**Diary Entry A Summer with Grandad**
The first day of summer for six-year-old Oliver began with agonising anticipation. Grandad Thomas had decided to take him to the apiary for the entire seasonsomething hed heard so much about from Dad! Mum had hesitated at first but finally agreed, though not for the full summerjust until August. Then she and Dad would come to collect him from remote Blackwood Hollow in time for school. This year, Oliver was starting Year One!
Grandad Thomas arrived early in his old Rover, bringing woodland treats, but Ollie barely glanced at them. He fidgeted around his grandad, tugging his shirt sleeve every other minute, urging him to hurrywhat if Mum changed her mind at the last second? Smiling, Grandad ruffled his hair.
“Dont fret, Ollie, its settled! Have some breakfastwell eat lunch at the apiary.”
At last, they loaded the car and set off. For the first time, Oliver was without Mum and Dads watchful eyes. But Grandad wasnt just any guardianhe was a friend. Never one for lectures or scolding, he treated Ollie like an equal, discussing everything seriously, without a hint of condescension.
Ollie dozed off embarrassingly quickly on the drive. He woke only when the car jolted onto a dirt track. Outside, birch groves whirled past, the scent of the countryside thick in the airnothing like the city. Fields of wildflowers, blues, yellows, whites, swayed like waves in the breeze, making him feel as if he and Grandad were sailing on a boat.
“Nearly there?” Ollie asked, nudging Grandads shoulder, pretending hed been deep in thought rather than asleep.
“Just past that copse. Williams probably waiting. Sos Luna and her kitten.”
“Lunas the mum?” Ollie guessed. “Will she let me play with him?”
“If you respect her and treat the kitten kindlyyes. But if youre rowdy, shell cuff you both. Shes strictnot like your mum.”
“Me? Scolded by a cat?” Ollie scoffed. No cat had ever dared touch him before!
“Not just any cat. Dont stare at her too longshes gentle, but still a wild thing, protective of her young.”
Finally, they arrived. Two log cabins stood before themone larger, one smaller. From the smaller one, hearing the Rovers engine, emerged a lynx!
Ollie froze, but seeing her rub against Grandads legs, he relaxed.
“Now thats a proper cat!” he marvelled. Luna sniffed him, thenas if approvingwinked and butted her head against him. When Ollie crouched, she nuzzled his face, making him laugh.
“Youre one of hers now,” Grandad said, smiling.
Bees buzzed everywherebig, striped ones Ollie had never seen in London. One landed on his cheek. Ignoring Grandads warning, he swatted itand searing pain shot through him. Gritting his teeth, he swayed but didnt cry. Grandad plucked out the stinger and clapped his shoulder.
“Proper little man, you are! Didnt even whimper. Bees only sting when threatened.”
A bearded man with twinkling eyes shook Ollies hand. “Williams the name. You must be Ollie.”
“Yep. Im staying with you now,” Ollie declared.
“Welcome, then!” William grinned.
“Grandad Williamtheres a bee on your forehead!”
William carefully lifted it, whispered something, and released it. The bee circled once before vanishing. Ollie gaped.
Over the next week, Ollie learned the land, made peace with the bees, andmost importantlybefriended Lunas kitten, whom he named Pippin. They played endlessly, though Luna watched sternly. Pippin, nearly three months old, was already sturdy, almost keeping pace with his mother. They raced, chased, and hid in the woodsthough Ollie could never outwit Pippin, who found him instantly.
With the men, Ollie felt grown-up. When the bee stung him, no one fussedGrandad Thomas simply removed the stinger, and William said, “Happens to the best of us.” No coddling. Ollie liked that. He rose early, washed in icy water, fished for perch, and even helped clean and salt them, trusted with his own knifea gift from William, to be worn on his belt in the woods.
One day, William carried in a fawn with a broken leg. While the men tended it, Ollie soothed the trembling creature, naming him Bramble. They built a pen, and though Luna and Pippin eyed him, William murmured something, and they lost interest. A month later, Bramble trotted offcalled by his mothers voice. Ollies heart ached, but William said, “Shes been waiting. Its right.”
Grandad Thomas took him foragingwild strawberries, cherries, mushrooms. One afternoon, Ollie watched Grandad speak to a large “dog” in the woods. It listened, offered its paw, then vanished.
“Your dog?” Ollie asked.
“Wolf,” Grandad corrected. “We freed him from a trap once. Now he watches over us.”
“Why not keep him?”
“Wild things belong free. Even if we love them.”
Ollie frowned. Hed planned to take Pippin home.
Then, one morning, Pippin and Luna were gone. William set down his tools, understanding.
“Lunas teaching himhow to hunt, shelter, survive. Come winter, theyll leave for good. Hell be fine.”
Their visits grew rare. Though still affectionate, they were distantresting briefly before disappearing again.
In early August, Mum and Dad arrived. Mum gaspedher “little boy” was taller, tanner, steadier. He even fussed over her, mimicking the men. She basked in their care, feeling like a girl again.
Dad had known Luna before Ollies birth. When she pressed her ear to Mums belly, purring knowingly, Mum flushed.
“Youve guessed, havent you?”
“Luna doesnt guess,” Dad said. “She knows.”
On their last day, Ollie called for Pippin in vain. His chest ached, but he swallowed tears, shaking the mens hands firmly. As the car rolled away, he turned for a final glimpsethen spotted two golden shapes racing alongside.
“Stop, Dad!”
The car halted. Pippin and Luna bounded over. Ollie dropped to his knees as Pippin draped heavy paws over his shoulders, nuzzling him. Luna licked his hand.
“You didnt forget me,” Ollie whispered, tears unchecked.
The farewell stretched. Even Mum wept; Dad cleared his throat, turning away. At last, Luna yowled, and Pippin reluctantly followed her. They paused at the treeline, winked their golden eyes, and vanished.
As the car sped onto the motorway, Ollie said firmly, “Dad, Im coming back next summer.”
“Course, son. Youve more to learn from them yet.”
