Lesson Learned!

This past summer, Calyssa had an assignment: she was to learn her telephone number. One evening, as I drove home from daycare, reciting my cell number for the umpteenth time, I chose to expand the lesson a bit. I decided we needed to talk about who she could call in an emergency. After all, it's just the two of us; it could happen.

"Calyssa, if Mommy ever gets hurt or sick and you need help, who can you call?" I asked.
"Papa!" she cried, referring to my dad, who lives about 12 miles away. While certainly he would do whatever he could to help in an emergency, this wasn't quite the answer I was looking for... "Okay," I agreed, "but do you know how to call the police or fire fighters? In a real bad EMERGENCY, you can call 911." "Okay, Mommy. I remember that," she replied.

Then a thought occurred to me. Calyssa has a hard time understanding much of anything on the telephone. I usually put on the speakerphone, but that's only a marginal improvement. Suddenly, I recalled 911 tapes played on the news, instances where young kids have called for help. The dispatcher usually asks them all sorts of questions; questions which Calyssa would be unable to hear, much less answer in any useful way. So quickly I continued, "Now listen, Binky. If you ever have to call 911, you need to say right away, 'My Mommy is hurt. I'm five years old and I'm deaf'."

A gasp arose from the backseat. I glanced in the rearview mirror, just in time to see my kidlet put her hands on her hips, shake her finger at me, and declare, "Mommy! It not matter I'm deaf!"

Now, who do you think could have told her that, over and over? =]