Grandpa learns from Chloe

Sometimes we get a glimpse of the learning process in a child's mind. Betty and I had just such an opportunity while Brenda's family was here visiting.

Brenda had told us that Chloe had been tying her own shoes, and that she taught herself. When Brenda asked Chloe who had taught her how to tie her shoes, she said, "My brain taught me."

Just because I am who I am, I had to ask Chloe if she needed help tying her shoes. When she insisted that she could do it herself, I challenged it to prove it by tying my shoes for me.

Because Chloe is who she is, she quickly accepted my challenge by bringing it to my attention that I had no need for someone to tie my shoes as I was wearing my sandals. I quickly changed one shoe and stuck it out for Chloe. She tied it.

I got tickled with her because she was in a different position than when she tied her own shoes, and my shoelaces were not as long as hers were. She gave the laces a good tug to get some length and she worked until she got one shoe tied.

That was enough for her. She put her hands on her hips and said, "Papa, you know how to tie shoes, you can tie the other one yourself!