My Thinking Cap

One curious little girl tackles all the world’s big questions and finds . . . even more questions. Judith Pearl, age 12, has more questions than answers. Her quirky scientist father is a certified genius and assures her his Thinking Cap will give her the answers. She also hopes for added intelligence and maybe even a new creative idea. Though reluctant to be pushy, Judith asks the boldest questions she can about the sun and moon, sky, clouds, and stars. Why does the ocean wrap around the earth and how do whales give birth? What’s the worth of a sand dollar, and why are there creepy crawly things? As Judith considers who made the green grass and trees, she apologizes to the Thinking Cap for her lack of patience. She can’t understand how she ended up with a button in the middle of her belly or why her toes sometimes smell. Why does she have five fingers instead of three? Why when she falls does she scrape her knee? She wants to invent a potion, so no one ever bleeds, which seems like a very large need. Judith wants to know where war and guns come from. Why would anyone shoot someone else’s daughters and sons? Why do some people not have enough to eat? Why do they get sick and how can they get well? What is loneliness? And can any person tell the future? Judith is ready to take notes but the Thinking Cap just blinks, saying nothing. Is the blinking a code like a poem, song, or ode? What’s the mystery of music and math? Still no answer from the Thinking Cap. Judith sighs and decides that when she finds the answers she’ll let the Thinking Cap know, because her father’s invention only helped her question list to grow.