Helian and I first met when I was four. She had just moved into town, and her mother brought her over for a visit. Papa welcomed them in and we all sat around the kitchen table while he boiled water for tea.

  “You’ve just moved into town, have you? Welcome! My name is Paul, and this little treasure here is my daughter, XXXXX. She takes after her mother, as you can see.”

  He returned to the table with a pot of water and four wooden cups. I could see the steam rising from the pot and smell the leaves as they steeped inside. As he set the pot down, he looked me in the eyes and cautioned, “Don’t burn yourself, okay sweetie? Wait for it to cool before drinking, and don’t touch the pot.”

  I nodded and waited politely for the tea to finish steeping. The neighbor’s daughter—Helian—stared at me from across the table with curious eyes, her small face hidden beneath the tabletop. Her mother gently nudged her on the shoulder. “Go ahead, honey. Introduce yourself to XXXXX.”

  With a rather displeased voice, the older girl introduced herself. “I’m Helian… nice to meet you, XXXX.”

  Her mother sighed and patted her on the head. “I’m sorry about that. While she’s quite good at speaking, she has trouble with names. The physician said all we can do is wait for her to grow out of it. Please don’t take offense.”

  Papa nodded his head and gently tousled my hair, then looked at me for approval. “That’s not a problem. You don’t mind, do you sweetie?”

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  I shook my head. “No. Isaac doesn’t say my name, too.”

  Papa sighed. “That’s just because he’s a pain in the neck.”

  I nodded. “Pain in the neck.”

  Helian’s mother leaned forward and spoke to me. “XXXXX, dear, can I tell you something?”

  I nodded again. “Yes ma’am.”

  “Oh, so polite! While your papa can say things like that, you mustn’t say them to anyone else. They might misunderstand or get angry.”

  “Like bad words?”

  “Yes, like bad words, dear. It hurts people if something like that is said about them.”

  I looked to Papa, who was pouring tea through the strainer.

  “Like ‘shit’ or ‘hell’?”

  Papa nearly dropped the pot. “XXXXX! We’ve told you not to say those words!”

  I pouted. “Isaac says them…”

  He sighed. “Yes, that’s why he’s a pain in the neck.”

  Helian began to laugh, filling the room with her high-pitched voice. Her mother sheepishly patted her on the shoulder, trying to coax her into being quiet. “Honey, it’s not that funny…”

  In response, Helian pointed at me and smiled. “The little baby talks like a sailor!”

  I stood up on my seat and stared down at her. “I’m not baby!”

  “Only babies say that, XXXX!”

  Papa glared at me silently until I sat back down. “That’s better. Here’s your tea, XXXXX. Hold it with both hands, drink it slowly, and don’t stand on the chair again, okay?”

  “Yes, Papa.”

  Helian watched me from across the table with amusement as I struggled to drink the bitter tea.