.J.C. spent this morning clearing a new trail for mountain bikers in a park not far from our house. As I drove past the park with the girls, we had this conversation...
Me: "That's where Daddy is right now, working on new bike trails."
Elise: "How do they make new trails?"
Me: "They clear out brush, cut down trees...."
At this point, I was interrupted with a firestorm of complaints. As you read this, add in the inflection and tone of voice that you might expect had I said something along the lines of "Santa is dead. We're cancelling Christmas."
Nina: "That's killing nature!!"
Elise: "That's killing trees!!"
Nina: "That's killing rabbits!!"
Elise: "That's killing us!!"
Nina: "That's killing pandas!! Pandas need trees to eat. They eat lots and lots of trees. If you cut down trees, you kill pandas."
Elise: "No. That's killing us! Trees give off oxygen, and we need oxygen to breathe."
I wasn't quite sure how to respond to all of this since they actually made some valid points. I just assured them that he probably wasn't going to cut down too many trees, and that I didn't think any pandas would be harmed in the process. I think I have a couple of environmentalists in the making.
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