Hobgoblin

 A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds.

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

A hundred years ago I was an English Lit major. And while Emerson was my personal hero (at least during that semester's survey course on American Literature) and I almost named my second child after him (lucky for Mae she's not a Ralph), I can't say that I spent a lot of time wondering what he meant, exactly, by 'hobgoblin'.

But that wasn't the first or the last time I stumbled on a reference to the folkloric character. From Shakespeare to Tolkien to weird fantasy role playing games, the hobgoblin resurfaces on numerous occasion and in plentiful manifestation.

And now he's back. The girls attend a Waldorf preschool/kindergarten here in Chicago (worthy of its own post) where their days are filled with soup, song, and story. Bela has been listening lately to a series of stories involving a prankster little old man who comes in the night and hides your toys if you've carelessly left them out. Waldorf thinks that oral narrative plays an indescribably profound role in a child's inner life. Bela thinks this little troll is for real. And me? I think it's all pure genius. Seriously? A hobgoblin?That's all it takes? Their playroom has never been cleaner.

Needless to say I've taken the story and run with it. 

     "Do you really want to leave those crayons lying out? "

     "It would be a shame if you lost your puzzle pieces."

     "I might be able to convince him to leave the castle you made out of wood blocks, but there's no way he's not touching that pile of books you've cast all over the floor. "

My mom called last night and the kids, certain I was involved in that conversation--the one I had been threatening all day (you know which one I'm talking about)--ran screaming into the room, begging me to ask him not to visit our house that night. My mother, always one to play along, clued my step-father in on the game, and in seconds Bela and Mae each had a conversation with a real-life hobgoblin.  He talked. They listened. Toys were cleaned up. Order was restored to our home. 

Waldorf - you're worth every penny. Hobgoblin indeed.

PS - there is no picture for this post. I am in the process of convincing Bela to draw her very own interpretation of the creature. When she finishes, I'll post.