My niece doesn’t know what a “watch” is, so she calls it a clock. And she really really wants her own “clock”. Today, she saw my watch (which is a handsome Skagen, I might add) and yelled, “I want clock!”.
Cute, right? Since she’s only two years old, her grammar isn’t very good yet. I can’t hold it against her. HOWEVER, because she is a two-year-old, she hasn’t quite gained the ability to pronounce her “-L”s in certain words. Like she pronounces her name Isabella as “Isabeya”. And…unforunately…”clock” happens to be another one of those words.
In fact, whenever she does say “clock”, it’s almost like it’s a silent “L”. Which, you can imagine if you were a protective uncle or aunt, is absolutely terrifying to hear…and kind of hilarious. When she first told me she “wanted clock”, I nearly lost my shit. Immediately, I grabbed her and screamed…”YOU SHOULD NOT BE WANTING THAT AT THE AGE OF TWO! WHERE DID YOU LEARN THAT?!”
As one might guess, there was instant fear in her eyes. Then she pointed at my watch and, in the tiniest voice, said…”Clock?” (again, with a silent “L”). Then I laughed in relief and said, “Oooooooooooh…no no no, honey. It’s pronounced ‘cLock’.” Of course, it was no use, since she hasn’t grasped the sound of the letter “L” yet.
So, tomorrow, I’ll be spending my entire day trying to teach Isabella how to say “clock” properly. It’s a long shot…but a long shot that I’m willing to take. Wish me luck.
