How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #10
When she was sailing the ocean one of the sailors on her father's ship used to take her up on deck in the evening now and then and try to teach her to write. Unfortunately Pippi was not a very patient pupil. All of a sudden she would say, "No, Fridolf … bother all this learning! I can't study any more now because I must climb the mast to see what kind of weather we're going to have tomorrow." (11.3)
It doesn't surprise us that someone with Pippi's energy would have a hard time sitting still for writing lessons, especially on a ship in the middle of the ocean, and even more especially at the age of—what?—six, seven, eight? Not everyone is ready to sit down and practice their letters at that point. More importantly though, is what Pippi can do at this age: climb the mast and analyze the sky to determine the next day's weather. So does that make her gifted or a candidate for an attention deficit disorder diagnosis?