I take out the notebook, mutter the words
Can I show you?
YES! Malia shouts.
I pull out the paper
where I drew the river
under the question
“Where do my words go?”
She looks at it for a long time,
circles around me three times,
making noises, Mm-hmm, uh-huh,
over-exaggerating each sound,
almost like she’s talking to a whole group.
She glances at the trees, then back to the picture.
Well, she says, stepping up on the rock,
gesturing to the trees surrounding us.
It’s unanimous.
I look around.
We love it!
It’s just right.