Ramona was eating a hard boiled egg for lunch today."What exactly is the egg yolk, anyway?" she asked me while examining her lunch.
"Well," I said, "it's ... it's a sort of a food. I mean, well, let me see. How to explain so you'll understand it ... it's, um, well, if there were a chicken growing in that egg -- there isn't, because it's not ... well, let's say it's not that kind of egg, but if there were one -- well, the baby chick would need food, and so ..."
"Oh!" she said. "So it's kind of like an umbilical cord." Satisfied, she went back to eating.
I looked at Atticus, stunned. "I ... " I said, half to Ramona, half to him. I looked back at Ramona. "I, um ... well, yeah, sweetie. Yeah. You could say that. That's pretty close."
Atticus looked at me, smiling. Not stunned. Just pleased. "You're doing a good job," he whispered to me, which was what I needed to hear today (a day on which I was feeling that I often do a decidedly not-so-good job.)
Sometimes God sends the quickest, sweetest little gifts.
5 comments:
How wonderful!
Ew. OK, now that I have that out of my system! She's brilliant! I think Atticus is right.
I think you're somehow raising budding scientists. Isn't it interesting that our children are good at science (and in the case of my kids math as well) when that is definitely not our long suit. So much for the nay sayers who were convinced that the children of English majors would be crippled in math and science if they were homeschooled.... Maybe we overcompensate for our own lacks in that area, or maybe it's just that science finally has become more interesting to us than it was when we were in school. As excited new learners ourselves we can pass on that excitement to the children far better than someone who's lost their initial first love of the subject.
Emma does the same thing. It is very reassuring. Judging by the stories you tell her, you are doing a wonderful job :)
Karen, Sweetie, there's never been any doubt in my mind that you're doing anything less than an exceptional job. You're right, though. Some days we really need to hear it.
I'm off to figure out what I would say to my 5-year-old should she ask what the yolk of an egg is.
Post a Comment