My oldest son, Ryan, is 4 years old. I know many parents say these things about their children, but my son is really smart for his age. Really, he is. I mean it. The other day Ryan says to his mother, “Mom, I want to be cool.” His mother responds by telling him that of course he’s cool. He responds, “Mom, I’m not cool, I’m handsome. And I don’t want to be handsome, I want to be cool.”

I can sum up Ryan’s genius statement like this:

Good looks will fade over time, but coolness last forever.

Is he wrong?