A child, perhaps 4 or 5, came up to the desk to ask me a question. Here is the conversation that ensued.
Child: Do you have any toys?
Me: I have these blocks you may play with, if you’d like.
Child: No…do you have toys you’re giving?
Me: Not right now. We do sometimes have contests with prizes, but I don’t have any toys to give you right now. Would you like a bookmark?
Child: ….ok.
(Child walks away thinking, and then comes back.)
Child: I lost a toy. Do you have a toy?
Me: We do have a lost and found. If you lost something, you can tell me and I will look for it.
Child: I lost something. A toy.
Me: Well, if you lost something specific I can look for it, but we can’t look for a toy there unless it was yours.
Child: I did lose it.
Me: What did you lose?
Child: A pacific.
Me: Hm?
Child: I lost something a pacific.
Me: Oh! You mean you lost a specific?
Child: Yes.
(I swallow laughter so as not to embarrass the child.)
Me: Here are the blocks to play with. We have some cars you can ride through the block city too, let’s get you set up.
SCENE
