Today, Noelle and I went to the doctor's for a check-up. While there, Noelle made a friend - 2 1/2 year old boy, as equally gregarious as she. They bopped around the waiting room chatting back and forth like little grown-ups.
The fish tank was a big hit. "Oo- a fish!" Noelle's squeal was so high it arced over the waiting room like a rainbow. "There's a catfish!" she announced trailing the slick body of a fish across the glass. Where does she learn these things? I marveled. Every time I hear her voice coming out with little grown-up inflections, my heart skips a beat and then unravels into warmth.
The little boy laughed and chatted back. "What's that?" he said pointing to the sunken ship.
"I don't know." Noelle shrugged her shoulders. They were playing a game. Next it was her turn. She did a little jig, excited to have the company, then pointed to a long gray fish skimming the bottom of the tank. "What's that?"
The little boy shrugged. "I don't know," then he turned toward his father who was sitting in the waiting room and pointed. "My dad..." his voice trailed off, as if he were going to ask his father what the fish was, but before he could say anything more Noelle, who was still staring at the tank, laughed and threw her head back.
"That's not your Dad! That's a fish!!"
