Spelling Bee (bp coyle)

‘Dad,’ she asked me, ‘how do you spell psychopath?’

I pondered for a moment. ‘P-s-y-c-h-o…’

P-s-y-c-o-…’

‘No, it’s c-h-o-.’

‘Oh, okay, c-h-o…’

P-a-t-h.’

P-a-t-h. That’s great, thank you.’ She went back to tapping away at her iPhone and I continued preparing dinner. We worked in silence for a time both lost in our own activities.

‘Dad, are there two t‘s in pratt, or just one?’

I assured her that there are two. I had a lot on my mind that day, bills to pay, projects due, so I really wasn’t paying much attention until her next question.

‘Dad, what about asinine? One s or two?’

That made me pause, for a couple of reasons. One, I actually wasn’t sure of how many s’s to use. More importantly, I began to wonder what my fourteen year old daughter was up to. They were all potentially quite insulting words to be using.

‘Those are all kinda weird words, I hope you’re not being nasty to someone.’

‘Oh no,’ she assured me. ‘Just chatting to a friend.’

‘Strange chat. What’s it about?’

‘Oh nothing,’ she answered dismissively. ‘So… asinine?’

‘Two s’s, I think.’

‘Thanks.’ Tap, tap, tap. ‘How long until dinner?’