8/22: magic

After the summer, my body isn't used to teaching, and I've come home sore yesterday and today.  (I was a little comforted to hear that a much younger colleague experienced the same thing!)  This evening I did a quick stretch routine, and it did wonders.  Both my body and mind felt magically refreshed.

Magic of a different sort was the topic of tonight's reading.  My upper-level Latin class is translating portions of Apuleius' Golden Ass this semester, and before we get started with the Latin we're reading the whole novel in English.  Magic features heavily.  I haven't taught The Golden Ass since 2006--I had forgotten how fantastic it is.  Or rather, I remembered how fantastic it is but I had forgotten how fantastic it is to read it and think about it.  And we're using Robert Graves' translation, which seems to convey in a pitch-perfect way Apuleius' style and spirit.

2 comments:

Meri M. said...

...there was magic in the sky as I drove to work this morning, a golden sunrise... I do wish it stays with me all day long...

RR said...

Hi, Meri--I hope the spirit of the sunrise gave you some golden moments all day long.