years of discovery

Yesterday I was in the kitchen grinding coffee beans when Nos. 5 and 6 walked in, obviously on a mission.

While No. 6 stood watching, No. 5 opened the pantry door, reached in, and pulled out a can of green beans.

"These," she said to the attentive No. 6, "are canned goods."

And so the cryptic imperative on the AWANA flyer was decoded.

Then today they were sitting side by side on the couch, No. 5 working on crochet and No. 6 reading a book of fairytales, apparently "Thumbelina."

"She lives . . . in a nut?"

And, having been introduced somewhere between 5 and 10 years old to the incredible truth that Thumbelina lived in a nut, No. 5 was able to confirm this piece of fact as well, with the same air of certainty from yesterday's pantry revelation.

Made me think a lot of things . . . about what we learn, when we learn it, and how little sense things make sometimes.