Bouncing Off Walls

The other day, Daigoro was running about in his grandparents' TV room.

This isn't unusual behaviour for him - he likes to be active. What was unusual for him is that he was literally bouncing off walls.

"Literally" is a sadly misused word these days. I often wince when news reporters say something like "they literally tore into the other team," or "it literally blew their minds," when, of course (unless they were actually talking about wolf pack attacks on sports players, or very carefully timed and placed explosives) they are figuratively doing something. Many people seem to just use it as a magnifying word. Somewhere in the ironic punishments division of Hell, I imagine these word-sinners suffering literally the exact things they should have described in a figurative sense - "hey, news anchorperson, how do you like literally being knocked off your feet? Hmmm? Or literally being cut to pieces? Hmmm? Sorta different than being figuratively cut to pieces, eh?"

No... in this case, Daigoro was literally (really literally, not figuratively) bouncing off walls. He'd run across the room, use his hands to slow his impact somewhat, then go bouncing off in another direction. He'd hit another wall, then go bouncing off in another run, careening about like a toddler-sized pinball in a 5m x 3m enclosure.

The near-boundless energy of toddlers. Inspirational at times - downright exhausting at others.

In happier news, Daigoro has gotten over his clenching-his-legs-together phase of diaper resistance, at least for the moment.