Why Is Six Afraid Of This Little Girl?

One day, I have a mother and child, maybe four years old, pull up to the checkout. Among other things, they have a pile of those painter poles that you hook the roller onto.

Me: “How many poles do you have?”

The mother doesn’t bother to look.

Mother: “Seven.”

The girl bounces onto the shopping trolley and exclaims:

Daughter: “No, Mum, you have nine!”

She says this as if she’s asking, “How can you not know that?”

Mother: “No, I don’t. I have seven.”

Daughter: “No, Mum, you have nine. See?”

She grabs each individual one as she counts, very proud of how well she knows her numbers.

Daughter: “One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine! See, Mum? Nine!”

Me: “Thank you. You’re so good at counting!” *Turning to the mother* “Looks like you have nine, Mum.”

The mother didn’t speak another word after that. She just paid and left.

That little girl made my day.