Baby Talk

When my youngest son, Slade, was 14 months old, my wife, Sarah, went through and counted all the words that he could say. It was an impressive list. It is amazing how a child can go from not being able to say any words to being able to repeat just about anything we say. In fact, the other day I heard Slade saying the word "flibbertigibbet". At first, I didn't know what this word meant. Now, after looking it up in the dictionary, I know it means "A silly, flighty person". How he knows some of these words, I will never know. (I hope he wasn't referring to me.)

With Slade now talking, it reminds me to always be careful of what I say around my boys. Whatever comes out of my mouth will, soon there after, come out of theirs. I don't have to worry about the 4 letters words, as those aren't really a part of my normal vocabulary (with the rare exception of a hammer to the thumb type of accident). However, I need to be cognizant of those times that I say things, that may just be in passing, that are not appropriate. Things like making fun of people because of the way they look or act, or talking bad about someone just because they may have upset me, are not things I would want my boys to repeat. So I should not be saying them.

Really, I should have always been watching the words that come out of my mouth. As I strive to be more Christ like, I should be careful of what I say. The words I say may seem, to me, to be meaningless, but to others, they could be very hurtful. In the past, I am sure I have said things that I shouldn't have, but now I have my boys around to remind me to think of the ramifications of the words I am saying. And maybe, some of those things on the tip of my tongue will stay in my mouth.