The Great Communicator

Today is my grandson CJ's 1st birthday. He is a quiet little guy. Smiley and pleasant. Not much of a talker. He is very like his father (saints preserve us)! I have been told that he has a small supply of words that he now uses, but I believe that for his Nana, he prefers to wait until he can rattle off an entire conversation about the insanity of the new Healthy Care Reform bill rather than give me any sneak peaks into his liguistic skills, so he has remained stoically silent in my presence. Amazingly though, today presented a most enlightening opportunity to get to know my little grandson better. I had him for several hours, all to myself. He still refused to utter a single word in front of me, but a whole different form of communication emerged before my very eyes. Usually when I am around CJ, Julia is there as well demanding my attention (usually at the top of her lungs), but today, CJ and I went shopping. Shopping is a fascinating experience with these little ones because you spend a great deal of time face to face with them as they sit in the shopping cart and if you bother to notice it, they will tell you everything you need to know about...everything. For instance, while meandering through the bed linens at Target, I picked up a comforter set that I was contemplating for our bedroom. CJ looked at the comforter and then looked up at me. His look very clearly said "Nana, I don't think Papa would appreciate that color and besides, it's way too expensive". I put the comforter set back. As we wandered through the toy aisle, we passed a large castle complete with Knights and dragons and all manner of mideaval accoutrements. CJ suddenly sat bolt upright and declared loudly grrrrblop dowdowdow gungdroop. Looking into his shining little boy eye's his meaning was quite clear. "Nana, this would make a wonderful Christmas present for a little boy and I distinctly remember hearing Papa mention something about starting your shopping now so you could spread the cost over several months." In the clothing department, one quick sharp look said "Yes Nana, that blouse WOULD make your butt look big". Throughout the store his earnest little expressions and seemingly unintelligible commentary helped me navigate safely through the treacherous aisles of Target and Walmart, preventing his dear old Nana from making fashion faux paux's, spending too much or suffering a nasty case of buyers remorse tomorrow. Just as I was dumping a 12 pack of charmin into the cart at Walmart, he gave a deep sigh, dropped his head against my chest, then pulled back and eyeballed me with a serious expression. Clearly, he was suggesting that maybe this shopping expedition was dragging on a bit too long and needed to come to a close. He also suggested that next time I would be able to shop faster if I brought a list. Once in the car he smiled sweetly at me and then dropped his head against his car seat, and started quietly jabbering. I could hear him sweetly telling me all about his adventures and the things that he had seen in each store. One minute he was jabbering and the next, fast asleep with a satisfied look on his cherubic little face.

It has been years since my kids were this tiny and it was a magical experience to remember that inside those tiny bodies, that haven't quiet gotten the hang of speech yet, is a little mind just begging to be listened too. Thank you for reminding Nana, CJ. Happy Birthday!