A Very HP Day--Two *Cute* HP Moments

[Ebony Elizabeth]

No: HPFGUIDX 606

OK, OK, don't shoot me.  I won't subject you guys to this all
year long.  I just had such a good day today—-everything in all
six classes went like clockwork, which is extremely rare during the 
first week of school.  The Potter craze was just the icing on the 
cake.

Two of today's HP moments were so darn cute that I just have to
share.

#1 )  First, there is a certain student who has enrolled in one of my 
Drama classes for the second straight year.  A tall, self-conscious 
seventh grader, Chris is quiet and introspective.  He is very 
responsible, gets good grades, and a team player.  Yet he rarely 
initiates conversation.  So I was a bit surprised when he asked to 
speak to me after school today.

"Miss Thomas, do... do you... um, do you think..."  He takes
a very deep breath and looks around nervously.  (Meanwhile, I'm 
getting a little alarmed—thinking, `what is wrong with this
child?  Has someone threatened him?  Is something wrong at home?')  

Then it comes out in a rush.  "Do-you-think-that-Hermione-likes-
Harry?"  

Please understand that this child operates in the strata of our 
school that is diametrically opposed to that of my summer school Type 
A personality, Ritalin, and at-risk students.  I *know* they
haven't talked.  You should have seen the look on my face-—I
hadn't mentioned HP in Drama at all!  

As I opened a locker, signed a pass, and fastened a stubborn uniform 
tie at the same time, I listened to Chris reiterate the Farmer in the 
Dell theory as if he thought it was the weirdest and most original 
idea he'd ever had in his life. 

I didn't tell him about those lunchtime conversations, though.  
Didn't have the heart to.  I just said, "Well, Chris,
that's a really interesting theory.  You seem to have put a lot
of thought into it. Let me get back to you on that one."  

As he grinned and walked away, I upgraded the status of FITD from a 
theory to the Theory of Choice among a sampling of about 500 urban 
U.S. preteens.  For if Chris and the summer school kids are seeing 
eye to eye, then you pretty much have a consensus.  ;)

#2)  After school today, I had a lot of laminating to do.  Two 
primary children, the son and daughter of one of our staff members, 
were sitting in the lounge coloring and waiting for Mom.  

When I got to the HP stuff they were fascinated.  They'd heard of
the books but had never read them.  They kept getting in the way, 
exclaiming in cartoonish voices, "Who's that?  What *is*
that?  Why does he have that thing on his forehead?  Why does she 
look so sad?  Why is he so mean?"  

All you WB fans, think of the Animaniacs... Dot and Wacko were all 
over the place, pointing, touching, tugging on my dress.  I'm
afraid one of them will get their fingers crushed and melted in the 
laminator, so I'm mentally making up something to tell my colleague.

And then the little girl, Imani, says in this shocked voice, "Is
that Harry Potter's *wife*?  I thought he was just a little
BOY!"

I nearly *fell out laughing*.   My baby sister Lorri is an excellent 
high school artist whose work has won all kinds of competitions.  
Between the two of us and the Internet we'd managed to illustrate
all of the major characters.  What Imani was referring to was the 
rendention of James and Lily.  It took me a good five minutes to 
explain the physical resemblance between father and son.

I'm still not quite sure she believed me.

That's it for me.  Suffice it to say that I'm looking forward
to work tomorrow.  The kids and preteens reminded me of something 
important today.  For all my excitement about finding adult HP fandom 
this summer, all day today I thought of an old 80s 
commercial:  "Silly rabbit-—Trix are for kids."  And
ultimately so 
are young wizards-in-training.  :-D

Ebony AKA AngieJ