The Sock Moles

 Have you ever noticed how often a baby has only one sock on?

Now the traditional explanation is that babies pull their socks off when they are playing, but if that were true a baby would have two bare feet and they don’t. It’s always one bare foot and usually it’s the left.

 

Do you want to know why it happens?

 

Now, this may seem a little hard to believe but (and it is as true as I am standing here) the moles take them. That’s right, the small black furry animals that live under the ground creep out and take the left sock from the baby’s foot.

 

Now I know what you are thinking: “Why would a mole take a baby’s sock?”


Well, it’s simple really. When a mole has babies they are born with no fur. That’s right, no fur. So can you imagine how cold it is for them living under the ground with no fur? Adult moles need to find a something lovely and warm for a baby mole to live in and nothing is better than a baby’s warm sock.

 

How do they take them?

 

Well, although moles have very bad eye sight, they do have a really good sense of smell and touch. The mole sits quietly in the corner of the room until everyone is staring at the baby’s face. (Isn’t it just amazing how long grown-ups can spend staring at babies faces?) Then the grown-ups will start playing ‘peek-a-boo’ with the baby. As soon as they have hidden their eyes behind their hands the mole rushes out and takes the sock.

 

Why do babies laugh when it happens?

Well can you imagine something soft and furry touching your foot? Of course you would laugh, and so does the baby. But the grown-ups think it’s because they are playing ‘peek-a-boo’, so they just keep on going and going and going until finally the baby cries when it realises that its mole is not coming back.

 

But I’ve seen a baby pull it’s own sock off 

 

That’s right - babies do pull off their own socks. It’s because they want to feel the little mole on their toes again - wouldn’t you? But the socks that babies pull off don’t disappear. You will always find that sock somewhere on the ground, in their push-chair or their cot.

 

Then why do grown ups lose socks?

 

Now this is where it gets weird. When the baby moles grow their fur they don’t need the baby socks any more – and they wouldn’t fit into them anyway! But they still love the smell of their own particular sock and so they do something strange. Every so often your personal baby sock mole will take one of your socks from your sock drawer. 

 

Is that why I always end up with one odd sock?

 

That’s right. Although they have grown out of your baby sock they still love your smell. Your very own sock mole has taken the other to remember you by. They sit quietly in the dark corner of your bedroom and when you open your sock drawer they pop in and out and go back to their tunnel underground. 

 

Sometimes you can catch them, or at least the sock. You must remember looking at your bedroom floor and thinking, “I don’t remember leaving that sock there.”

 

Why don’t I remember a mole taking my baby sock?

 

How much can you remember from when you were a baby? Not much, I imagine. But one thing is stuck in our minds forever, so stuck that we can’t help doing it even though we don’t know why - we always play ‘peek-a-boo’ with babies. Somewhere deep, deep down we know that something special happened when a grown-up first played it with us.

 

How do I know that this is true?

 

Well, think about it. What else could explain the number of odd socks in the world? Did you think washing machines ate them? Don’t be silly - washing machines eat underwear and besides, there are certain tell tale signs:

 

First

Have you ever imagined that someone is following you?
 Well they are, but they are under the ground; your own personal ‘Sock Mole’ is keeping an eye on you to make sure you are safe.

 

Second

You must know the expression because everyone says it:

“You can’t wear that sock, it’s got a mole in it.”

 

So what can we do with all these odd socks?



Well, we can do something sensible. Together we can start the ‘Sock Exchange’ to raise money for charity, and do you know something – I think we will!