Amusing Conversation With My Nephew (Wait for it!)
My nephew, Dabi (who is 7 years-old today), is on holiday, and is staying with Ed and I for about 2 weeks. This was a conversation that transpired yesterday, after I served him his hot bowl of Basmati rice, plantain, tomato stew and chicken strips. He was waiting for it to cool down.
Dabi: If Ruel* and I are here together, where will he sleep?
Me: If Ruel was here, I'd pack my bags and go to Bahamas because you guys won't let me rest and you'll be running around and stomping on the floor even if I tell you not to
Dabi: Haha! Who will cook for us?
Me: I don't know. I'll be in Bahamas
Dabi: We will cook by ourselves
Me: That's probably illegal
Dabi: What's illegal?
Me: Cooking by yourselves is probably a crime. The police will get you!
Dabi: *Gasps* We will hide!
Me: The K9 will find you
Dabi: What's a K9?
Me: A police dog
Dabi: Doggie! It will sniff me out!
Me: Yes, indeed and I'll be on the beach in Bahamas!
Dabi: I will run away and run to the airport, get on a plane and give the attendant my ticket
Me: Well, the K9 will give the flight attendant his ticket too and follow you on the plane. He'll seat next to you and read a newspaper. Then mid-flight he will look at you suddenly! And keep looking at you till you land!
Dabi: (squeal-laughs) No!!! I will use my parachute and land in Bahamas
Me: No way! I'll move to Grenada!
Dabi: I'll swim after you!
Me: Wait, so you won't take Ruel along?
Dabi: Oh yes, I'll use Ruel as a raft and paddle to meet you
Me: *must have fallen over my seat laughing* That's just mean
Dabi: Ruel will have his turn too.
Me: Alright! Fair enough
Happy birthday, Dabi!
*Ruel is my other nephew and is Dabi's cousin and best friend.
Do you know any children? Don't they say the most ridiculous things? Lol!
4 Kid-Habits that are secretly Life-Hacks
Little people are synonymous with the word "unjaded". All they care about is...well, nothing. Their carefree attitudes cause them to have a unique perspective on life and to act in certain ways which we as adults sometimes fail to grasp. I mean, yes, they drive us up the wall sometimes but other times, they are completely wise and so worthy of emulation! Here are 4 habits to hack life with; habits that come naturally to children that we simply must adopt:
Laugh
Children laugh. They laugh over 400 times a day. I'm guessing this is because they don't have any worries, no bills, no Instagram like-scarcity, they definitely don't watch the news, just purple suede dinosaurs and talking moon-faced trains. I'm not sure we'd find 400 events to laugh at in a day as adults. We can fake-laugh though; it's something my niece taught me. Laugh for absolutely no reason!
Ask Questions
A typical 4-year old asks about 437 questions in one day. Lol! Mums and dads can probably testify. I'll be sure to introduce my children to Siri as soon as they can speak or redirect the questions to daddy. I'm joking. I think the reason adults get irritable with all those questions is because we've lost the sparkle of wonder and curiosity....and we are tired half of the time.
We have to re-learn curiosity. Ask questions. Note to self.
Develop Offense-Amnesia
Kids are the best. Have you ever been upset with a child, and then they apologize, but you are still a little upset? Or have you ever made a child cry and THEY come to hug you and apologize? In a flash, they've moved on and started playing with their toys or coloring a picture and showing it to you? There's just a purity about their souls that shouldn't be lost in adulthood either.
Make good decisions
Children do the right thing (well, most of the time). According to a study conducted by the Yale Infants Cognitive Centre, it turns out we are born with the innate ability to make the right decisions. In this study, babies as young as 3 months old, observed two puppet bunnies in a puppet show; one dressed in green, one in orange. The bunny dressed in green was seen helping another toy during the puppet show, while the one dressed in orange was mean to the toy. When asked to choose one, the babies chose the bunny dressed in green(the helpful bunny). The babies chose the "good" bunny! Watching the video, is almost unbelievable. There really is an innate ability to tell right from wrong, to make the right decision.
Make good decisions guided by your innate moral convictions!
Do you have little people in your life? What's the best part about hanging with them? Any life lessons?