We had friends over for dinner this evening and after the kids were excused to play and the adults were still sipping wine and chatting, Kostyn came back into the dining room holding his toy microphone, apparently intent on interviewing each of us, one by one. Thankfully, he started with Chris.

“What’s your name?” he asked into the mic, then thrust it toward his father’s face.

“Chris.”

“What’s your favorite color?”

“Blue.”

“What’s your favorite food?”

“Steamed clams.”

“What’s your favorite thing to do in the bathroom?”

Raucous laughter broke out around the table. Kostyn, of course, didn’t understand why we were laughing. These were some of the most important questions he ponders, the biggest parts of his existence. (His answer to that question, by the way, was “flush the toilet!” which I’m sure also would be his brother’s answer, as Evan flushes the toilet as soon as he enters the bathroom, no matter what he came in there to do.)

As the laughter died down, I wiped the tears from my eyes and thought about how we’re taught in J-school to start with some surface questions before delving into the more personal ones. Finally, Chris answered. “Take a shower.”

Kostyn’s innocent follow-up closed out the interview. “What’s your favorite thing to do upstairs?”

Oh yeah, I thought. The kid’s a natural.