All week, my dad’s been quoting Jon Stewart, who recently must have said something to the effect of, “War is God’s way of teaching Americans about geography.”

I love that. And I love that my father is quoting The Daily Show. I don’t know much about geography, myself. I was never a good student when it came to the details, and particularly lately, I just don’t keep up on things the way I should. So I’m not even getting geography lessons from maps on CNN.

I’m not sure Annabelle will be any better, if tonight’s bedtime conversation is any indication. Second grade is a little early to worry about such things, though. Right? Who knows these days; soon they’ll be offering standardized tests at birth.

Annabelle had just finished writing her penpal, Micah, a letter, and I remarked that we’d be meeting Micah soon, on a Fall Break driving trip that will include a pass through Albuquerque.

“Oh, I thought Micah lived in Alabama!”

“No, she lives in Albuquerque. It’s a city in a state called New Mexico.”

“New Mexico?” Long pause. “Does she speak Spanish or English?”

“English. It’s not Mexico. It’s a state called New Mexico.”

“Oh. Where is it?”

“To the east of us.” Long pause. “To the right of us. California’s on one side and New Mexico’s on the other.”

“Oh. Then where is Mexico?”

“South.” Long pause. “Um, below us.”

At which point, Annabelle dipped her head over the side of the couch, and hollered, “Hola down there!”

Then totally cracked up.

I’ll have to make sure Ray brings his GPS on the trip.