Magic happens!  Sometimes we help it appear, and sometimes it sneaks up on us.  Whichever way we love it.

So on an ordinary family day, many years ago, we asked the question. “ What do you want to do?”  Hi up Spencer Butte.  Wait, is it Spencer’s Butte, or Spencer Butte, or does it matter? It is just as high with either name. In fact, it probably had a name many generations before Spencer was even born, but that name is long lost in the eons of history, and it was always the same height.

OK, we are on our way now to the parking lot.  Was there bribery in the form of donuts or Pop-Tarts?  That fact, too, is lost in the mists of memory.  But up we go, mom and dad, sister and brother.  This is long before the well-designed and constructed trail to the summit was built.  So it was a hike through the trees and a scramble over rocks to the rocky summit.

Less than an hour later, we are sitting on the summit.  What now?  Look around and enjoy the view!  Strictly an adult activity.  More fun to poke my sister and ask about lunch.

And there it was!  Across the very top is a string lying on the ground, disappearing into the trees to the south.  Nobody is around, and there’s no end to the string.  What to do?  Pull on the string and see what happens.  “Sure, Dad…”

A few quick jerks on the string and ….  Up out of the trees in the distance flies a big kite.

Magic does happen.