Flashes of Panic

That’s what the older of my nieces says at least three or four times a day. Before she grew to her current skills of enunciation, the words would pile out faster than she could shape them, and it would sound like “Cai telluh someing?” She says this even if what she wants to tell you is actually a question, or if she isn’t entirely sure what it is she’s about to tell you.

For a while, I went with reinforcement, saying, “You can always tell me anything.” She’s still doing it, so two or three times now, I’ve responded to the question by saying, “Have I ever said no to that question?” She rolls her eyes and says, “I know, I just keep saying it!”

Now Playing: Lillian, Egypt from The Animal Years by Josh Ritter