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‘The world inside my head’

I was putting Camille to bed last night, and she smiled at me and said, “I wish you could see the world inside my head.”
Wow, I thought. I wish I could, too.
“What it’s like?” I asked. “Is it a nice place?”
“Oh, yes,” she said. “There’s peppermint! And Mommy. And Daddy. And Abby.”
“Wow,” I said. “It sounds great.”
“And there’s muffins!”
(This from the child who doesn’t eat enough to keep a flea alive.)
“That’s really cool, baby,” I said.
“Yep,” she said with a big smile. And closed her eyes.
And I lay beside her, numb with wonder at the eloquence of a child.
I’m so thankful I was there to hear it. And I hope with all my heart that she holds onto that world, the eloquence to describe it, and the trust to share it.

Comments 4

  1. John C wrote:

    Ah, the mind of the child. These days, Maren has a question for me every day when she wakes up from her nap … Some are a little surreal.

    She calls me “My Daddy”:

    “My Daddy, why don’t doggies ride scooters?”

    Or

    “My Daddy, what do lemurs say?”

    Or

    “My Daddy, what do monkeys eat in the jungle?”

    I said, “What do you think monkeys eat in the jungle?”

    She shrugged. “I don’t know,” she said. “Maybe toast.”

    Posted 17 Dec 2007 at 9:41 pm
  2. herb wrote:

    “Maybe toast.”

    With butter, jam or both? :-D

    Posted 17 Dec 2007 at 9:50 pm
  3. John C wrote:

    That was exactly my next question. I suggested “mango jam” (Maren is a big mango fan). She wasn’t so sure. “Maaaay-be,” she said.

    Posted 18 Dec 2007 at 8:53 am
  4. herb wrote:

    Banana butter. Definitely.

    Posted 18 Dec 2007 at 7:17 pm