Tuesday, January 19, 2016

Annunciation and Clarity

To my son Tommy,

They say the next generation always lacks clarity when speaking, I have been told this as I grew up and my father often accused me of mumbling, I have seen this from time to time as you speak and get excited, It is a classic role reversal as I switch from the younger generation to being the old guy. However, there are times when you announce and speak very clearly, and this is not always a good thing.

Tonight at the dinner table was one of those cases. I asked you what happened at school. You said, "Guess what [classmate's name redacted] said today! He said 'Holy shit!'" Well you nailed that pronunciation. Loud and clear in your diction. You had special emphasis on the "SH" sound so I couldn't even pretend it was "Holy spit" or something. It was probably a very good thing your mom and your Nana Jeanne weren't drinking liquid at that moment. Their nostrils wouldn't have been able to handle it.

As a father should, I pushed down every natural instinct to burst out in laughter. I explained that even when conveying a story of what another said that it was still inappropriate to say, and offered alternatives to tell the story. I patiently waited for you to finish your dinner and ask to be excused from the table, before laughing my butt off.

Sincerely with love from your dad,
Leo

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