Who Are You Making Magic For?
The Sorceress by Bartolomeo Guidobono, c. 1690. (public domain - Cantor Center for Visual Arts at Stanford University)
“Magic is never for yourself. It’s a gift you give other people.”
When I was young, I remember being fascinated by magic shops — the kinds of places with decks of trick cards, metal linking rings, silk handkerchiefs, and other penumbrae magices.
How wonderful it would be, I imagined, to get an audience’s attention and amaze them with a trick I read about in some folded instruction manual that was jammed in the back of a package containing a fake finger guillotine.
Of course, the conjured image was always better than the conjurer himself, as I clumsily tried to pull off a David Copperfield-like deft move.
I’m not sure if it was more embarrassing for me or the small group of relatives who’d assembled in the living room for this underwhelming performance.
So I wasn’t going to be a magician. It wasn’t until later in life that I realized something:
We all have a little magic in us.
You may not know how to cast a spell or be deft at sleight of hand, but rest assured, you know magic words, you have gestures that amaze, and you can make things appear and disappear.
There are certain individuals — family members, friends, leaders — who, with simple words or gestures, can lift my spirits or make me feel like a better version of myself.
You know the kind: when just by being in someone’s presence or when they say something to you so personal, so sincere that you feel like you’ve been transformed.
Almost like magic.
I have a friend with whom I text or chat semi-regularly. Sometimes it’s daily, other times a few weeks go by between messages.
Yesterday, I sent him something, and he sent me a response that was truly magical. He gave me a gift I wasn’t expecting:
“By the way — and of course you would have no way to know this —but thank you for once again having that uncanny knack of reaching out to me about something just as Ive been on a spiral of insecurity and self-doubt.
This seems to happen a lot lately — where my friend Scott just happens to connect on something that, by making me think, ejects me from the spiral and brings me back to me. You have no way of knowing this…but you’ve taken on something of a Dumbledore persona for me, offering me just enough that I can make something of it.”
In that gift to me though, he shared that I was creating some magic for him.
Having read the Harry Potter series when it first came out, I deeply appreciated the comparison to the character who represents wisdom and goodness.
The Wisdom of Dumbledore
Professor Albus Dumbledore is a character in J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series. He is the headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, but more importantly, he is a spiritual guide for young Harry.
Dumbleore’s role wasn’t one of magic instruction, but rather guiding, mentoring, and teaching Harry about life. Rather than sharing arcane spells and incantations with Harry, his magic emerged in words of wisdom:
“It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live.” (Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, 1997)
“It is our choices, Harry, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities.” (Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, 1998)
“We must all face the choice between what is right, and what is easy.” (Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, 2000)
“Do not pity the dead, Harry. Pity the living, and, above all those who live without love.” (Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, 2007)
“Words are, in my not-so-humble opinion, our most inexhaustible source of magic. Capable of both inflicting injury, and remedying it.” (Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, 2007)
The wisdom of Dumbledore is something that even we muggles can appreciate.
Four Ways to Make Magic
Closer to home, Brad Meltzer made a commencement speech at the University of Michigan in the past week or so that I consider one of the all-time great commencement speeches.
I encourage you to watch the entire thing, but the one area I’ll call out to you is where he talks about how to make magic.
He reminds us that there are essentially four ways to make magic:
Make something appear
Make something disappear
Make two things switch places
Change one thing into something else
In essence, he tells the graduates to:
Make the best version of yourself appear
Make your fear disappear and harness it
Switch places to find empathy
Never stop transforming
In particular, he had this to say about empathy:
“Empathy is switching places with someone else. Every person you encounter is battling something you can’t see. The solution is switching places and feeling empathy. One day someone is gonna hug you so tight that all of your broken pieces will fit back together. The world needs more empathy, more humility, and certainly more decency. If you really want to shock the world, unleash your kindness.”
Brad’s advice is wonderful for the would-be magicians among us. But one thing remains: you don’t see magic if you’re not looking for it.
If you want to experience magic, you have to be open to it happening. You have to explore the world with a sense of curiosity and wonder. And know that you can be a recipient of magic as well as a magician.
Go make some magic.
There’s so much to learn,
