Thursday, August 21, 2008

Stoopid Granny Questions



I received a cell phone call today from my daughter's cell phone. It was my four-year-old-grand-daughter, Mae, calling....just to talk and visit. I thought maybe she was calling with her mom right there and was going to hand the phone over to her mother, but as she continued to chatter on about what she had made for her pre-school teacher and such, I realized that she had dialed the phone to just talk to me. I was charmed. Her little scratchy four-year-old-Emmy-voice rattled on and on about how she can wear dresses to school...or skirts...or shorts...or even bathing suits if it's "splash day"...I asked her if she can wear a nightgown to school and in all seriousness she answered, "no, nightgowns don't get worn to school"...I wonder if she thinks I'm kind of stupid now...you know, for asking that question....I shouldn't treat her like a typical little kid, because she isn't....that's not just granny-speak, she's different....her mind is wired a bit different, in an entirely good way...but I have to stop asking childish questions because it's just sorta lost on Mae and I just don't want her to think less of me, which she'll have plenty of time to do when she's older. Already, she is concerned with my aging process. I have to constantly reassure her that I'm at the "beginning of old"...not at the "end of old"...because when one gets to the "end of old"....well....you know....that can be a scary thing for a deep thinking little kid who doesn't have an exact firm grasp on the afterlife....so, I'll just stay at the beginning of old for awhile and try to come up with more intelligent questions...if she even decides to call me again...yeesh,...I hope I didn't disappoint her....dang....now I have something to worry about....

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

first of all, i don't think the nightgown question was stupid or even stoopid. not stupid at all, actually. they have "hat day," and "mis-matched day," and, as you now know, "bathing suit day," so why not nightgown day? and i also don't think that mae's telling you that no, we don't have nightgown day at our school is indicative of her thinking that her grandma is stupid - i think mae was just saying no, we don't have nightgown day at our school. it's not done there. it's not okay. but nowhere in any of that does she imply that you are stupid.

i work with plenty of extremely bright, wired-differently kids and being bright and being wired differently doesn't change a grandchild's sweet and tender affinity for her grandma (provided the grandma isn't a monster - and, sadly, sometimes even then).

so charge your phone tonight, deb. your little mae-mae just might be giving you a jingle sooner than you think.

Emmy said...

haha! MOM! After Mae had talked to you she said, "you know what mom? If I want to. . .I can wear nightgowns to school!"
So, apparently she was just pondering the excitement of it all. :) You are magic to her.

The Katzbox said...

Well, I feel validated...the "cool girl" likes me again....YAY FOR ME!!!! ahhhhhhhhh....

Anonymous said...

of course she likes you....you're her GRANDMA!