Let's Dazzle Them All!
By Samantha Bradley
Smoke and Mirrors Day is coming; and I believe that if anyone ought to celebrate this day then it should definitely be us, even if no one else does. After all, it is a day where all manner of trickery, manipulation and cunning comes into play, all the stuff that we Snakes are supposed to be the masters of. So let's be proud of who we are and showcase some of our talents!
And no, I'm not suggesting that every one of us should deliberately deceive or manipulate our friends and loved ones, but we can definitely come up with some tricks that will let us have a little fun in a perfectly harmless way that won't have them hating our guts and wanting to kill us or anything like that. After all Gryffindor, the supposedly bravest and most fearless house, has had lots of members who loved pranking. It's kind of the same thing so if they can do it, we can do it! It's a day when it's okay to trap somebody into saying the wrong words or give someone the wrong idea; that's what it's all about! I can't think of anything more fun than getting some unsuspecting victim to say the wrong words or agree to something you want without really understanding what they're getting into. Just remember to be alert and don't let someone get the better part of you in the process!
This is also a good day to learn a few simple card tricks that you can use to dazzle and entertain people, as well. There have been lots of famous Muggle magicians who have become famous through the use of smoke and mirrors, going back to the most famous magician of all, Harry Houdini. Can you name one magician that doesn't use smoke and mirrors? No, I didn't think so. Some so-called magical tricks that these people use are fairly simple to learn, so you might want to check that out, too. You might be able to dazzle someone with your knowledge and skill, as some of these tricks are pretty good and take very little time to learn. As magical folk, they won't take us more than a couple of minutes, if that long. And your victims are still going to be every bit as mystified and the truth shall remain our little secret!
As Sir Walter Scott has eloquently put it, "Oh! What a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive!" Have fun weaving your web, just remember not to get caught in it!
- Sam