Officeboy Dialogue: You’d Prefer an Astronaut

While driving home today:

Officeboy: I want to go to the moon. Also to Mars!

Me: Well, people have been to the moon before, and we’ve sent robots to Mars. We might send people to Mars before too long.

Officeboy: I want to go!

Me: Okay. Study hard in school and work hard, and maybe you can be an astronaut. It’s a hard job, but if you want to do it, you should try.

Officeboy: I will do good in school.

Me: Especially math and science.

Officeboy: What’s science?

Me: Well, it’s a way of learning about the world –

Officeboy, confidently: I will learn about the world and be an astronaut. And I already know math! Five plus five is ten! Ten plus ten is twenty!

Me: Very good!

Officeboy: Seven plus seven is… that’s hard. [Inaudible mutterings.] Fourteen!

Me: Perfect!

Officeboy: Am I an astronaut now?

Me: You’re on your way.

Originally published at Tim Pratt. You can comment here or there.