Damian's in major question asking mode lately. I'd like to record him one afternoon, transcribe his steady stream of curiosity, but one stands out today. Poor kid is sick, spent the day low key and flushed. Tonight he asked, plaintive, "If nobody wants to be sick, how come people get sick?" This led to a conversation about bacteria in the air and whatnot, concepts he already knows. But this time he wanted to know why there are bacteria. Sort of like why is the sky blue, but with a dark twist. Why is there evil? Why do people sometimes die before they're old? Why does bacteria exist? Some questions have no answers.
Posted by Tamar at December 13, 2003 09:27 PMOne of the things I love about kids is the way their minds work sideways. It seems like all the things they learn are puzzle pieces, and they put it all together and then come back to adults to check up on gaps, incongruities, things that don't fit. K used to hit me with them completely out of the blue. "If whales are mammals, why don't they have fur?" Listening to their questions really gives fascinating insights into how they think.
Posted by: Cait at December 14, 2003 06:49 PMSometimes our discussions would end up almost with a Zen conclusion. "Why does the digger dig?" she'd ask. And she'd ask question after question until the only answer left was "Because it is a digger'. Ommm.
My daughter is serious and logical. It makes for a lot of explaining. She spend the years from 4-6 figuring out evolution. There aren't many picture books that could help me!
Posted by: Sarah at December 15, 2003 06:20 AM