Today was a zoo day for father and son. The only bad thing was that I got a little bit of sunburn (fortunately, Alexei didn’t). I was pretty impressed with how quickly we were able to get out of the house. We set a personal best record by arriving at the zoo entrance before 11am.

Even though there was a nice strong breeze most of the day, it was still pretty hot. When we arrived home a bit before four, I decided it would be a good idea to reward ourselves with a glass of lemonade. Mind you, we had been drinking water all day long, but there is something to be said for sitting down and enjoying the simple pleasure of a sweet chilly beverage with your offspring.

Alexei wasn’t too keen on waiting for me to pour it; he wanted to drink right then and there. When I finished diluting the lemonade a little bit, we headed into the living room and sat on the floor. My son came over and sat down on my leg, ready for a sip. I gave him one and then took one myself. To my surprise, he got up. Looking at me, he started making some strange motions with his right hand and saying something I’d never heard before. After a minute or so I guessed what he might be saying, but wanted to make sure.

The motion was something like a fish swimming through the water, like in a Sabbath school song he sings. And the word sounded like, “ish?". Thinking back, a few days ago we had taken the whole box of Goldfish crackers along with a glass of lemonade and sat down on the floor together. He remembered and was asking me for the ‘main’ part of the snack.

To confirm, I asked if he wanted fish, to which he replied, “Da.” Then I asked if he wanted reebki (Russian for fish). Another da. Finally, I tried to confuse him and asked if he wanted a leftover chocolate bunny from Easter. The smart aleck smelled something fishy and responded NO with a wag of his head. Even though he passed all my tests I made him point to exactly what he wanted in the kitchen. I needn’t have done that because it was, in fact, Goldfish he was after.

Whether or not I interpreted his gestures and words exactly as he intended me to, I’ll never know. Nevertheless, it was pretty amazing to witness Alexei communicate what he wanted but had never expressed before. Instead of just sharing some lemonade with me, my son gave me a magical moment that I’ll have the privilege of reminiscing on for the rest of my life.

Goldfish. The only fish that smiles as you eat it.