The Sky’s the Limit (When You’re Two)

Six months ago, when our wild little boy Corbin was just two, I was inside with the girls, sitting at the kitchen table helping them with their homework. It was the usual chaos, pencils scattered everywhere, questions flying at me from all directions, so I asked my husband, John, to keep an eye on Corbin while I stayed focused on the schoolwork.

John’s an electrician, and that particular afternoon he’d just finished putting up our solar panels. True to form, he wasn’t one to sit still, so he was pottering around outside, tidying up and finishing a few last-minute jobs. From the window, everything seemed calm. Corbin was happily zooming around the yard on his little bike, chattering away to himself, full of energy but harmlessly occupied. Or so we thought.

In true Corbin fashion, he decided that staying on the ground was far too boring. Always curious, always observant, he’d clearly been watching his dad climb up and down all day. With no hesitation, our determined toddler managed to wriggle out of his clothes (because apparently climbing fully dressed was optional) and then made his way up a seven-foot ladder, completely butt naked.

Meanwhile, John had already climbed back onto the roof to adjust something. It wasn’t until he heard a tiny, triumphant voice right beside him say, “Hey Dad!” that he realised he had unexpected company. He turned, and there was our two-year-old, grinning from ear to ear, stark naked, and standing proudly on the roof as if he belonged there.

That’s the moment John shouted for me, and we both ended up outside, staring up in disbelief at our cheeky little boy. There he was, our fearless toddler, balanced on the roof in all his glory, as if it were the most normal place in the world to be.

He was scooped up safely right away, but the image of him standing up there, so bold, so determined, so completely himself, has stayed with us. If ever there was a story that sums up Corbin perfectly, it’s this one: fearless, curious, and always keeping us on our toes.

-          Ashleigh Debono