Blog Credo

The whole aim of practical politics is to keep the populace alarmed (and hence clamorous to be led to safety) by menacing it with an endless series of hobgoblins, all of them imaginary.

H.L. Mencken

Saturday, January 14, 2012

Family Time


For almost a year now, the Most Dedicated Mom and Scrumptious Wife has been reading Harry Potter to the Things at bedtime.  I tended to take a pass on it in the fall, because by the time bedtime came around, I was done with them.  She had been at practice, whilst I was riding herd over the violence prone homunculi.

Now, I'm at practice.  Also, during the Halloween blizzard, we all slept in the living room in front of the fire, while I read from the book.  Turns out I really enjoy doing it.

What's interesting is how - by acting the story out rather than simply reading it in my head, by assuming the voice and emotions of the characters - I become emotionally involved in the story.  Rowling does a great job in creating characters that are both noble and human (even if they aren't technically human), and I'm always a sucker for that.

Anyway, I'm grateful that I have been allowed in to this evening ritual.  Even if now I know why my students refer to me a mix of Mad Eye Moody and Severus Snape.

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