So, the other day my six-year-old son stuck his head into the fireplace and looked up the chimney. With a puzzled look he says, "I looked up there, Dad, and I don't see any way that he came down there last Christmas Eve. There is just no way he did it, because I can only see a very small space and he couldn't have come down that way. How did he get in here last Christmas, Dad?”
"What do you think?" (This is always a safe way to respond to these type of questions--answer his question with a question.)
He became distracted when the doorbell rang and never gave me an answer or asked for mine.
And then, the other night I went into his bedroom and he was lying on the floor staring up at the ceiling.
"Hey, Luke--What are you doing?"
He jumped to his feet and, with fixed determination, said, "Dad, you know those collars that Santa's reindeer wear around their necks that make it so they can fly?"
"Yes."
"Well, do you think if I got one of those collars I could put it on the handle of a broom and make a Firebolt (the brand of flying broomstick that Harry Potter rides in the third book, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban) and then make it fly? And then would I be able to ride it?
"I don't know son. What do you think?" (see it working here again)
"Dad, I think it would work! But what I really, really, really need, more than anything else, and I could wait until Christmas, is a Quidditch Field (a playing field where two teams consisting of seven witches and wizards each compete in a game similar to soccer while flying on magical broomsticks).
Tucking him in at night is always an adventure. Lately he’s been talking about the existence of aliens, asking for proof that they really don’t exist. Another reoccurring topic centers on what he wants to be when he grows-up. “Dad, can I be a real Jedi Knight (a Star Wars character known for fighting evil with an illuminated sword—known as a light saber) when I grow-up and become a dad?” Go figure.
One evening while sitting on his bed waiting for him to fall asleep, I thought he was completely conked-out until he shot-up out of bed and said, "Dad, the worst thing happened to me today—the very worst ever."
"What is it Luke?"
"I'm telling you, Dad. It's the worst thing that has ever happened to me in my entire life!"
"Tell me what it is."
"Dad, I lost my Christmas list today and can't find it. I just don't know where it is and don't know what to do."
This occurred in the month of September and he had been working on this list for weeks. Gotta start early, you know.
And this, is life, as Luke lives it. It’s great to be six.
16 Comments:
Kids say and think about the greatest things! You can't have full appreciation for this until it comes out of your own child's mouth...I love it! thanks for a great article!
for Halloween are you going to be Darth Vadar and is Luke going as a jedi?
Thanks for the heart-warmer.
I also used your technique of answering questions with "What do you think?" It's a sanity-saver when kids are in the "why?" stage. It's good for them because you're listening instead of talking, and it's fun to hear life from a different perspective.
I've actually learned to do that with adults, too...especially ones who have radically different views from my own. Instead of arguing, I try to understand where they're coming from. As the saying goes, we can learn a lot by listening.
What a great kid--and what a great dad!
This age is one of the most fun - everything is possible in their minds and they are just trying to figure out how all the pieces fit together. My two oldest sons are in this stage, and hold debates before calling me. Number 3 son is just getting to that point. The girls on the other hand are a little more pragmatic about this, "Lightsabers? Well, I don't think so."
The other fun think is that it takes you back to that time when you were the same age.
Indeed, it is GREAT to be six!! Sometimes I wish I could take a temporary hiatus back to the land of make-believe and relive all that great imagination fun. I guess that is why being a parent is such a privilege - we kinda get to do it all over again.
:)
Gina Leigh
lol - Luke is too cute. TOO cute. :D
If you ever get that Quidditch field up, you'd better holler at us coz we'd love to join you - even if he DOES get his Firebolt for Christmas.
;)
I use the answer a question with a question a lot. One of these days they'll learn "I asked you first," though and we're both doomed.
It's a great age with all the questions and wonder going on.
Hey there, visting from Dave Fowler's place and saw that little Lego man and thought there is a man in the same boat as me.
My son is 5 (nearly six) and is OBSESSED with heroes and superheroes and regularly 'trains' in his bedroom for the Jedi Knight school, for I am told there is one and he is going to enrole just as soon as regular school is over!
What a great anecdote. It reminds me of the nights I put my son to bed. He's 10 now and we don't have those moments as much. His hero was the Hulk.
I'd take out a fifty thousand dollar loan if I could be six for just one day.
What a nice kid.Great kids happened because of their Greatest Dad.
It’s also good to be 2 and 4 (the age of my boys). The excitement in their voices and the sincerity of their tears are priceless.
What a great story!
It reminds me of someone I know who once had to take her family down to the basement because a tornado was coming. Her son was hysterical, and she tried to reassure him that he'd be OK. He said, "I'll be fine. But what about my toys?"
I really hope your son finds his Christmas list!
This is EXACTLY why teaching 1st grade is so much fun! It's such a priceless age. What a cutie. :)
What a cutie Luke is. It's great to be six and what fun he has. He has quite an imagination!!
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