Asa Jay's weblog

It’s a noisy evening in the hospital. A baby cries like a forgotten lion cub in the distance. A cleaning man is seen travelling the hallways, washing and drying the floors in what looks like a miniature Zamboni. In Sam’s room, the sweat begins to bead on his forehead as the nurses come in.

Sam is only two and a half years old. He has come here, as if having been kidnapped by his parents, for reasons he doesn’t understand. He has not seen home in over five days. To him, home must seem like a dream, and he has finally awaken to the reality that is life.

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Yea, it finally happened. Sam said bye-bye to me this morning as I left for work. After several months of both Shelley and I prompting him with bye-bye’s of our own, he finally got it. It was a proud a moment, since I’ve not been able to make out any other words from him to date.

Sam is going on two and a half years old right now. We have other friends with kids about the same age, and they are already talking. I remember Sam’s 18-month checkup with his pediatrician, who said he should be up to 18 words at that point; Sam didn’t speak one, but he knew and could understand many. It’s been a point of worry for me, Sam not talking. He mostly blabbers in unintelligble, meaningless ways. We’ve tried getting him to say “please” and “thank you”, or perhaps even “diaper” when he needs a change. It all seems in vein, until today.

We’ve been told that many kids don’t start speaking until later, and then, they usually start in almost complete sentences. I still worry about Sam, and his ability to speak. Today though, seemed to usher a small breakthrough. As I was putting on my coat and giving Shelley a kiss, we both said it was time for daddy to go bye-bye, and Sam, as usual, came over to the stairs to wave good-bye and blabber something. This time however, he simply said buh-bye. Containing my excitement, I simply looked at him and said “that’s right, buh-bye”, and we kept repeating it back and forth as I descended the stairs.

It may not be much, but it’s a start. It may not be long before I wish he’d -stop- talking.

Asa Jay