Faith, Family, Leadership, & Advice
I just wanted to capture some of the words we have the privilege of hearing each day from Kesleigh as she learns to talk.
Wasss = Watch
Buttbole = Football
Rassss = Trash
Assss = Our neighbor, Ashley
Bubba = brother
BuBi = Bible
Deuce = Juice
Whatwoe – Waffle
Seuss = shoes
Mahss = More (Not sure where she got this one. She doesn’t know Spanish and no one in her class uses it this way either.)
Dotdow = Tractor
Jedgey = Gigi (Miranda’s mom)
These are just a few recent videos of the kids. Yeah – I’m one of those guys – the proud father who makes all his friends endure the antics of his children. Anyway, Kasen is learning to talk and some of his words are pretty funny. He’s very careful to speak words separately. “Chocolate . . .pause . . . Milk.” Kesleigh is so close to being able to walk – she’s got the strength and balance, but she just won’t do it. I’ll keep trying.
Chocolate Milk from Steve Corn on Vimeo.
Kasen really wanted chocolate milk tonight.
Daddy trying to get Kesleigh to Walk from Steve Corn on Vimeo.
Kesleigh with Walker from Steve Corn on Vimeo.
Kasen is not learning to talk, but he’s figured out that he’s supposed to make sounds with his mouth. He is pretty good at opening and closing his mouth and making a sort of “dada” sound. That’s so much better than the dreaded “mama” sounds coming first. Anyway, I really wish that I knew what he was trying to say. What does he really mean? Sometimes it’s easy to tell – like when he’s tired or hungry, but other times I just don’t have a clue. His non-verbal communication is the key. When he rubs his eyes, he’s tired. When he holds his hand out and clenches his fist over and over again, he wants to be held. It’s really no different with adults. They say that the largest percent of our communication is non-verbal. (55% body language, 38% tone, and only 7% verbal) My friend Laurie used to make fun of me ’cause she knew that when I started pacing around and offering to help with dinner, it was because I was hungry.
All of this got me to thinking about how well we communicate with each other. Since I love Kasen so much, I pay lots of attention and try to pick up on those more subtle clues. Do I care about others enough to pay that much attention? Do I notice any “non-verbal” clues from others? Are there “dada”-type sounds that I make when I really mean something else? How often do I say something and mean something else? What would it take for me to truly listen to everyone as God does? How can I hear like God? How can I see people like He does and not judge them before I hear anything at all?
Going another direction – what about the Bible? Do I listen enough to find the subtle nuances? Do I seek to know what the author intended or only how I interpret it? What are the unspoken things in the Scriptures that God would want me to pick up on?
Prayer:
Help me to listen. AMEN.