TEN OUT OF TEN - QUESTIONS I CAN’T ANSWER

Being a dad to a six-year-old means living in a constant quiz show—except the questions don’t come with multiple-choice options, and the host doesn’t believe in commercial breaks. Yesterday, my daughter decided to unleash her arsenal of curiosity, and let me tell you, I barely survived.

It all started with the classic:

“Papa, why is it called a toothbrush and not a teethbrush?”

A fair point. I mumbled something about “grammar rules,” while secretly Googling in my head. Strike one.

But that was just the warm-up. What followed was a countdown of ten innocent bombs that could shake even the strongest fatherly ego.

Question 2: “Papa, why don’t fishes close their eyes when they sleep? Don’t they have scary dreams about cats?”

I almost spat out my tea. Honestly, how do I know what a goldfish dreams of?

Question 3: “Papa, why do we say ‘fast asleep’? If someone is fast, shouldn’t they be running?”

I considered giving her a lecture on idioms, but realized I don’t actually understand it either.

Question 4: “Papa, when the alarm clock rings, who wakes up the alarm clock?”

At this point, I wanted to hug Thomas Edison and apologize for electricity.

Question 5: “Papa, why do round pizzas come in square boxes and then get cut into triangles? Isn’t that cheating in maths?”

Ten points to her for spotting the geometry conspiracy.

Question 6: “Papa, if butterflies can fly, why can’t butter?”

I pretended to laugh, but inside I was crying for Newton.

Question 7: “Papa, if babies drink milk, why don’t cows drink milk too?”

Somewhere, a dairy farmer just fainted.

Question 8: “Papa, why do we say ‘I slept like a baby’? Babies wake up TEN times at night!”

This one actually made me clap. She has a future in stand-up comedy.

Question 9: “Papa, why is Sunday the holiday if the sun comes out every day?”

I briefly considered moving to the moon to escape.

And finally, the knockout punch—

Question 10: “Papa, when I turn TEN years old, will you finally know all the answers?”

Game over. She won. TEN vs NIL.

But here’s the truth: while I may flunk every quiz she throws my way, being her confused, fumbling, always-on-the-spot dad feels like winning ten trophies at once. Because these little questions, as silly as they sound, are just her way of saying: “Papa, I trust you more than Google.”

And honestly? That’s the best ten I’ll ever score.

This post was created for the Blogaberry Creative (Monthly) Challenge with theme word - TEN