“Dad, there’s a big earthworm near the slide!” exclaimed Caleb as he came running.

“Let’s go check it out,” I said as I walked him back to the slide in the playground.

It was a big earthworm indeed, and it looked like the kind that was not good for kids to be around.

“Don’t worry. I’ll take care of it. You carry on playing,” I said as I kicked it away from where the kids were playing. 

“Dad, why did you lie?” he asked, perplexed.

“When did I lie?” I asked, unsure of what he meant.

“You said you’d take care of it but instead you kicked it away. You didn’t show any care for the earthworm at all,” he replied sadly.

I was already imagining him reasoning logically in the future when he would learn more idioms and phrases!

But I also realized how easy it is for our prospects to not understand exactly what we mean when we communicate.

And it’s not just kids; even adults often feel the same way.