The Oysterian Mind
Nov. 4th, 2008 05:00 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
radegundTwo conversations that I want to remember:
In the car, on a morning after far too little sleep
Unny: Mama, please tell me a story.
Mama: I'm sorry, love, I don't think I can tell you a story. I'm very tired, and I need to concentrate on driving so I get us home safely.
Unny: But! The airbags!
[Perhaps oddly, I kind of love this response. It seems to betoken a sense of trust, of there being a safety net, that I feel is very valuable to a four-year-old. That said, I did explain gently that airbags might not keep us totally safe, and that a crash might injure other people too...]
In which I fumble a textbook response
Unny: What will happen when I am eight?
Mama [mind whirring in search of Just The Right Thing To Say]: Oh, I think it'll be great when you're eight, because you're so brilliant now, and I'm sure when you're eight you'll be doing fabulous things, and I can't wait to see what they are!
Unny [after solemn consideration]: Mama, if I do things that I'm not allowed to do, will they still be fabulous?
Mama [copping on]: Well, whatever you do - allowed or not allowed - you will still be fabulous. Nothing can change that.
In the car, on a morning after far too little sleep
Unny: Mama, please tell me a story.
Mama: I'm sorry, love, I don't think I can tell you a story. I'm very tired, and I need to concentrate on driving so I get us home safely.
Unny: But! The airbags!
[Perhaps oddly, I kind of love this response. It seems to betoken a sense of trust, of there being a safety net, that I feel is very valuable to a four-year-old. That said, I did explain gently that airbags might not keep us totally safe, and that a crash might injure other people too...]
In which I fumble a textbook response
Unny: What will happen when I am eight?
Mama [mind whirring in search of Just The Right Thing To Say]: Oh, I think it'll be great when you're eight, because you're so brilliant now, and I'm sure when you're eight you'll be doing fabulous things, and I can't wait to see what they are!
Unny [after solemn consideration]: Mama, if I do things that I'm not allowed to do, will they still be fabulous?
Mama [copping on]: Well, whatever you do - allowed or not allowed - you will still be fabulous. Nothing can change that.
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(no subject)
Date: 2008-11-05 05:41 am (UTC)