The Magic Of Form

It has been said that 'form follows function'. Thinking of the function of "things" often helps to see the form more clearly. It is easy enough to see that the function of a hand is to do things. The function of music (organized sound) is to help us perceive that sound more fully. We tend to shut out cacophony but when we can hear pattern and form in the sound it can be pleasing, even without melody. Understanding form, such as the principles of design that an artist might use, can help us to appreciate a work. However that appreciation might not need to be conscious. But it is pretty important when we intend to be the driving force behind a task or project. A creator does well to understand the tools with which she works. A mother needs to be able to use hugs, explanations, games, soothing sounds, persistence and much, much more to raise a child. A recovering addict needs to master the tools of self encouragement, getting outside help when needed, principles of self care, courage, etc. To create we must fuse intuition with will, the use of the left and the right brain together. To write a story there is a certain form to follow. There must be a certain amount of time spent on the different parts of the story. There must be a beginning, a middle and an end. If a key element of the story is presented too quickly, mentioned in passing as it were, the listener or the reader will not really comprehend the story. Each part of the story has a certain function in moving the story forward. A novelist has to ask 'what is the function of each chapter?'in order to write a cohesive book. A wise magician will be willing to pare down his 'words of power' to their essence in order to really understand what she wants to achieve. For seven years I taught inner city children in a class that was a combination of art and story telling. At first some would string together events in an endless litany without really telling a story. They would quickly lose their listeners. Creativity is meant to bring order out of chaos. The structure, the plan, the purpose, the form of a work are vital. If your life is in a shambles you can make it better by examining or discovering your values. Living true to your values will make your life 'well formed'. A person's life is their greatest creative work. Let the magic that surrounds you give you help in living true to your purpose. Let your life be well formed. May the spark be with you.

The Magic Of Reminders

People have been making up games and developing other strategies to point themselves towards success for centuries. The Old Testament in the Bible has some passages that tell people to wear tassels to remind themselves to do good. I use a modification of the children's game, slug bug, to encourage myself to be more optimistic. Instead of slugging my companion, if I am with someone, when I see a Volkswagen beetle I count it as a blessing bug. By noticing blessing bugs I am training my mind to notice blessings. After all there is much to perceive and we have to be selective in what we pay attention to. I have a place for chocolate candy that discourages me from eating too much of it. Candy in that place is candy I ration out to myself very sparingly. I actually hesitate to eat more than a bite of candy when it is in my rationing place. I don't always control myself enough but that placement does put the brakes on for me. Many people give themselves rewards for taking certain steps, or reaching certain goals. Often just the act of noticing that something good is being done is a sort of reward. We seem to like to notice when we are doing good things. So I suggest that you, as a wise magician use this tool or magic wand of reminders to help you craft a better life. Log a good activity, give yourself gold stars, brag to a friend, mark things on a calendar, make up a song or a game to keep yourself going. Even if it might seem silly to a dour old aunt go ahead and play success games. There is nothing silly about success. Reminders act as an anchor to behaviors you have already developed and want to keep up. They also act as triggers for your developing good behaviors. So reach out for energy to the magic that surrounds you and design your personal set of goals and reminders. May the spark be with you.

Question The Answer

Life is so full of questions that any answer can seem like a welcome port in a fierce storm. Be careful. The answer might not really fit the question. Or the question might have been the wrong one in the first place. Think about the question, What are you going to be when you grow up?, one children are often asked. This points children towards the path of labeling themselves. Actually growing up to full maturity means growing away from labels. Another thing that might happen is that you get the answer before you really know what question you are asking. When we have an epiphany or 'aha' moment that is an answer that has just been discovered whether we were consciously asking a question or not. Remember that magic likes things to be well formed. Make your questions well formed. One question that I think is poorly formed is when people ask 'what is the purpose of life?'. I think that life is. It is up to each of us to endow our own life with meaning. When you have a well formed question, that fits with what you are truly concerned about, decide how you will know that you have received a valid answer. A good answer feels right and it works is a pretty good rule of thumb. When it no longer works it is time to ask another question. That's why I would rather people ask a child about ways they will express their own individuality, not necessarily waiting until they are grown. Reach out to the magic that surrounds you and find some good questions. Ones that fit in with the path you want to be on. Then go forth and find some good answers, always remembering the way you are choosing to live. May the spark be with you.

The Magic Of The Fortune Cookie

Sometimes I have read an acclaimed self help book, sat through a long sermon, or even received advice from a well meaning friend and felt like I had no clue about what I had just heard or read. Then other times I have heard an adage or read a fortune cookie and had an epiphany, experienced a strong "aha moment". I think human understanding is organized along lines to help us take care of our self, to help us be our own magician using the wand when we need it. That which we let be a key to understanding, no matter how few words are used, is that which we see as helpful. It also has to be meaningful. Personal is meaningful. When we put our minds to interpreting and understanding something it does become meaningful. That's why omens and spells are part of the lore of magic. So I suggest this exercise (customized to fit your life): Cast about for areas of change you would like to make. Find words that describe the change. Play with those words to gain a better understanding of the change and find out how you react to the ideas they embody. When you feel a zing connected to a short phrase you have created you know you have hooked into the energy of magic. I need to improve my health by exercise. A mantra I might use (I'll have to try it out for a few days) is 'move to groove'. See if you can find something that works for you. May the spark be with you.

The Magic Of Owning Your Power

Everyone has the power to decide who they are. If someone makes a wrong or unjust criticism and you let it devastate you, you are giving up your power. Everyone has the power to exercise their right to take care of themselves. I once knew a woman who would rarely go to the bathroom when she had guests, no matter how long they stayed, nor would she suggest they go home. She excused her surrender of her own power by saying she hated to be hateful. Few people would go as far as she did but many do give up their power over themselves in many subtle ways without realizing it. If you take a more satisfying job but let others criticize anything about your choice you have given up your power. You could have not told them about the change or you could have stood up to their criticism. If you constantly procrastinate making changes for the better in your life you are giving up your power to have a better life. If you have tools or skills to manage you moods but turn to artificial means or methods you are giving up your power. If you are afraid of your power you may find it easy to give it up. Let the magic that surrounds you help you recognize that you do have power and that it is a glorious attribute. Enjoy and use the power over your life. May the spark be with you.

How Are You Smart? How Is Your SQ?

In 1995 Daniel Goleman wrote a book called 'Emotional Intelligence' in which he pointed out the importance of well balanced emotional health for life success. A person's EQ was looked upon as important as one's IQ. Character education became part of the curriculum in many school districts and parents and educators began to look at a more wholistic view in raising and educating children. Since this is a life-long process we can all look at ourselves in a more broad and nurturing way. We can appreciate that we are multi-faceted gems. It is not just the "positive" emotions that can help us, however. Every emotion has its purpose. I suggest that the ability to recognize our silliness is a very good thing. We worry and pressure ourselves because we do want to succeed. That is good. Unless the worry pulls us down too much.
The pressure keeps us focused so we do see signs of change or progress. However, the silly thing is that we may perceive an absence of pain or angst and fail to celebrate it as the milestone it is on the road to our goal. I suggest you cultivate the ability to laugh at yourself. Not to put yourself down. But as a way to notice when you get an aha moment and almost missed it. Develop a Silliness Quotient. Make games. Look for every sign you can find of progress. Notice your stupidity and silliness. Love yourself for noticing it and changing it. Life is one big long learning process. Since so much is brand new it's a wonder we ever get anything right. But we do. That is a magical thing. Use the energy of the magic around you to walk forward courageously, noticing all the different ways you are smart. Let your silliness teach you. May the spark be with you.

Magical Patterns

From birth our brain is wired to look for patterns of a visual nature. The mother's face that peers over us is a mandala, which is a pattern that promotes brain development. Later we can perceive patterns in sound, in events, and in movement. The process for rehabilitation from a brain injury often involves relearning the regular movements of crawling, as the rhythm of moving our appendages back and forth in rhythm also helps the brain grow. Sometimes random events take place which we perceive as a pattern because of the way it triggers ideas and insight. We then take these events as signs or omens. This is where your power as your own maker of magic can come into play. You can take anything for a sign and use it to trigger positive behaviors or insights. That is a way to hook into the energy of the magic that surrounds us. If you see an eagle you can use that for a motivation to soar above petty squabbles, to be loyal to your mate, to be playful, all of which are attributes of the eagle. Verdant green lawns can trigger you to nurture the earth or your money.
We choose what we perceive and what we think about. Look for, listen for, be aware of patterns that will help your life flow, help your life have meaning, help you live the life you want. May the spark be with you.

The Magic Of Counting

I am not referring to the use of numbers as some do in simplistic ways of referring to magic. The act of learning to count, of being aware of what you are doing with information, and what you have just done with information, is the beginning of higher levels of learning to use the mind. Calming yourself down so you can be clear minded, putting anxiety to one side in order to function more fully, listening for the essence of what is said, organizing ideas as to sequence or importance, are all thinking skills that some people do not learn to use. The wonderful thing about the brain is that it can be self aware and likes to learn. The rest of the body gets in on the act to help that process out. There are myriad physical sensations that you can learn to notice that are signals as to what is going on in the thinking process. The muscles, the organs, the eyes, the skin may all be giving you clues as to what ideas are whirling around in your head. Let all these messages help you form the finished thought. Suppose you want to develop your skills in organizing a project. A key word or picture can be the hook. Then try using the skill you want to develop, paying attention to what goes on with your mind as you try this out. Maybe you will feel a great tiredness, or find other distractions cropping up. Review how you did at this skill when you take a break. Try some more. Brain use is like any other skill. You keep at it, refine your attempts at it, plan ways to do it better, and remember what you have done to develop this skill. Also you must get a feel for using this skill. The feeling of listening to someone and understanding what they are saying is different from listening to them and feeling confused. Your brain is a magic tool. Learn to use it well. The spark of magic can help you take on this wonderful challenge. May the spark be with you.

Mentalist Magic

Right off I can think of three ways to improve your mental function. (1) Make sure you are physically healthy and are not deficient in any nutrients. To me it is amazing how important it is to make sure I am not lacking in the B vitamins. Rest is also important. (2) Do whatever you can to put anxiety away from you. The littlest moods can interfere with high level thinking. A comfortable place to think is a very good thing to be able to access. (3) Develop a number of brain use strategies. I will list some examples. Memory increases when you find ways of 'hooking' the information you want to remember with something else that has importance to you. Memory increases if you use rhythm as you try to remember an item. The metronome speed of 60, the speed of largo movements in Baroque music, when listened to before you attempt to remember something, will aid retention. When information makes sense it is easier to remember.
Repetition helps retention. Ideas will come to you if you develop habits of creativity. Welcome every idea, whether you act on it or not, so as not to cause your creative side to shut down. When searching for new ideas try looking at something in a different way than before, upside down perhaps. Use questions to elicit ideas. Pay close attention to details for a while. Then switch and pay close attention to the large picture. Your brain is your magic wand. Throughout life you will be learning better ways to use it. May the spark of magic be with you for that end.

The Magic of Brain Power

You can learn to use your brain better just like you can improve your singing or running. I am going to give you the rules for a solitaire game that improves the ability to think sequentially. This is a skill very useful in planning. The game is Trefoil or La Belle Lucie. Use a whole deck of cards. Lay all the cards out, face up, in piles of three. Only the top card of each pile can be moved. The object is to build on the aces from ace to king in each suit. The way you get to these aces, if they are not already on top of a pile, is to move cards and build them down on the same suit. A three of hearts will lay on a four of hearts. You must always have in mind the concept, 'if that then this.' Leaving the aces and any cards of that suit you have built up, you can pick up all the piles two times,(you can lay out the array three times altogether) shuffle and re-lay in the piles of three. You are also allowed to 'pull' one card at any time during the game that would otherwise not be available. The more you play this the easier it gets because your mind becomes more able to follow back to what has to be moved in order for something else to be available. Any time you decide to give yourself any kind of skill you are reaching out for that little spark of magic that will improve your life. Skills do make life less of a struggle. May the spark be with you.