An Old Tale (I heard Sean Penn share on Charlie Rose)

A young couple have a new baby and bring it home from the hospital to its new room and crib. The couple also have a four-year-old who has been waiting with her grandparents. Naturally when their daughter comes home she is very excited and says she wants to see the baby. Of course darling, the parents say and start to walk the daughter to the baby's room. No mommy, no daddy. I want to see the baby alone, the little girl says. The parents are both a little nervous. They've heard about sibling jealousy and that type of thing. They say, Well why do you want to see the baby alone, honey? And she says, I can't tell. It's a secret. The parents are nervous and they say no. The little girl starts to cry. A couple days go by and the girl has refused to see her sibling under any other circumstances. The couple is laying in bed one night discussing the issue. Maybe we're depriving her of something important, they agree, and remind themselves that there is an intercom in the room. Worst comes to worst we can rush in. So the next day they let their daughter into the baby's room. The girl closes the door behind them and the parents race to their intercom. There's about 30 seconds of silence. Then the pitter-patter of the four-year-old's feet, presumably moving in toward the crib. Then the sound of their daughter's voice. She is whispering to the baby.  Tell me about God, she says. I'm starting to forget.