Laughter

Something funny happened a few days ago, and it really struck me.  Israel was trying to tickle Garrett's nose with a piece of fabric, and while he was doing it, Israel sneezed.  Israel, Garrett and I were all laughing, and Zach forced a laugh with the rest of us.  Israel and I continued laughing for about two minutes.  I was amazed that he could pick up on the irony of that situation, that he, the tickler, was the one who sneezed instead of the tickled.  It was bittersweet for me, because as genuinely proud as I was that Israel has the ability to pick up on things like that, I was equally sad that Zach doesn't seem to have that same ability.  Granted, he is 1 1/2 years younger, but Zach is much more of a black-and-white kind of thinker than Israel.  I have a feeling that Zach will never really "get" irony without it being explained. 
There are a multitude of differences in my boys and how they react to their invironment.  Israel understands mostly everything he encounters, but reacts very emotionally to even the smallest things.  Zach is pretty easy going but get easily frustrated by challenges, particularily those that involve motor skills.  Both are growing up so fast, I can't imagine what they will be like as teens.  Sometimes that thought scares me more than I would like to admit.