Philosophy/Religion with Elsa

Elsa: (completely out of the blue) I guess at the start of the world, kids didn't have parents.

Me: Well, that's not exactly how it happened.

Elsa: How did it happen, then?

Me: (after a long pause, while I try to figure out exactly what to tell her) Well, people were created over millions of years. It took a very long time for us to look the way we do now. (I'm now realizing that I'm not answering her question at all.)

Elsa: You mean people lived a very long time?

Me: (now resigning myself to a more detailed explanation) No. Human beings actually came from apes. We're related to apes. And we slowly changed into human beings over millions of years and many generations. Does that make sense?

Elsa: No.

Me: Well, it's a very difficult thing to understand. You might just have to learn about it when you're older.

Elsa: Or in church.

Me: Well, in church they tell you something different.

Elsa: What do they tell you in church?

Me: (now feeling guilty about the fact that we never go to church) In church they say that God made the world and human beings in 7 days.

Elsa: But you just said it took a really long time.

Me: Hey, looks like it's time to get changed for school!