Ride a horse to Boston,
Ride a horse to Lynn,
Look out little Danny,
Or you might fall in!
He would sit me on his lap, bounce me on his knees like a horse, and then there would be a... pause... at the end... and possibly falling in followed by a magnificent save. If there was no falling in, I would clammer, "Do it again! Do it again!"
I asked my cousin Rory, "Do you know why grandfather knew/liked that rhyme?" Rory replied, "He received his Doctorate from Harvard, so I expect he spent several years in or around Boston. He delighted in bouncing us on his knees and the uncertainty of falling or not falling in."
I also learned to ask him what time it was every couple of minutes,
so he would look at his watch and say:
"Why bless you, my child," he answered
"The meaning is surely quite plain:
It will just be half past kissing time,
And time to kiss again!"
Then, he would look at his watch and offer to show it to me. I was fascinated by his watch and would move close to take a look. When I was within distance, he would "catch" me, and give me a kiss on the cheek or the top of my head.
I later learned this is part of an Elaine Stevenson's poem, "Kissing Time":
She stood knee-deep in meadow flowers,
His grandchild of four years old,
With eyes of periwinkle blue
And hair like harvest gold
"Teach me, Grandpa, tell me
Just how to tell the time."
And she handed him an angel flower,
A dandelion in prime
Gently the old man held the stalk,
And filling his wrinkled face,
He blew on the dainty once-gold flower
Now turned to fairy lace
"One o'clock tells you're beautiful,
Two o'clock tells me you're kind,
Three o'clock hopes you'll be happy,
Four o'clock means a sharp mind.
"Five o'clock prays you'll be healthy,
Six o'clock brings gifts you can't buy
Like dewdrops and bird song and rainbows,
White clouds in a blue summer sky.
The child watched wide-eyed in wonder
As the gossamer seeds drifted past.
"But, Grandpa, what will the time be
When our fairies have flown off at last?"
"Why bless you, my child," he answered
"The meaning is surely quite plain:
It will just be half past kissing time,
And time to kiss again!"
I appear to be somewhat unique in having so many vivid memories of being 2 and 3-years-old. It probably has something to do with the interaction, movement, thrill, comfort, and feeling loved.