Wednesday, February 24, 2010

Real Magic

The Butterfly Whisperer

Brad and Martha Washburn.....this is what they did on snow days........



Today was a stolen day. I was scheduled to work to cover for a clinician who was at a conference and I had forgotten my husband was taking the kids to the Science Museum. Sad moment when we synched our calenders.... This morning at 5:30, the cancellation calls started rolling in...first, my school, then the kids. Wow! Now, we all get to go together into the big city.

I need to get my kids into Boston more often. For starters, Emma referred to a homeless person as a "hobo" and seemed delighted to see this mythological being. Teachable moment about the hard road some folks have to travel and there is much more to being homeless than a romanticized version. Still, she acted like she had seen a rock star and that was more respectful than some reactions. Luke then demanded to know why I only gave a small amount of money rather than all we had on us. Another teachable moment about compassion and the realization that he was right, really.

The Museum of Science in Boston is a wonderful place to spend the day. I saw liquid nitrogen in action for the first time in my life; learned that it is not the rubber tires on a car that keep us safe during a lightening storm but rather the metal frame (beware you fiberglass-car-drivers-in-a-storm); and learned my son is a butterfly whisperer. The thing that got us to the museum today was the famed Harry Potter exhibit but oddly, it left us all a little flat. Yep, the costumes were velvety and the sorting hat dusty and the Quidditch balls wiggly. But the magic, the real magic was elsewhere.

Here is the thing about magic. I think it is a bit skittish. When you spend extra money to find it, and when you set up a whole room to sell it.....to the tune of 44.00 dollars for a map, I think magic has the good sense to disappear. And today, we were paying attention, and we followed it elsewhere. To the butterfly pavilion. Today, I learned my son is a butterfly whisperer. We all sat very still but they landed on him, time and time again. He has that sort of magic. He attracts the trust of animals, small children, and butterflies. He is a little uneasy with his gift and finally morphed into a 9 year old boy and said, "I have got to get out of here" but it was truly something to witness the stillness of his soul as those fragile creatures rested for a bit on his stomach, shoulders, and head.

Today was a stolen day.

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