Me: Hey, buddy. You just ran out of the magic show. You okay?
Nick: Yeah. Daddy?
Me: Yes.
Nick: Will you walk with me on the beach.
Me: Sure.
Nick: What’s that?
Me: That guy has a metal detector.
Nick: What that do?
Me: It looks for metal and money in the sand. So what’s up, buddy? Why do you feel bad?
Nick: There were some boys in there saying words I can’t say.
Me: What do you mean?
Nick: I can’t say those words. I don’t know how.
Me: Oh. Well that’s why you take speech lessons. So you can learn how. What words did they say?
Nick: I can’t them! I don’t know how!
Me: Right. Sorry.
Nick: Why you ask me that?
Me: Mistake. I’m sorry. It’s okay, Bud. This is why you take those speech lessons. You just have to practice and then you’ll be good at it.
Nick: I think maybe they’re in Kindergarten. But I’m not in Kindergarten yet and maybe that’s why.
Me: That could be it.
Nick: And maybe a long time ago, they couldn’t say those words either.
Me: That’s right. But if you work and practice, then you’ll get better at it. It just takes a while. You work and work until you get better at something.
Nick: Okay. Daddy?
Me: Yes.
Nick: Then I can have a metal detector?
David Lee White 