Brother Sitting

Flash Fiction

Brother Sitting

“How can you be a babysitter? You’re still a kid!” Alex asked. “And, I’m not a baby either!”

Andrew looked at his little brother, trying not to giggle because he could see Alex was very serious about this.

“I know you’re not a baby,” he started. “Babysitting is just what they call it when you’re watching a kid under the age of like five or so, like you are, a four-year-old.”

“Well… wasn’t Tina babysitting you too, when Mom went to that place last Saturday?”

“Yes, but because I’m older than five, they call it ‘daycare.’”

“Day care? But it got dark before Mom got home…”

“I didn’t make up the names…”

“Well how do you know them?”

“I listen to people, or else I read it in a book...”

“I listen to people and read the words in books too!” Alex said.

“Well, when you read words, those words tell you things.”

“They’re just words…” Alex said, still a little angry.

“Alex!” Andrew said, really catching his attention, “You can learn everything there is to learn by reading words! You are just learning them, but words can tell you everything! The more words you learn, the more things you will find out, by reading about them!”

“I thought they were just the names of the stuff in the books.”

“Sometimes, but you will learn to read bigger pieces that tell you things just like I’m telling you right now with my words.”

“Can you just tell me stuff?”

“Yes, but I don’t know about lots of things that you might want to know. You’ll be able to read about everything, you just have to learn to read more words.”

“Can you help me?”

“Yes! We can do it together!”

And they did, and still do, seventy years later.