yesterday, kaya and i had an interesting talk. it started when, out of the blue, she asked where Gigi, her goldfish, was.
Gigi was happily swimming about in her bowl just a few feet away from where kaya was standing, but i knew that she meant Fifi, who was currently residing in a cardboard box in our garden after a brief, but solemn, ceremony a few months ago.
I asked her if she meant Fifi, and she seemed a bit confused as to which fish she was talking about, but then said "The one in the garden...where is she now?"
I sat. And thought. Instantly, all of my religious and moral beliefs were awoken and jumbled together in a big mess. How do you express the concept of the afterlife when you're not sure you believe in one yourself? How do you boil the whole thing down into something a kid will understand, but not have nightmares over? Eeek. Definite eek.
So I went the Buddhist route.
"Gigi," I said, "is in the garden, but she is slowly turning into plants and flowers and grass and maybe even another animal at some point. It's like one big circle", I threw in, immediately realiziing that the circle reference probably flew about 50,000 feet over her head.
She thought. And thought. And then smiled.
"Noooo...daddy. You're kidding, right?"
I was offended. "No, Kaya, it's the truth! Really!"
Whereupon she replied, "Daddy, that can't be true. If that was true, then broccoli would taste like fish!"
Gigi was happily swimming about in her bowl just a few feet away from where kaya was standing, but i knew that she meant Fifi, who was currently residing in a cardboard box in our garden after a brief, but solemn, ceremony a few months ago.
I asked her if she meant Fifi, and she seemed a bit confused as to which fish she was talking about, but then said "The one in the garden...where is she now?"
I sat. And thought. Instantly, all of my religious and moral beliefs were awoken and jumbled together in a big mess. How do you express the concept of the afterlife when you're not sure you believe in one yourself? How do you boil the whole thing down into something a kid will understand, but not have nightmares over? Eeek. Definite eek.
So I went the Buddhist route.
"Gigi," I said, "is in the garden, but she is slowly turning into plants and flowers and grass and maybe even another animal at some point. It's like one big circle", I threw in, immediately realiziing that the circle reference probably flew about 50,000 feet over her head.
She thought. And thought. And then smiled.
"Noooo...daddy. You're kidding, right?"
I was offended. "No, Kaya, it's the truth! Really!"
Whereupon she replied, "Daddy, that can't be true. If that was true, then broccoli would taste like fish!"
Replies
this is just an awesome story. buddha bless quality father-daughter time.
i also find the buddhist easiest to understand, except i add a \"spirit\" angle from reincarnation... the \"it will come back again as something else again later\" is quite soothing.
It\'s true! Kids do say the darndest things. Tough question - let me know when it\'s all figured out, but she is so-o-o precious!!!
What a wonderful story! And sometimes, if left too long in the fridge, broccoli DOES tast (and smell) like fish! :)
Great story!! You need to write these stories in a book for her when she is grown. What a doll!