Real Magic
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(Lose the Net by Rasmus Faber Courtesy of Epidemic Music)
How amazing it is that good questions lead us so naturally to good answers, and that beautiful questions lead to even better answers! When we open ourselves to the things we don’t know, we’ve opened the doors to discovery and wonder and greater understanding.
I’m Scott Lennox and you’re listening to The Beautiful Question, a consideration of things that matter every day.
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There is always magic in the air when we are willing to stop and notice it.
Join me this week as we consider real magic and where to find it. Stay with me.
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People all over the world are intrigued and delighted by performances in which so-called magicians make seemingly extraordinary things happen. They move so deftly—so skillfully and adroitly—that the illusions they’re performing seem real. Sometimes called “prestidigitation” (from the French, meaning quick or nimble fingers), sleight of hand is about tricking someone into believing that the impossible has taken place right before their eyes. There’s no doubt that many people like being fooled.
Such magicians can cause things to disappear and reappear or defy gravity or float in the air with no visible means of support. Doves appear in a flash of fire or vanish the same way. With the flick of the wrist, a wooden cane becomes a bouquet of flowers. Beneath a whirling, menacing blade, a person is cut in half and then mystically put back together without a drop of blood being shed.
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That’s all entertaining, but if you’ll allow me to name it as such, there’s magic of an altogether different kind. I’m talking about real magic.
For instance, watch the magic that happens when someone chooses to stop being judgmental or chooses to stop hold grudges against someone. Suddenly, there is a softening and kindness spontaneously appears.
Or notice the magic that takes place each time we choose to accept ourselves exactly as we are. In an instant (okay perhaps more than an instant), self-punishment ends and self-compassion arises and with it comes the relaxing of long-held physical tension.
Or quietly witness the transforming magic that reveals itself when we choose to speak to ourselves and to others with a bit more encouragement and ease in our voice. Again, there is a release of tension and hope emerges, seemingly out of nowhere.
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Speaking as someone who for years allowed himself to become jaded and practically numb to the good things happening around him, I have to admit that I now live in a world that is altogether magical, every day.
The tiniest things now charm and fascinate me.
This week, I was talking with a new friend as we stood on my front walk as she was leaving. I noticed a tiny dove feather beside her foot. Not half an inch long, I picked it up and handed it to her. She smiled and talked about how she had been having close encounters with hawks and crows. Magic?
An hour later, while talking with someone else near that same spot, it happened again. There, right beside his foot, was another feather about the same size as the first one. We laughed as I told him about what had happened earlier. More magic?
Later that afternoon, I was sent a message that said finding a feather is an indication that angels are nearby.
While I’m not here to debate the existence of angels, I can attest to the peace that stayed with me all through the day as I thought about the morning’s encouraging conversations and those tiny white feathers, one of which is here on the desk in front of me. Don’t try to convince me that what happened that day wasn’t magical. I know better.
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Call me naïve or childish if you like (I’m okay with either one.), but I know how I feel when I notice the small bits of magic that are happening around me all the time. I feel joy. I feel peace. I feel connected to myself and to life. I feel gently and lovingly connected to the people around me. If there’s a better magic than that, by all means tell me about it. I’m listening. In the meantime, I’ll keep doing what feels genuinely good and genuinely joyful. I’ll keep dancing with life and with the magic around me.
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I hope this week’s Beautiful Questions inspire you to look for the magic that’s happening in you and around you.
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Question One: What magical things—small or large—have happened in your life?
Question Two: How did you feel when you experienced those thigs?
Question Three: Are you willing to allow yourself to become even more attuned to real magic for the next twenty-one days?
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If you’re willing to share it with me, write and tell me about the magic that’s happening in your life. I’ll stand in wonder as you do.
As I say each week,
My Light with Your Light!
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I’m happy we can engage this way as we consider things that matter and what to do about them. If nothing else, I hope you feel inspired to look more deeply at ways of caring for yourself.
You can be further inspired by visiting my friends at Kosmos Journal. That’s K O S M O S Journal. Their mission is to inform, inspire, and engage global transformation in harmony with all life. You can easily find them online at Kosmos Journal dot O R G.
And at thebeautifulquestion.com, you can read the illustrated transcript of each podcast as you listen. We’ve also included an archive of all previous podcasts, including guided relaxation audios that can help you practice letting go on a daily basis.
If you find these podcasts useful, I encourage you to share them and tell others about them. That’s a great way of helping me get a voice of calm and collaboration and balance and encouragement out into the world. It’s a great way of spreading peace.
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I’m Scott Lennox, and this has been The Beautiful Question.
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The Beautiful Question is a One Light production, written, produced, and engineered by Scott Lennox at HeartRock Studios in Fort Worth, Texas, as a way of paying forward to life, being fully present, becoming better engaged with things that truly matter in a complex world, and committing to a healthier future for all of us.