One evening, while his mother was busy cleaning up the kitchen, a little boy sat quietly at the table, swinging his legs and staring at the ceiling. He looked deep in thought, the kind of serious thinking that only kids seem to do right before asking something completely unexpected. After a long pause, he finally looked up at his mom and asked, “Mom… is it possible to eat electricity?”
His mother stopped what she was doing and turned around, clearly confused. “Eat electricity?” she repeated. “What do you mean? Where did you hear that?” She searched his face, wondering if he’d seen something strange on TV or picked up a bizarre idea at school.
The boy shrugged casually and said, “I heard Dad say it yesterday.” That caught her attention. She crossed her arms and asked, “And what exactly did your father say?” The boy leaned forward, lowering his voice like he was sharing an important secret.
“Well,” he said, “Dad told you, ‘Turn off the light and close the fridge… you’re eating all the electricity.’”
For a moment, the room was silent. Then his mother burst out laughing, shaking her head. The boy watched her carefully, still waiting for an answer, clearly unsure whether electricity was on the menu or not.
Between laughs, she wiped her eyes and said, “No, sweetheart. You can’t eat electricity. That’s just something grown-ups say when they’re worried about the power bill.” The boy nodded slowly, thinking it over. After a second, he replied, “Oh… so that’s why Dad always looks hungry when he sees the lights on.”
