Memory: Katie Collins

This post was written by Katie Collins - Kayleigh's aunt on Terences side.
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I remember walking into the birthing room at Canberra Hospital and zoning in on little Kayleigh.  Right away I noticed how amazingly good looking she was for a newborn baby.  In fact, I was so blown away by how good looking she was, I could not stop commenting on it.  Most babies are fairly blotchy after birth; sleepy.  But this baby was so clean it was if she'd been through a dry cleaner.  The only evidence of her recent birth was a tiny blotch of blood on her head;  in all other respects she looked as though she'd been dropped in through the ceiling into the world, and not gone through a normal birth at all.  Her complexion was perfect - that struck me.  It was perfectly even all over.  And she had a lovely skin colour, it really hit me - like palest of pale honey, and smooth, like velvet.  She had the loveliest rose bloom in each cheek, a little blush, like a painting.  Her face did not have a single mark upon it, not a single one, and her head was beautifully shaped, like what you would expect of a ceasarean birth.  Her eyes were wide open and she was wide awake and very aware.  I'm not sure if this was because Judith had no drugs in birth or not, but I was very struck by how "aware" this baby was for a newborn.  No sleepy looks, she stared right into my face, wide awake, and definitely seeing me.  As I looked upon her face I was struck by what an absolutely gorgeous looking baby she was.  In all my experiences with other newborns, generally they looked like - well newborns, unless they were your own.  Nothing special, usually tired and blotchy looking!  but THIS newborn had these wide open clear eyes, staring into mine like an old soul, and this perfect complexion, with the most amazingly good looking face I had ever (and have ever since) seen in a baby.  I was so struck by how good looking she was I could not stop talking about it, for her entire life.  To this day, I have never seen a baby (or young child) so perfect.  Every feature was amazingly perfect, in symmetry, and SO pretty; I will always remember Kayleigh as the prettiest newborn baby I had ever seen in my entire life.  throughout her babyhood and toddler years she remained absolutely gorgeous.  She looked like a perfect little Dresden doll to me.  Big eyes, amazing cheekbones, wide smile - I always commented on her looks, I couldn't get over what an extremely pretty child she was; As she got older, her looks struck me more and more - she became, to me, to be the most unusually beautiful children I had ever seen.  To me she looked like a perfect little fairy, and she had something "elfin" about her.  She looked "otherworldly" to me.  I always imagined her with wings on her back and a wand in her hand.  I used to call her "elf" when I saw her and she always laughed (probably politely thinking I was crazy.)  I did not see her for three years, from 7 to 10.  When I saw her again, I was even more caught up in her fairy tale book look.  Not only did she look good, but she was also lovely in her attitude.  Polite and funny, she loved treats and whenever she got one, I noticed she always shared it with her brothers and sisters.  I saw she loved dogs, as I do, and made a great fuss of mine, and this warmed me (and in those days I was hard to warm.)  Alissa took to her immediately and wanted to 'give her everything'.  She dug out clothes, shoes, bags.  She always loved her and asked to see her.  We both agreed she looked and acted exactly like a fairy! Alissa saw in her what I did, something very 'otherworldly' about her.  I don't know what it was.  but it was something very special, an "otherness" from everyone else. 

My mother remembers Kayleigh as the carer of her brothers and sisters, carefully doling out treats she'd given to them so they could all nibble and share equally.  She never grabbed or took more.  She doled everything out and they all nibbled in delight.  I remember the last time I saw her that Terence pointed out how big her feet were, and that perhaps that meant she would be very tall, and when I checked them out I realised he was right, she DID have really big feet!  And I do wonder if maybe Kayleigh was going to be very tall and willowy when she was an adult.  I can picture her quite perfectly as an adult; I don't think her face would have changed dramatically, but I do think her cheekbones and overall 'elfin" look would have become even more apparent and probably made her seem a lot younger than everyone. 

I think as a woman Kayleigh Stamp would have been breathtaking, enough to be a model.  Because she "had something" special to her looks.  that certain zing, not conventional, something else.  Last time we all spoke, she was coy about a boy at school.  I'm sorry I never got to know her better and didn't get the chance to be the aunt I would have liked to have been.  I wish I had of.  Maybe what I saw in Kayleigh way back then was in fact that she looked like an "angel". :) I certainly never saw her act in any way but positive and lovely in the entire time I knew her.  she BEAMED goodness.  that will always be true.