Chérie

Baby hears me speak in French a little bit every day. “Mais, non, chérie. C’est pas si triste que ça – Come on, honey. It’s not as sad as all that.” This is if she’s crying when I know she’s fed, changed, and rested – and I’ve got something on the stove, say. “T’es extrêmement belle, tu sais – you’re incredibly beautiful, you know.” This I say all the time, for obvious reasons. I figure she understands about as little French as she does English – or about as much. And it makes me happy to speak to her in every way I can.