The Thrills and Perils of Winter Magic

Ian and a little girl from next door were waiting for the school bus, and she said, "I wish it was summer."

Ian countered: "I wish it was still winter, because I've seen winter magic."

I couldn't leave that one alone: "Ian, what winter magic?"

Ian clarified, "I've stared at the sun, and it changed colors." He went on to explain that on the school-bus one day, he looked out the window staring at the sun, and noticed that it changed colors.

I soon gave a little impromptu lecture on how this particular variety of winter magic was not a very good idea, because looking directly at the sun can harm one's eyesight, or even potentially lead to blindness.

The day after that lecture, Ian announced, in his own elaborate way, that everything was fine on the vision front. It was morning, and he told me that as he came down the stairs, he tested his vision to make sure that it wasn't damaged. I asked him how, and he said that he used one sense - namely "feel" - to verify the reliability of his sense of sight. I asked him how he did that, and he explained:

He identified something that he saw, closed his eyes, and reached out to touch it to make sure that it was really there, and it was!

I'm glad that Ian established in such a systematic, empirical way, that his vision is still fully working, and that the things that he sees are not mere illusions, but I still came out against solarvision as a means toward achieving winter magic.

(March 4, 2010)