Edibility Education

A word that Cubby learned early in life was "edible."  As in, "No, stone is not edible.  Ever. Well, unless you're a bird, because they sometimes do eat little stones to help their digestion."  "Rubber is not edible.  Nothing eats rubber."  "That is . . . technically edible, but kind of gross."

We talk a lot about edibility.  And that is because Cubby is a natural gatherer.

I suspect this is true for most children, it's just that he has more opportunity to practice it.  So when we're outside, he's constantly on the lookout for stuff he can grab and eat.  Like garlic mustard.  Edible.  Tarragon. Edible.  Pansies.  Edible.  I don't even think it's that everything tastes particularly good (pansies, for instance, don't taste like much at all), it's just that he CAN eat it, so he WILL.

We had a long discussion yesterday about the edibility of mules.  He was reminiscing about the mules he saw at the pick-your-own farm the day before and inevitably got around to asking if people eat them.  A logical question, since there are so many animals people DO eat.  No, I told him.  Mules are not generally eaten.  Sometimes, he said.  Not really, I said.  Some people eat them, he said.  Not really, I said.  Mules are not edible, he said.  Well, I said, technically they are, because they won't make you sick or anything, but they're probably tough and maybe have a funny taste.

We eat them, he said.  No, I said, we have never eaten a mule.  Some people eat them, he said again.  Not really, I said again.

This conversation lasted a good five minutes, and I don't think I really convinced him that mules are not a significant protein source.

The things I never in my life imagined would become topics for conversation . . .