Ruining the Magic.

My brother was the magician in our family. 
Inspired by David Copperfield television specials, as many of our generation were, it became a hobby for him.  He worked tirelessly on his sleight of hand techniques and became pretty good.

(above:  Halloween of yesteryear, and stupefying guests after our wedding)

Derek knew several tricks...cards, coins, little magic gadgets he'd acquired along the way.
My dad had ONE trick.
He'd rub a quarter into his forearm and make it disappear. 
And, at risk of sounding sadly gullible, I bought into that trick until the brink of my teen years;
A DECADE of believing my Dad had a stash of quarters in his arm.

All you need is one good trick.  I found mine years ago.  It became my go-to jaw-dropper, baffling hundreds of students over the years...the perfect incentive for those rough substitute teaching days.

In an inspired moment following watching "America's Got Talent" with my kids, Chris showed the kids a trick of his own.  Their eyes were bright and filled with wonder!  Mommy took her turn next, bringing my trick to the eager audience.  Perfect execution...mic drop...I'm out.  "Whoa!" the kids shouted!

A little bit of confused chatter took place as they tried to figure out how mommy put a quarter in the back of her head and spit it out her mouth.  And then I heard it...

"Want me to show you how Mommy does it?" Daddy said.
"Yeahhhh!!!"  Excitement ensued.

I shot Daddy a glare across the room that, if I were Elsa, would have frozen the kingdom and CERTAINLY would have stopped him from sharing the secret to my trick.  But lacking those wintery powers, I was helpless as the curtain was pulled back on my prized illusion.  Pretty soon, I had two tiny magicians giving this little trick a whirl.

I could have had them scratching their heads for years to come, but now "they know."  And I'm kinda sad about that.  Like, legitimately disappointed!!  But instead of whining too much about my ONE TRICK being RUINED here, I'm going to use this as a learning/teaching experience.  There is a code of ethics between magicians...here are 4 simple rules by which to abide (ahem, Chris Stavenger...)

1.  Practice, practice, practice!
2.  One trick per audience (leave them wanting more).
3.  Use a mirror.
4.  Never, EVER TELL!!

So there you have it.  Chris has implored me to "get another trick," but alas, my magic days are over.