Warm As Toast

My first magical moment happened when I was four years old.  It was a Kansas winter.  A winter of snow suits, mittens, and hot chocolate by the fire.  My older brother, Gene, was on his way out the door to another adventure.   Me and my brother David were not about to miss out so we dashed out the door after him, perhaps not quite as bundled as we should have been.  I remember it was cold.  Really, really cold.  Out the back door, down the hill and there we were, gazing at tree tops, eye level as they rose out of the revine.  The trees, growing straight up from the bottom and the edges reminded me of the hair that grew out of old man Smith's ears.  That morning me and my older brothers, and not for the first time, ventured to the depths of that ravine.  We headed north, walking along the bank and sometimes sliding along the frozen water.  After a time Gene found his spot.  We stopped and with trowel in hand Gene stuck his arm straight out and started to dig right into the bank. I remember the bank was tall, way above my oldest brother's head.  My brother David and I tried to keep warm but after just a little while, the bone chill set in.  

We started to complain.  And then perhaps complained lot.  I remember Gene suddenly stopped what he was doing, turned to us and said - "I can tell you how to be warm if you want."  My brother and I, shaking terribly, said "yes, tell us."  Gene bent over at the waist so his face was level with ours and said with a grin - "it's a magic word, but it will not work unless you believe."  He stood up and looked at us.  "What is it", we pleaded.  Gene again bent and said - "The magic word is supercalifragilisticexpialidocious.  If you say this word over and over, and if you believe, it will make you warmer."  I was eager to believe anything my older brother said.  So I started in. I bent over slightly, cupping my hands to my mouth, blowing hot air into them as I repeated over and over, supercalifragilisticexpialidocious, supercalifragilisticexpialidocious, supercalifragilisticexpialidocious - with in seconds, I was getting warmer.  I straightened up, started moving around, and felt the warmth of this magic word spread through my body and I felt -warm as toast.