«كَلِفْتُ مُذْ مِيطَتْ عَنِّي التَّمَائِمُ وَنِيطَتْ بِيَ الْعَمَائِمُ»
I have been captivated by it since the childhood amulets were removed from me and turbans were placed upon me.
The transition from childhood amulets to adult turbans condenses years into a balanced phrase. The narrator is not simply reporting his age: he is furnishing a history of attachment to literary pursuits. This makes his later eagerness to enter scholarly gatherings credible.
The echo between *tamāʾim* and *ʿamāʾim* joins two stages of life, but sound is not the only point. The flashback supplies motivation. Rather than interrupting the narrative without purpose, it explains why the narrator is especially receptive to a display of eloquence.