While reviewing a list of Spanish reflexive verbs this morning, my teenage son was curious to learn more about one verb: deshacerse. This verb means “undo” and “get rid of.”
We flipped open the “501 Spanish Verbs” to review the conjugation and look at some examples. We were both surprised by the final example:
el deshechizo: breaking off a magic spell
“Why would they have a word for something that doesn’t even exist?” moaned my son. “Don’t they know that magic isn’t real!?!”
He continued complaining, “When am I ever going to use this word?” As we looked for examples, we realized a better English translation is “disenchant.” Ah, now that is a word we can easily use!
But, I like the idea of “breaking off a magic spell.”
What are the things that leave me feeling disenchanted? That list is rather long. But, what makes me enchanted is moments like this where I get to partner in the learning with my child and laugh while we figure it out together.