Friday, June 5, 2009

"He Says"/"Oh Baby, I know"

This is something that makes me crazy.
Everyone does it. I do it, too. We can't help it.

Putting words in the baby's mouth.

If he had words, they would be like this:

"I barfed on my foot. Give me that. And that. I want it. These are my toes. I peed on your bed. Give me that apple. I pooped. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Give me that. Mine."

At least ten times a day, we tell Finn that "we know".

He doesn't know. Neither do we.

I think that the phrase "I know" might be the most over-used baby phrase in the world. That and "There there," though I don't find myself saying that. I say "I know" so many times throughout the course of my day with Finn, that I have tried to find substitutes for it, just so I am not repeating myself or being presumptuous. Two things Finn does not care about: repetition and unwarranted assumptions about the condition of babyhood. Truth is, I don't know. I am extrapolating from observations, much like I do with the cats. It's what humans do: "How would I feel, if that were me." Correction: it's what empathetic humans do. No, wait. Hopefully, humans, when evaluating a situation, will consider how they, themselves, would feel were they the main participant in the situation, and then will take actions which will reflect empathy rather than selfishness, if action is warranted.

How's that for too many words?

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