My little guy

Yesterday when the car was perfectly quiet, except for the beautiful piano music playing, Toot asks, "Momma, when will I get dead?" I looked over my shoulder quickly to see if he was asking with an oh-my-gosh-I-will-really-die-some-day look or the usual carefree Toot look. It was the latter. So I said, "I don't know, sweetie. Some day, I guess." Now, Toot, he is not the deep thinker of the family. At least not yet. This answer could have probably sufficed for him. But I continued, hoping for a good conversation. "But usually people die when they are much older." He asks, "When will I get old?" So I begin the explanation, wishing I had a book. Toot doesn't "do" auditory learning. "Well, Friday you will be five. That's a big boy age. Then you will be a really big boy. Then a teenager. Soon after that you become an adult. And guess what? Later you become a husband. Then a Daddy. Then a Poppy. Then a great Poppy. Then a very old man. And usually that is when people die. When they are very old." Well, that lead to heaven, the gospel, his sin. Not in deep questions. Just little questions like, "So heaven's really good?". That precious little boy made my day.


I dropped him off at speech class a few minutes later and asked his teacher to read a story to him and tell me what she thinks about his reading comprehension. Later when I picked him up she said, "I see why you might have been concerned about his comprehension. But he doesn't have a comprehension problem. I think the problem is, you are comparing his reading level to his comprehension. His comprehension is precisely at age level. He is reading on an early second grade level." And it hit me like a ton of bricks how extremely brilliant my little Toot is, just in a completely unique way from his older brother. I love his bright, bubbly, simple ways. What a smart, beam of sunshine. Completely individual, easily misunderstood, rarely ruffled. I love that kid!