Sunday, April 05, 2015

Why... Why... Why... Why... Why... Why... Why... Why... Why... Why... Why... Why... ?

Anyone who has ever had a toddler knows the infamous "Why" cycle. A well-meaning parent makes the effort to try to explain some faucet of modern life to their youngin' only to get a follow-up question: "Why?"

Answering that question only spawns another question: "Why?"

Naturally, that loving parent patiently attempts to dig in deeper to get to the core of that probe, only to be met again with another "Why?"

After about 10 cycles, the parent either starts to pull their hair or look for duct tape to wrap around the little inquisitive terrorist's head.

Not long ago, we were all out for a family outing. I don't remember which one of us made the mistake of entertaining the first "Why?" but it happened. Benji couldn't wrap his mind some concept (or more likely just likes watching us stumble to find the next answer). When Anna and I finally gave up, our four-year-old, Maia, decided to take over, which was fine with us.

To our surprise, the back-and-forth did not go the way one would have anticipated.

Benji: "Why?"

Maia: "Because."

Benji: "Why?"

Maia: "Hm. That's why!"

Benji: (Pause) "Ohhh. Thaaat's why!"

Conversation over.

Anna and I looked over at each other in awe. Maia is the new Benji-whisperer...

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