Reading into Speech

It could possibly be argued that dog was Clara Grace’s first word. It is even more probable that Da-da was her second utterance with meaning, and Clara Grace’s mommy wonders whether or not she might have spoken her third word on Sunday, May the 29th. This all came about, ironically, in a church service during which Clara Grace’s mommy was doing her utmost to keep the little girl quiet. Numerous toys lay strewn below the pew at Mommy and Daddy’s feet, but finally, a shoe seemed to hold the baby’s attention for longer than the customary thirty seconds. Clara Grace pressed the shoe to mommy’s nose, then to her eye. She rubbed the shoe up and down mommy’s cheek and then shoved it into her mommy’s smiling mouth. At this she giggled and uttered what sounded very much like “Eat!” As with her other forays into speech, the merits of this imperative could be debated; however, she did only speak the word when the shoe was thrust into the exact location where she has observed the act of eating occur. “Eat” does also seem like a word that she has had ample opportunity and motivation to acquire.