Stutley Tales

Have you ever thought how remarkably perceptive children are? They constantly observe, listen, and process what they absorb to the level of their understanding. But sometimes what they observe and understand is a little off the mark.

One of our daughters had just moved out of home and into a place of her own. It was just getting dark when I arrived at her house, and after letting me in, she went and turned on the back outside light, leaving the curtains open. I asked why she did that and she replied,’So that no one can see in.’

I was confused, and quizzed her further. She replied, ‘But you always did that.’ Did I…? I went over my nightly routine, and eventually the ‘light’ went on. My dog was afraid of the dark. So every evening when I put her out for a nature call, I put the back light on, leaving the curtain open at the door so that I could see when she was ready to come back inside. I took my daughter outside and disproved her theory, while I explained why I left my curtain open with the back light on.

Another daughter was busy moving into her first place away from home, and I was helping her settle into her kitchen. She looked around and asked, ‘Where am I going to put my dishes? I don’t have a pantry.’

‘Put them in the cupboards under the benches,’ I suggested.

‘But you never did. All your dishes are in the pantry.’

So I explained that the only reason my dishes were in the pantry, was because I had a back injury and couldn’t bend down to get them out of low cupboards. So a shelf on the pantry at a good hight  meant that I could set the table and put away clean dishes without pain.

Just goes to show that what we do and say can have a powerful influence on those who watch/listen.

DJ

(c) DJ Stutley 2012

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