Break a Leg

I was discussing with my daughter the meaning of the English idiom "break a leg' the other day.

She thought about the context of wishing luck before an audition. That way the "breaking leg" grants you the chance to be "in the cast."

Maybe she's right. Maybe I should not entertain such a question. And man, the story of "in the cast" turns out to be true. Within two months, my daughter broke her leg. Not in an audition, though. After sports injury from ankle inversion, it looked like a golf ball had been seen into her ankle. She ended up in a cast this week.

I went back to get the crutches, which have been passed from one colleague of mine to another in my department. It makes me think of the children's game known as "musical chairs." That's how it works: everyone gets the chance. My daughter's turn this time. Uh-oh.