Bear in mind that this is the child who, at the age of four, refused to believe my assertion that letters came in both capital and lowercase varieties. “You’re making that up, mommy!” she said, and would hear no more talk of such foolishness. It took the pressure of an entire class of Kindergartners to convince her.
Suffice it to say that the intervening years have taught me to hang quietly back and allow her to think she’s much smarter than her old mom. So it was with only the slightest degree of surprise that I registered her jacked-up eyebrows and expression of shock during this brief exchange:
Her: And then in my book? This guy? He was the god of dreams? But I don’t remember his name?
Me: Morpheus, honey.
Her, suspiciously: How did you know that? Have you read it?
Me: No sugar, I haven’t read it.
Her: Then how did you know?
I figure at some point she’ll discover that I’m no slouch in the brains department. Perhaps within the next twenty years.
If I’m lucky.
Mark Twain is credited with saying, “When I was a boy of fourteen, my father was so ignorant I could hardly stand to have the old man around. But when I got to be twenty-one, I was astonished at how much the old man had learned in seven years.”
In my experience,, Parents begin to get dumber, just about the time the child hits puberty,,Throughout their teen years, its a wonder we dont drool on ourselves, and gibber like gibbons…
My mom’s classic answer was “‘Cause I’m the mom and we just know these things.”
We learned to stop asking HOW exactly she knew we ate that last cookie.
It took my daughter having a child of her own to admit that I actually knew a few things. Hang in there….
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Ha ha ha ha – so hilarious! My oldest is 9 – I’m sure he’s going to be saying things like this soon as well!
so … in a few years, she will be ripe for Sandman?
kids are so amazing. i am always in awe with my 3 year old nephew.
31 is the correct answer. I turned 31 and the light bulb went off above my head that hey – maybe ol’ mom was right about life after all. But not a moment before. Haha, good luck!
I love the linear thinking of a child–you haven’t read this book, therefore you couldn’t possibly know this. I’m sure you’ll get smarter one of these days. :-)
My mother is always amazed at the number of people who homeschool their kids these days. She says, “I couldn’t wait to have you people OUT OF MY HOUSE for a few hours!”
YOU PEOPLE! I love it. :)
I am still trying to convince my 21 y.o. and 15 y.o. that I am the smartest person they know…
LOL, Mine is 19 next month and, just occasionally, she will now allow me to shine uncontested :)
Distance was the main factor for me. Distancing myself from her when I moved out (and consequently moving to a different town). Although I (somewhat) caught on prior to this, it really hit me after gaining independence.
I cannot count the amount of times I’ve heard her say “Well now you know what it was like for me when xyz” since moving out. And all I can do is smile, nod in agreement and apologise for those times in which I made life difficult for her. No doubt there will be more conversations/times like these that are yet to come (like when I have children of my own).
I was once (often still can be) as your daughter is now, Aag. When I was a teenager, my mother had a very large poster made with the saying, “Ask Me Now While I Still Know Everything” printed in small letters at the top. Each time I said something stupid or “know it all” she would simply write it on the poster. Eventually, I learned (somewhat) to keep my mouth shut, at least in fear that she’d document my (later realized) ramblings for posterity. It was the best lesson she ever taught me. It sometimes pains me to go back and read some of the things I’ve said in the past, but it serves as an excellent reminder of how far I’ve come and how smart my mother really is.
I rue the day that I have my own “know-it-all”. With Sophie’s and my DNA running through their future veins, I have a feeling I will deeply reap all that I’ve sown.
Eventually they do realize that you’re wise, indeed. About the same time they think you’re too damn old to be talking about sex, let alone actually having it!