KAYA ANSWERS

Kaya came back from the store with Echo and ran into the house where I was working, shouting "Look! Look! I got a pink bucket at the store!" And held up, indeed, a big bright pink bucket. This being winter, and Kaya in any case not hauling much water in her line of work, I asked why (in the world) she had bought a pink bucket?? "Because I don't have one!" She answered brightly, a bit puzzled at why I would ask such a pointless question.

One snowy morning as Kaya and I were out walking the upmountain road in the deeper snow after a couple hours of shoveling and playing, making snowmen and eating snow cookies etc., I made to take the easier left fork in the road that led back down and around to the house and warmth and general winter sandbagging, when Kaya said: "Why do you want to go that way? Let's go THIS way!" And pointed toward the other road that led upward and away, into the forest. I asked, "Where do you want to walk TO?" She answered: "I just want to walk!"

And then another winter morning Kaya remarked how much snow there was and I said "Yeah, I wonder where all that snow goes in the summertime?" "Into the leaves," Kaya explained knowingly, as if to someone with a hard head. Which I don't have, except sometimes when I talk to Kaya.