Charm

<span><span>Joseph Epstein takes on that most enchanting (and alas increasingly rare) of human gifts charm. “Almost everyone will recognize when he or she is in the presence of charm” he writes. “Charm is magic of a kind; it casts a spell. In the presence of charm the world seems lighter and lovelier. A charming person can cause you to forget your problems at least temporarily to hold the world’s dreariness at bay. Charm is a reminder that the world is filled with jolly prospects and delightful possibilities. Watching Fred Astaire dance or listening to Blossom Dearie sing or reading the poems of C.P. Cavafy or merely looking at Rita Hayworth or Ava Gardner one recalls that the world can be a pretty damn fine place.”</span></span>