Pa lies squeezed and folded in Lyshko's little bed or in his hammock sleeping while little Lyshko is awake and beams at me and giggles at every snore of his gaffer.
The only thing that is missing is his Pa Adrean. He went to get a special recipe from the dwarves for Lyshko's Welcome Party and has not come back since. He missed Lyshko's birth. While at first I thought that digging into recipe books has made him completely forget time - would not be the first time - now I am afraid that something really bad and terrible has happened to him. There was this Green Dragon Friday when I thought he had returned. I saw him, and some others, too. But he did not dance with us; instead he sat down on a bench and watched us dancing. Some even swear he had little Lyshko on his lap. And then he disappeared into thin air, just like it is said about Master Bilbo's disappearance. So now I think that maybe that was his ghost coming to say good-bye to us. None of the dwarves I questioned have seen me Adrean since that strange Friday, and no one else has, either. Every night when I sing Lyshko's lullaby and look at his face that reminds me so much of his pa’s, I wonder what has happened. Maybe he was squashed to death by a pile of recipe books - that might not be the worst death for a hobbit. Only a pile of pies would be better.
But it seems to me as if all Order hobbits and even some from outside the Order have adopted little Lyshko. They all care for him and help me to baby-sit. We had a Baby Welcome party, and such a grand party it was! Music was there and pies and so many hobbits came, and even two dwarves! Miss Tibba is his guarding gourd-mother now, and little Lyshko even got his own lullaby, written by Miss Lina to a melody that was one of my absolute favourites already. I sing it to him every night, and I am sure he soon will start humming along.
As I have grown really close to the dwarves in Needlehole, I wanted Lyshko to be close to them, too, and asked Master Barkgrim to be his guarding gourd-father. And not only did Master Barkgrim agree, he also brought another, very important dwarf with him, who gave Lyshko a dwarven made necklace and said Lyshko was adopted into Master Barkgrim’ s clan now. I think that is something good and when Lyshko has grown a bit we have to go and find out more about that.
Miss Freoda could not come to the party, but she sent us lovely flowers arrangements that are now in the house - still blooming. A dwarven friend of her also sent us some really good ale - and from what I hear, really strong, too. I did not try it, of course.
The first guest was Miss Yllisa. She gave him a rolling pin that he grabbed with his small fist immediately and would not let go again. His first toy.
Then Lyshko got a book about honey from Master Jardic, who also helped giving out the food and drinks at the party. A very nice lad, really! And Miss Zara gave him a beautiful mobile with dangling stars on it. I tried to attach it to the chandelier in the living room, but it would not work. Then Master Baro agreed to have the mobile hung up in the main room of the Friends of Clover Farm, and there it is now. We are visiting them every other day to get fresh vegetables and mushrooms anyway and Lyshko loves to lie under it and watch the stars turn slowly in the breeze that comes in through the windows.
And then there is the little kitten from Miss Acorne. Lyshko has called it Baaah, which might be due to the fact that Baaah is all he can say so far. But there, Baaah it is. Kitty Baaah and Lyshko really do love each other - and they do love to drive me crazy. When they start playing, I am not sure whom to rescue from the other, they are both scratching and biting each other. But when I try to separate them, they both start crying, and at night they sleep so peacefully on the same pillow, they are inseparable.
Lyshko loves his tiny rattle that Miss Spriggy has made for him. Sometimes he wants to have the rattle in one hand and the little pickaxe from Shirriff Nimelia in the other. Although, when he is asleep I remove the pickaxe – that is not the right thing to sleep with for a little baby hobbit, is it? I mean, I was already five or six, when I took my first little pickaxe into my bed. Hehe, I guess Ma never knew about that.
The tiny little lute from Uncle Simbo stays up at the cupboard. He has to grow a little older before he can use that – while the set of knitted little clothes from his gourd-mother, Miss Tibba, is fitting perfectly already. And the lovely little fishing suit will soon, too. One or two weeks more and he can wear it. You can almost watch him grow.
Somehow it seems only right, that now little Lyshko has my pa with him, while I did not have him as a little hobbit. I had the neighbourhood dwarves and Auntie Iris instead, and uncle Bungo came visiting often enough from Michel Delving - whenever the business at the auction house allowed him to leave. Little Lyshko has his gaffer and a guarding gourd-mother and gourd-father, and so many neighbours and friends who love to spend time with him. On the Sunday when the Grand Fishing Museum was opened by Master Ponso from the Shire Angling Club, Miss Yusra was staying with him, feeding him another mashed pie and taking care of him until Pa returned. That was sooooo nice of her! After the opening, I went home to find Lyshko and his gaffer fast asleep in the hammock. Such a lovely sight, it made me smile.
Actually, every day little Lyshko makes me smile and forget my sadness, and so do my friends, too. The summer festival has come – but unfortunately without a new dress. And thus I decided to skip the festivities, get out of the turbulence (loads of lankyshanks roaming the Shire these days) and have a little vacation in quiet Needlehole. Apart from the dwarves looking for swamp gas that is coming up in green bubbles from the Rushock Bog grounds these summer days, no one is passing through. And I really wonder: What do they want with all that swamp gas? I have to ask Master Ulfar, maybe it has something to do with mining, and that would be really interesting to know.
