Ned and the Worry Wobble
By Kate Peters from Huntington’s WA
The story of Ned and Norma Gnome
by Kate Peters
Project Officer, Huntington’s WA
Illustrations by Dale Simmonds
© Huntington’s WA
This resource was made possible by funding from the Helen Leech Endowment
through Perpetual’s Philanthropy Trust and the Gaming Community Trust WA
Out in the bush, in the hollow of a gumtree,
lived some small folk,
a Gnome Mob from West country.
Ned the Gnome, the youngest at nine,
wore a red hat, brown boots and a
Our Ned was a bit of a worrier,
his Mum would often sing out and say,
(in of course her kindly way)
Ned knew then to get up and about,
he cried
As things go for Gnomes - despite the strife,
Ned knew he had a pretty good life,
but of all Ned’s favourite things to do,
the winner was reading with Aunty it’s true.
That night he heard Mum and Dad quietly talking,
something about Aunty Norma dancing while walking...
Just then...
out the corner of his eye...
Aunty Norma he did spy!
“Mummy please - do a deep breath
- let’s not fret,
we heard you last night
and got upset.
So what’s going on?
Who is Huntington’s
and where is he from?”
Mum said, “Let’s sit down
and have a few chats,
there’s something called Huntington’s
we’ll explain facts.”
“The yarn starts way back with your Great Uncle Norman
they say he worked FIFO - an iron ore foreman.
Anyway he’s the first one we knew with the Huntington’s gene,
it’s nobody’s fault, and it’s not where you’ve been,
it’s just a label for family symptoms we’ve seen.
It’s in our genes, we cannot but help it,
it’s hard to handle but we shouldn’t just shelve it.”
Yes, there are lots of questions you can ask,
from people you trust - that’s their task.
And if Mummy and Daddy don’t know the answers,
about why Huntington’s makes us dancers.
You can call or message, even write a letter,
to us at the Gnome office -
we’ll try and make you feel better.
In the meantime we live with cuddles and kisses,
We keep talking and learning and are full of good wishes.
Nowadays those small Gnome folk talk lots,
Huntington’s no secret, they can join up some dots.
We’ll own our story - our family yarn,
the family will know and can all learn.
Conversation Starters
Use these quiz questions to discuss
themes of this story with your child.
What’s a worry wobble?
Why was Aunty Norma
forgetting her words?
How does Ned make himself
feel happier?
What is a genome?
What are genes?
How does Ned help Aunty
Norma’s spirit feel stronger
and happier?
Were there really butterflies
in Ned’s tummy?
Possible responses from your child and
themes to talk about
• Ned is worried or stressed out
• It’s a frown on his forehead
• Worry is also called Anxiety
• Because she’s getting old
• Because she’s feeling tired
• Because of the Huntington’s in her
brain Huntington’s makes her forget
• He does fun things he loves
• He goes outside and digs
• He waters his garden
• He reads books
• He has a cuddle with family
• Genes/genomes are in our bodies
• We get some from our Mum
• We get some from our Dad
• Families share some of the same genes
This makes us look a bit like each other
• Ned is kind
• Ned and Aunty cuddle
• They read books together
• They listen to music and dance
• No, it means he felt tickles and twitches
in his tummy
• It was because he was scared/worried/
nervous
• It’s the body’s way of telling us something
might be wrong
ANY QUESTIONS?
Huntington’s WA can be contacted by phone or email.
T: (08) 6457 7599 | E: admin@huntingtonswa.org.au
Or send us a letter:
The Niche: 11 Aberdare Road, Nedlands WA 6009
Or you can learn more at:
www.huntingtonswa.org.au
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