No adults allowed?

Early last week, Warner Brothers released a new full-length trailer for "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" on its official movie Web site. As soon as I found out about it, I went straight to the site and watched it with unrestricted glee, marveling at the spooky character design of the Dementors and giggling at a cute little exchange between Hermione and Ron.\nSuddenly, for a moment, I felt sheepish. Why was I getting so excited about some silly kids' movie? I'm 21 years old -- shouldn't I be more concerned with the upcoming elections, the war in Iraq or even just getting into graduate school? That moment quickly passed when I remembered, "Oh, right, 'cause it's awesome." It's a legitimately great book, not to mention my favorite out of the whole series.\nStill, why the guilt? C.S. Lewis once said, "When I was ten, I read fairy tales in secret and would have been ashamed if I had been found doing so. Now that I am 50, I read them openly. When I became a man, I put away childish things, including the fear of childishness and the desire to be very grown up." \nSounds like a pretty good philosophy to me. Childish things can bring a lot of joy into an otherwise boring existence. So what if I'm an adult? Big deal. That's no reason to punish myself by refusing to indulge in little pleasures just because some publisher decided they should be marketed toward kids.\nThe New York Times decided to create a separate best-seller list for children's books specifically to move Rowling's texts off the "real" best-seller list and make room for more mature fiction. Regarding this, critic Richard Corliss pointed out on www.Time.com: "The Potter series is one of those cultural events that spills out of narrow categories and into the Zeitgeist. Reading the books, kids feel more mature, adults feel younger. And all become part of a community where age doesn't matter." \nDespite the admitted universality of the texts, in the UK, publishers released adult versions of all five books with more sedate, less cartoonish covers in an attempt to make adults feel okay about reading them in public. The text inside was unchanged, but the cover art was meant to somehow validate the adult reader's interest in the book. Clearly, there still exists the notion that becoming mentally involved in things with a "for children" label reduces one's credibility as a rational, intelligent adult.\nWhat is there to be so self-conscious about? Just because something is aimed at children does not mean that it is intellectually void. Books and films do not come with expiration dates warning: "Must read before age of 16 to avoid looking silly." Don't be afraid to give something a chance just because it isn't marketed toward you.\nI'm using "Harry Potter" as a popular contemporary example, but in truth, there are plenty of enjoyable things out there that are supposed to be just for children. What about those wonderful films released by Pixar, such as "Monsters, Inc." and "Finding Nemo?" I'm sorry, but if they continue creating such fun and lively movies, I'll see them even when I'm 50, whether or not I have children accompanying me to justify my adult presence in the theater. \nIt's spring, the time when our energy peaks after an entire season cooped up by the wind and ice. I say we all take advantage of the warming weather and indulge in a little childishness. Watch your favorite childhood film and see if it still has the power to move you. Get outside -- splash in puddles, ride the swings, blow dandelion fluff all over the place. Heck, next trampoline I come across, I'm kicking off my shoes and bouncing to the moon.