Ever Eaten a Walkie Talkie?

Our grandson Calvert had a friend from Birmingham, England and Anne and I met this friend when we went to South Africa to pick up our grandson, who had been living there for two years. This friend and I visited for a while then he asked me a strange question that surprised me. “Have you ever eaten a walkie talkie?” he asked.

​
He had a pretty strong British accent, so my first reaction was to assume I had misunderstood him, and then I asked myself “was he playing some kind of joke on me.” Silently I answered this odd question. “Of course, I haven’t eaten a two-way radio” I thought to myself. 

​
Very quickly I was convinced that he was messing with my head or checking my IQ or testing the gullibility of an American Senior Citizen. I didn’t want to give him the pleasure of falling into his trap, so I flippantly responded to his dumb question by asking two dumb questions of my own. “No! I haven’t, have you?” and then “Was it good?”

​
After these two questions escaped from my mouth, I responded with an   apologetic, and polite tone in my voice. “To my knowledge I have never eaten a walkie talkie. Have you?” To my surprise he assured me that he had eaten several, and they were very good. 

​
I admit, that with his answer he had captured my curiosity a bit, so I had to ask the next question, “What is an edible ‘walkie talkie’?” I immediately wished I hadn’t asked. He told me that a ‘walkie talkie’ is a common African dish that he and our grandson had both eaten many times while they were living in South Africa, which is where we were when we were having this conversation. In America we might simply call this dish ‘chicken feet and heads.’ Yup, that’s right, the feet and head of a chicken.

​
I learned that to make this tasty treat, the head and feet were boiled to remove the hair and nails, then they would be grilled or deep fried. It’s one of the most popular food dishes sold on the streets of South Africa and is usually served with a sauce and a bland starchy dish called pap. He suggested that I should try this delicacy while I was there but believe me when I say that I passed on that idea.

​
So, what does this have to do with parenting? It could be the great start of a discussion about appreciating the food we have, but I think an even more compelling lesson is the importance of curiosity. I dismissed this young man’s attempt to intrigue me and tempt me to try something new, so I immediately decided I didn’t like this dish without even giving it a second thought. 

​
How often do our kids ask us a question or get excited to share something with us? How do we respond? Our kids are more likely to share the big and important events of their lives with us, if we show that we are interested in their questions and get curious about their ideas and suggestions, even if they may seem a little unusual or off the wall at first.

​
Here’s to being curious and willing to try something new.
​

PS I’m not sorry I didn’t eat a walkie talkie.



Happy Failing Forward,


Calvert Cazier PhD, MPH


PS Want to help your kids have less stress and more success at home and school? CLICK HERE to get a copy of our book, The Resiliency Toolkit: A Busy Parent’s Guide to Raising Happy, Confident, Successful Children.