My sister was in town recently, so that means we got to spend a little time with her and her family. It was good seeing them, as always, though the fact that she has young children means that seeing "them" includes having interactions with little kids. This, as you can imagine, means all sorts of amusing anecdotes.
In this particular case, it was less something that a kid said and more what was said about a kid. You see, the Mild Nephew has a decent memory. He will remember specific things about people, the sort of things that amuse him. I guess on some level we all do this ("oh yeah, I like so-and-so. They're nice"), but it's not nearly as refined in a little kid. Apparently, he will flat out say to his mom that he wants to go visit so-and-so because they have dogs and he wants to see the dogs. The same sentiment applies to other people, and other attributes. What's more, he has an impressive-for-his-age mental rolodex of people and attributes.
When my sister was telling me about this, I initially just laughed. However, she then mentioned that he also has an entry for the Mild Wife and me. We'd just visited them recently, so it wasn't too surprising that he had something in mind for the two of us. I also wasn't surprised that he had a joint entry for us, since he usually sees us together. My mind tried to guess what the mental entry was for the Mild Wife and me, and I immediately guessed that it was "muscles!" I mean, that's what the Mild Wife and I remember. We still chuckle about it to this day, and it's become something of a rallying cry whenever we want to get something done.
As it turns out, however, I was wrong. Instead, the Mild Nephew mostly remembers the fact that we did a happy dance when we were over there. I don't even remember why we did it, but I think it was mostly to entertain him for a few seconds. Still, that's what he remembers: the happy dance. It's sort of like the mental equivalent of a kid getting a present and only wanting to play with the box it came in. Forget the funny anecdote, let's remember the two seconds of slapstick comedy.
Fortunately for the Mild Nephew, we did make sure to do a group happy dance before we left for the evening. We may not have control of the mental rolodex, but we can play to our strengths.
In this particular case, it was less something that a kid said and more what was said about a kid. You see, the Mild Nephew has a decent memory. He will remember specific things about people, the sort of things that amuse him. I guess on some level we all do this ("oh yeah, I like so-and-so. They're nice"), but it's not nearly as refined in a little kid. Apparently, he will flat out say to his mom that he wants to go visit so-and-so because they have dogs and he wants to see the dogs. The same sentiment applies to other people, and other attributes. What's more, he has an impressive-for-his-age mental rolodex of people and attributes.
When my sister was telling me about this, I initially just laughed. However, she then mentioned that he also has an entry for the Mild Wife and me. We'd just visited them recently, so it wasn't too surprising that he had something in mind for the two of us. I also wasn't surprised that he had a joint entry for us, since he usually sees us together. My mind tried to guess what the mental entry was for the Mild Wife and me, and I immediately guessed that it was "muscles!" I mean, that's what the Mild Wife and I remember. We still chuckle about it to this day, and it's become something of a rallying cry whenever we want to get something done.
As it turns out, however, I was wrong. Instead, the Mild Nephew mostly remembers the fact that we did a happy dance when we were over there. I don't even remember why we did it, but I think it was mostly to entertain him for a few seconds. Still, that's what he remembers: the happy dance. It's sort of like the mental equivalent of a kid getting a present and only wanting to play with the box it came in. Forget the funny anecdote, let's remember the two seconds of slapstick comedy.
Fortunately for the Mild Nephew, we did make sure to do a group happy dance before we left for the evening. We may not have control of the mental rolodex, but we can play to our strengths.
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