Houston is a huge city; therefore, we spend many hours in our car driving around town. During these drives, I’m often entertained by my children’s conversations. Sometimes my 5-year-old son, N, pummels me with a barrage of “What would happen if” questions; other times, my 8-year-old daughter, Nee, surprises me with her wit and wisdom.
Just the other day, we were driving across town to pick up Nee from my mother’s house when I noticed N’s staring into la-la land trying not to fall asleep. While watching him in the rear view mirror, I said. “I know what you’re thinking.”
“What am I thinking?” he asked.
“You’re thinking, ‘I sure wish I could take a nap.’”
“Daddy,” he said with disgust. “I’m never thinking THAT.”
He was right. He never thinks about taking a nap and to prove his point, he managed stay awake for the full 40-minute trip.
On the way back home, N started talking about cartoons, rockets, Red Lobster, lava, and many other unrelated topics. After several minutes of listening to N’s ramblings, Nee had had enough.
“N, you have to stop saying everything that pops into your head.”
“Why?”
“Because when you start kindergarten next year, your teachers won’t like it.”
“Why not?”
“Because they don’t want to hear you talking all the time.”
“Will I get in trouble?”
“Yes.”
“Will I have to go to the principal’s office?”
“Probably.”
“Maybe I can talk to him.”
Realizing she couldn’t win this argument, Nee decided to just ignore her brother. We drove in silence for several minutes until N pulled out a toy that he had retrieved from my mother’s house.
“N,” Nee screamed. “That toy is for Monae (their 3-year old cousin).”
“No it’s not,” N replied. “It’s mine. Uncle gave it to me.”
“But Monae has been playing with that toy for over a year. She will be sad when she realizes that it’s gone.”
“But it’s not hers. It’s mine.”
“N, she’s only three years old. She thinks it’s hers. Why would you take a toy from a three year old?”
“Because I wanted to play with it.”
“You are so selfish, N. You don’t think about anyone but yourself.”
“I think of other people.”
“Who? “
“I think of God and Jesus every day.”
“Really?”
“Yes,” he replied. “I think about how I wish Jesus would come to Earth and bring me some toys and a new game for the Wii.”
Stay Strong,
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