Life after Death.

So, over the past few weeks, Dylan has been talking and asking about dying. This mostly started from a few farm visits, one of which included the purchase of meat right from the farmer. Dylan saw a baby cow on the farm and wanted to know if we were eating a baby cow or an old cow. I explained to him that when a cow gets old, it dies and then we eat it. He immediately asked if that cow has a mommy or daddy, to which I replied that the mommy and daddy cows likely already died, too. We've talked about eating animals before, so he was okay with that and proceeded to tell ME that we need to eat cows and meat to get big and grow. (for the record - no-one dare better teach Dylan about veal!!!!!)

Then last week Dylan's pet fish, Elephant, died. After he died, we flushed him down the toilet, because "that's what you do when a fish dies". Dylan sad he was sad and that he missed him, but no tears were shed and he surprisingly handled it really well. He hasn't said anything about Elephant (unless telling someone that he died), until tonight. Here is our conversation - I will highlight Dylan's words in red......

Mommy, is Elephant sad right now?
Is he sad??
Well, he doesn't live with us anymore and he is swimming in the pipes in the sewer now.
Honey, Elephant doesn't know he is in the sewer. After you die, you don't know what happens to your body.
Fish go in the sewer and people get burried, right?
Yes, that's right.
What do you look like when you die?
You saw Elephant; he looked the same, only he wasn't moving or breathing. That's what happens to people, too.
Do people die when they get old?
Yes, they do.
Mommy, are you getting old and dying?
(*insert broken heart here) No, honey, I'm not....
(we then talked a bit about how long most people live, etc)
Mommy, do you know anyone who was old and died?
Yes, Dylan. Gigi's Mommy died and so did Papa Ken's Daddy. They were old and got sick and then died.
What statue did they die on?
(*long pause.....had to think this one through.....) Ohhh, you mean where is their tombstone where they were buried??
Yes, where's the statue where they died?

*We went on to discuss the fact that people don't die in cemeteries, they are just buried there. And that the stone lets people know whose body is buried there. We have taken many walks through the cemetery near our house, and he's really trying to put it all together. Another example of the innocence of a 4-year-old's mind. I love how inquisitive that boy is! When Dylan starts trying to figure something out, he doesn't stop until he has an explanation he can really believe. Remind you of anyone?!