Brooklyn loves playing games in the car. The Rhyming Game is among our favorite to play with her because 20 Questions usually involves vague and abstract hints... Brooklyn initiates with "I'm thinking of something pink" and it turns out to be a dragon. Whatever, Brooklyn.
But the Rhyming Game is great because it involves rapid turns in coming up with words that rhyme. Tree. Bee. See. Pee. Knee. Kree.
"Brooklyn, 'kree' isn't a word."
"It doesn't have to be a word. We're just rhyming."
Whatever, Brooklyn.
And so we engaged in a round of rhyming in the car on the way home from dinner. Tassi and Brooklyn were going back and forth. Tassi started.
Stuck. Luck. Truck. Ffff...
Time slowed down. From the seat behind me and to the right I could feel every vibration of my daughter's innocent lips of the voiceless labiodental fricative.
...fff...
The gas molecules seemed especially turbulent as Brooklyn constricted air between her lower lips and upper teeth.
...fff...
Such a small, sweet girl and yet she was shaping this consonant, without vibrations of the vocal chords, in a piercing manner.
...fff...
The final part of the pulmonic egressive airstream finally flowed over her tongue and began to change. It was inevitable. No going back now.
...I think you know how this ends.
Silence hung in the car and I said the only thing I could think of. "That's not a word, Brooklyn."
Saturday, September 05, 2009
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This is SUCH a funny post, but oh, no! I can only imagine what it felt like to be in the moment. You've taught us two very important lessons. One about thinking on your feet, and another about NOT using words that end in uck while playing the rhyming game. :)
ReplyDeleteVery funny. Good research on the fricatives and whatnot. That sounds a little scandalous itself.
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