priceless

"You can only see it when you're a child."   --Tonari no Totoro

It's hard to think outside the box once we find ourselves inside it.  But kids sometimes show us our way out of it:

Memories of my first day at school are very vague, but my father has a very clear recollection of the morning before my second day. Apparently, I stood in front of my parents, arms crossed and a picture of misery, and said, “But I went there yesterday, why do I have to go AGAIN?”
-- What Schools Do to Us

In the bath:
Hey mommy, why you have no willy?
ねぇ、ママぁ。なんでママ、チンチンないの？
That's because mommy is a woman.
それはねぇ、ママは女だからだよ
..., ...Then I'll buy you a willy at Beisia supermarket!
・・・、・・・、ぼく、ママにー、チンチン買ってきてあげるね！
Really?  Thank you!  I want a huge one!
ほんと？ありがとー！ママ、でっかいチンチンがいいな！
Okay!  What color do you want?  Pink?
でっかいチンチンね！何色がいい？ピンク？？
Yeah, pink sounds great!
うん、ピンクでお願い！
Okay!  I'm going to buy a blue one for me too!
分かった！ぼくは青にする！
 -- Re: Why mommy doesn't have a willy

The blog posts above reminded me of a conversation I apparently had with my mother when I was a kid myself.

Hey mommy, I want to be a strawberry when I grow up.  What do you want to be when you grow up?
ねぇ、ママぁ、わたし、大きくなったらイチゴになりたい。ママは大きくなったら何になりたい？
Hm... let's see...
そうねぇ
What about a grape?
ぶどう？
Yeah, that sounds like a great idea.
それもいいねぇ