The Wisdom of Children

Despite not being online for long, I enjoyed myself this weekend at Northern Voice. My only wish is that it could've lasted longer. I didn't have time to meet and greet everybody, and I certainly didn't have enough time to talk at length with those I did meet. We scored about four separate interviews with folks, and they should be uploaded (as well as our live show with Nancy) at some point this week. I'll be visiting Vancouver again. It's the sushi capital of the galaxy. Seriously, that's one great city. I'm happy to be so “close” to it – and I'm not alone. There were a few Seattlites up there, too. One of the highlights of the trip didn't happen at the event, though.
Yesterday, for lunch, a handful of us crept down the street to Nikko Sushi on Robson – including the Leung family (Ted, Julie, and their three very young daughters). I had the pleasure of sitting in between my good friend, Wyatt (Jake & Robin's very young son), and the middle Leung daughter. The menus were placed upon the table, and each of the oldest two Leung girls picked one up. The older sister remarked that she could not find the Sushi. No surprise, as the menu was twice as tall as she was – rendered in an 8pt font. But that's not what caught me by surprise. Her younger sister was also scanning the menu, her eyes darting back and forth at a casual pace. She immediately responded to her sibling's observation: “Me neither, but I can't read.”
Had there been soda in my mouth, it would have streamed out my nose and directly onto Ponzi and Maryam. The kid knew what she wanted (as most children do), but she also understood how reading could help – and she knew that the answers sat somewhere on the menu. She couldn't read, yet she was going through the motion of reading. It's one thing to mimic, but it's another thing entirely to understand what you're mimicking.
This morning, we headed home. Ponzi and I got stopped for a random check at Customs, with the Ludingtonmobile a few cars behind ours. When the border patrol asked Jake where they were going, he responded: “Home, to Seattle.” After passing through the gates, Wyatt piped up and asked if they were still going to see “Chris, Ponzi, and Harry for lunch.” Always listening, always processing, always learning, always contextualizing.
Never underestimate the wisdom of a child.

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