This kid’s response to his teacher’s riddle was way better than the real answer
Every so often, it’s fun to reflect on the elementary school days — back when learning the order of the alphabet was a bit of a challenge, and jokes and riddles helped improve the way you thought about things. After tweeting out a puzzle, one teacher admitted that his first-grade student had a response to the riddle that was so much deeper than the original answer. Surely all of his students are bright, but this one is definitely a step above.
While some teachers may be a bit guarded over their online presence, Bret Turner — who’s also a comedic writer — had no problem sharing his “Puzzle of the Week” on Twitter. The puzzle itself may make you scratch your head at first, but the standard answer is somewhat obvious when you take a good look at each word.
"I am the beginning of everything, the end of everywhere," it said. "I'm the beginning of eternity, the end of time and space.What am I?"
Turner noted that the first response to the puzzle left the rest of the classroom somewhat speechless — but it was so good that, perhaps, the riddle is a little deeper than its creator may have intended. According to the elementary school teacher, the very first guess was “death.”
The first guess from one of my 1st graders was “death” and such an awed, somber, reflective hush fell over the class that I didn’t want to tell them that actually the answer is the letter e, which just seemed so banal in the moment pic.twitter.com/7sYFxHNcZk
— Bret Turner (@bretjturner) January 2, 2018
"I didn’t want to tell them that actually the answer is the letter e, which just seemed so banal in the moment," Turner noted.
Of course, there were a few answers that came afterward that weren’t quite as on-the-nose.
Before I finally revealed the "correct" answer to the riddle, to a largely unimpressed audience, I fielded other guesses that continued along a similarly existential vein. There was "NOT everything," "all stuff," "the end," and maybe my favorite, "nothingthing."
— Bret Turner (@bretjturner) January 3, 2018
Turner noted that he’d share the viral victory with his kids, who were sure to be impressed.
I’m considering telling the kids tomorrow that a tweet about them went viral, and given their facility with the internets, I expect their response will be “sure but did it go SUPERviral” and “just how many retweets are we talking about here” and “can I go to the bathroom”
— Bret Turner (@bretjturner) January 4, 2018
And if you thought those tweets were good, you may want to stick around and follow Turner — since his feed consists of proof that kids really do say the darndest things.
1st grader: One time, my backpack got stolen out of my mom's car.
Me: oh no! That's a real bummer.
First grader: I know.
Me: Was there anything valuable in your backpack?
1st grader (deadly serious): yes. A folder with KITTENS ON IT.
All other first graders in unison: GASP
(1/2)— Bret Turner (@bretjturner) January 4, 2018
Friend of 1st grader: oh my God.
New Kid: I knew that folder. I've seen those kittens.
Other kid: that's not the kind of thing you can replace.
Me: I think actually that's precisely the type of thing you can replace.
Original 1st-grader: [gives me a look of indignation]
(2/2)— Bret Turner (@bretjturner) January 4, 2018
We can’t wait to see what these clever kids think of next.
