Yesterday while we were pulling weeds, I asked Addison what she wanted to talk about.
Addison: How 'bout outer space?
Me: Be still my beating heart.
Addison: Huh?
Me: I'm just proud of you. How about I tell you about airplanes and the Wright brothers and then about the space race and how the first man landed on the moon?
Addison: Yeah! That one!
So my three-year-old sat cross-legged on the grass while I worked on getting weeds out by their roots.
Me: So, the Wright Brothers made lots and lots of mistakes. But they tried really hard, and they never gave up, and that's why they ended up flying the first airplane.
Addison: Sometimes I make mistakes too!
Me: I know. We all do. That's okay.
For the next twenty minutes, she sat very, very still while I gave her a vague but passionate history of space-flight. And we ended this way:
Me: And N.A.S.A made lots of mistakes. But do you want to know how Neil Armstrong finally ended up walking on the moon?
Addison: I know! He would never, never give up!
Me: You're a smart cookie.
Addison: I want a cookie.
Me: Nice try.
Here she is, trying to escape earth's orbit. No swing is gonna keep
her tethered to the earth.
