I compete for my granddaughter’s attention with my mother. But the trick, it seems, is to stand back

My mother lets the baby come to her, all patient receptivity. I watch this dance and I know it’s a window into how she must have mothered me. Photograph: Getty Images

My granddaughter plays favourites. She’s 15 months, with a spattering of words and a dazzling smile. She loves all in her inner circle, but she loves my mother, her great-grandmother, most. “Nonny!” she calls when she sees me. “Nonny!”

I am not Nonny, but catching sight of me means that my mother might appear.