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Life and its idiosyncrasies loosen our connection with the curious child within us. We start associating magic with fantasy, and forget that magic is actually very much a part of our everyday lives.
I have a child who believes in the magic of magic. She thinks there is actually a treasure at the end of the rainbow, and that in some corner of the earth, there must be a fairyland which no one knows about.
She is almost 6-year-old now and the pragmatic me used to try to tell her to come out of this imaginary magical world. “There is no magic in reality,” I insisted every so often during my conversations with her.
I could see a flash of disappointment cross her face whenever I said so. Every time.
A few months ago, while we were having lunch, she grumbled about the taste of yoghurt that day and requested me to feed her. I sensed this could just be an excuse for getting fed by me and I happily obliged. The moment she took a spoonful in her mouth, she exclaimed.
“The curd now tastes delicious, Mumma! How did this happen?”
“Well! That’s Mother’s Magic,” I instinctively quipped, amused.
“See! I told you magic exists. It is everywhere Mumma!” she tried to convince me.
I was zapped for a moment. That day I realised that I need to stop telling my daughter that magic does not exist. Why was I trying to curb her beautiful perspective of finding magic in the world around her, I wondered?
As I pondered upon it more, I recognized my folly. Magic does exist.
Nature enthralls us in myriad ways. It fascinates us. It leaves us spellbound. Its gigs and acts can leave us gaping in awe, if only we can pause and pay keen attention. Be it the birth of a child or a sprouting of a plant; be it the vibrant rainbow or the changing colours of a chameleon – there’s boundless magic everywhere. It doesn’t even need a wand or a potion.
And then there are humans who touch your life with their magic. Some people create magic with their art. Some captivate you with the goodness of their heart. Some spread magic by deeds which leave you amazed and mesmerized.
The problem is that once we hit adulthood, life and its idiosyncrasies loosen our connection with the curious child within us. We start associating magic with fantasy, and forget that magic is actually very much a part of our everyday lives. We do not have to always look for logic or a scientific explanation behind all that happens in the world.
And more than anything else, like my daughter perfectly puts it, we need to stop assuming that what we know and understand is only the gospel truth. If we allow ourselves to get surprised, there are multifarious magical moments or phenomenon that go beyond explanations, clarifications or reasoning. We just need to feel it.
Recently, we ordered a Christmas Storybox Set for our daughter as a pre-Christmas present. Among other interesting activities and goodies, it contained material for making a magic mailbox for Santa. According to the storybook that came along with it, every letter put into the mailbox reaches Santa instantly.
She is excited about it and this time, I did not try to ruin her fun by my ‘reality check’ talks. Rather, I am as enthusiastic about this magic mailbox as she is, and I have joined her to decorate it.
My daughter has opened my eyes to look at the concept of magic from a different vantage point. I don’t laugh at or dismiss her talk related to magic anymore. So, when she spots magic in milk turning into curd, or curdling to paneer, I concur and smile. Because there is!
Image source: RODNAE Productions on pexels
Multiple award winning blogger, influencer, author, multi-faceted entrepreneur, creative writing mentor, choreographer, social activist and a wanderer at heart read more...
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UP Boards Topper Prachi Nigam was trolled on social media for her facial hair; our obsession with appearance is harsh on young minds.
Prachi Nigam’s photo has been doing the rounds on social media for the right reasons. Well, scratch that- I wish the above statement were true. This 15-year-old girl should ideally be revelling in her spectacular achievement of scoring a whopping 98.05% and topping her tenth-grade boards. But oddly enough, along with her marks, it’s something else that garners more attention – her facial hair.
While the trolls are driving themselves giddy by mocking this girl who hasn’t even completed her school yet, the ones who are taking her side are going one step ahead – they are sharing her photoshopped pictures, sans the facial hair, looking nothing less than a celebrity with captions saying – “Prachi Nigam, ten years later”.
Doctors have already diagnosed her with PCOD in their comments, based on photographic evidence. While we have names for people shamed for their weight – body shaming, for their skin colour- racism, for their age- age shaming, for being a female- sexism, this category of shaming where one faces criticism for their appearance has no name. With that, it also has zero shame attached to it.
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