4 Jan 2008

Really, Really Old


B boy and I were walking behind the rest of the family on our recent visit to the beautiful city of York in England. We pretty much always make up the tail end of a group. Benjamin has little legs, so he walks slowly.

And he likes to talk.

I often wish he'd speak clearer, so I wouldn't have to stop and bend down to hear him, but mostly, I just enjoy his chattering. He'll make comments about people he sees, things that happened at school that day, and even events from years ago that he's suddenly remembered. Everything with infectious enthusiasm and usually with a slightly cheeky undercurrent.

We don't get anywhere quickly with B boy onboard, but the journey is almost always amusing.

And then there's times when his innocence just slays me. Like that day in York. As we crossed a busy street, I was pulling and tugging on him to hurry up. Those little legs were moving even slower than normal, and definitely not as quickly as the flow of traffic.

Because Benjamin had spotted the ruined remnants of an old stone building. Except to him it was simply a house with no roof, and he absolutely could not understand why there was a house with no roof in the middle of York.

"It's just an old, old house, B boy, I'm sure it's protected," I said.

"How old?" he asked.

"Hundreds and hundreds of years old," I answered absent-mindedly, still trying to get us across the road safely.

"I get it. As old as black-and-white TV, right?" said my genius boy.

I almost stopped in the middle of the street, but managed to get us across to the other side of the intersection before replying:

"No, even older than that. Many hundreds of years old."

"Oh, back from the dinosaur age, then," he declared with total insight.

Which is when I swore to myself never to tell B boy that our first black-and-white TV was bought after I was born. Never, ever!

36 comments:

thirtysomething said...

Oh, I love it! Remember how it was? As a kid, when 30 was ancient? Those were the days...

That pic is cute too.
Have a great day!

theotherbear said...

Oh , how positively ancient - B&W TV!!!!
I like the thought that you stop and listen to your boy rather than hurrying him along and letting his chatter wash on over you.

Suburban Correspondent said...

I often remind my children that I was born in the Dark Ages, before the invention of microwave ovens.

Julie Pippert said...

LOL!

It amazes the kids what we poor "old folk" had to "do without" when we were kids.

Yes, maybe save that tidbit for later.

He sounds just precious.

Rima said...

How funny!

I did hear that they found a black and white TV set next to a recently excavated set of dinosaur bones somewhere in, uh, Egypt.

Beck said...

My kids have NO idea what old means, either. Old, for my oldest, is anything older then her 8 years.

fenwaydog said...

Try explaining ALBUMS to him!! :-)

Very cute story!

Hallie
http://wonderfulworldofweiners.blogspot.com/

Karen MEG said...

That is so cute ... B- boy, genius. Yeah, I think I'd keep that little nugget about your B & W TV a secret for now too.

On our drive up to Tremblant this past week, Liam lamented that he was so sick of our old music (we're listening to First wave, alt 80's on Sirius the whole way). We didn't even think he noticed. He called it "classic rock" and we tried to correct him... "retro, whatever it is, it's just so OLD and I'm really tired of it!!!"

Happy new year to you, Mike, Benjamin and Christopher from our lot here back home.
Thanks for your kind words as well. They mean a lot.

jennwa said...

Very cute. He sounds like my oldest son, always trying to figure everything out.

Mrs. G. said...

Yeah, who needs that grim association? The less said, the better. Once out, you will never heart the end of it.

Laura said...

Too cute! Funny how kids "age" things. My little niece is certain I am older than my mother-in-law!!!

Thanks for a great post.

dawn klinge said...

Your son sound like a fun kid to listen to. It's funny what old looks like from their perspective. Have a great day.

Unknown said...

so funny. we have a thing about OLD for AMERICA and OLD for EUROPE. Old for America is like, 1978!

Karen Jensen said...

He need never know you were alive in the dark ages.

Kellan said...

How funny! They really have no concept of time - the little ones - and it always makes for a some funny story!! I hope you all had a great time on your trip to York - it sounds wonderful. See you soon. Kellan

Mighty Morphin' Mama said...

How cute! I adore little boy 'speak' and hearing all the things that go on in their little heads.
My dh loves to tell the kids that my Mom lived with dinosaurs. Nice.

Badness Jones said...

Time is a difficult concept to grasp....I still have trouble with it when an 80's song comes on the radio and the deejay mentions it being more than 20 years old! Gah! How can that be?!

the dragonfly said...

*more hysterical laughter*


My brother has this game where he always has to tell my grandpa how old he is. Grandpa was talking about basketball one evening at dinner, and my brother burst out with "They had basketball when you were a kid?? I thought you just had a garbage can and a rock!!"

Gotta love my brother.

(and he's not a kid...he's 25. That's just the way he is. Grandpa says "I just turn my hearing aid down when he talks.")

TheOneTrueSue said...

ha ha ha ha My kids like to play a game called "Are you older than?" and it consists of asking mom if she is older than the hills, older than electricity, etc. Husband taught them this game. I do not enjoy this game so very much, actually.

Mary Alice said...

Older than cars, older than trains, Older than schools, older grandpa....very, very old. It is a hard concept to grasp.

Candy said...

Oh just wait till he gets older and can actually make old jokes at your expense. There's nothing my kids like better than cracking jokes about how OOOOOLD we are.

Christie said...

Hee hee, too funny. He would get along great with my middle child. ALWAYS noticing things on the wayside and stopping traffic to point them out.

ewe are here said...

heh heh

I, too, remember our old B&W tv... think I might not mention that one for a while yet.

painted maypole said...

ha ha.

we wanted to go to york when we were in the UK this summer, but didn't make it.

Ice Cream said...

My husband and I are starting to realize how old kids can make us feel. when our boys are playing games they don't say "Time out" for a break, no they say, "Pause." Yup, I'm soooo old.

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kim-d said...

Just look at that sweet smile! I can about imagine some of your conversations with him could be extremely interesting. And I could just see you hurrying him along on his short little legs! I just love seeing your England pictures and hearing your stories; I get to travel vicariously through you :)! Thanks, Heidi, you have saved me much money!

Anonymous said...

Black and white TV, and dinosaurs -- the two most important milestones in history.

Kat said...

How sweet is he, I ask you? I mean, my goodness. I just want to squeeze him. What a doll. That pic really says it all. I can honestly feel the love you have for him just in the way you describe him. So sweet.
My hubby and I took a trip to York when we were "just friends" and it is an absolutely charming place. I love it there.

Don Mills Diva said...

That made me laugh old loud - sounds like he's got the eras all figured out - black and white tv time and dinosaut time!

Jennifer said...

So funny! I wonder if my kids even know what a black and white tv is? My daugther asked, the other day, what a VCR is... ACK!

Stomper Girl said...

That's hilarious. Small legs and cheerful chatter are a pretty unbeatable combination - my small-legged one is more likely to be heard whining as we walk along (it's a stage, it's a stgae...)which is far less attractive.

Maybe you should introduce the concept of "before cars were invented"?

Valarie said...

Man, kids are so cute. I tried to have a conversation the other day with my little girl about having to put film in the camera, take the pictures, and then take the film out to go get it developed. I could not get her to understand. I had to get online and show her pictures...

The Lady Who Doesn't Lunch: said...

Someday he'll ask you about records so at least you are prepared now!

Very cute story Ms. Heidi!

Cathy, Amy and Kristina said...

Oh, I agree, no need to share that!

Jennifer (Jen on the Edge) said...

I love York. It's such a cute town and there's so much to explore.