Halloween—the night for tricks and treats; for costumes and make believe. There’s something incredibly delicious about getting dressed up and running around the neighborhood in the dark, ringing doorbells, and scaring the daylights out of each other. If you don’t believe me, just ask the 7 year olds in your life. They’ll tell you.
But the more important question for you and me is does the 7 year old in you remember that magic? The magic of becoming something entirely different? Of shape shifting and time shifting? Of imagination and wonder?
It wasn’t just a broom—it was a witches’ broom and it could fly.
A cape wasn’t just a cape. It could fly too and you knew, down to your core, that if you just ran fast enough you might touch off and rise up into the sky. And from there who knew what adventures waited for you.
Boundaries morphed and warped. Possibilities were infinite. And you, in the middle of this night of wonder, felt positively, irreversibly alive. And that, was a good feeling; a very good feeling indeed. But now, we’re adults.
Maybe, you got dressed up for a Halloween party over the weekend. Maybe you grumbled as you did so that you’d really rather not have to dress up at all. You’d rather stay in and call it a night. A costume party’s fun but let’s face it, it doesn’t carry the charged magic that Halloween costumes carried when you were 7.
You and I have gotten more serious. We’ve gotten more “realistic”. We know we’ll never be able to fly on brooms; we’ll never be super heroes; we’ll never really score a Quidditch goal or save the world in a sexy costume.
The magic seems to be gone. It seems like some big chunk of the excitement and anticipation has dried up. The wonder of it all seems out of reach. And life, has gotten, well honestly a bit more dull because of it.
You and I aren’t 7 anymore. And while we may not feel called to dress up or run around the neighborhood like we were 7 anymore, I’ll bet there are some wonder filled energies in you that have summarily gotten stomped down over the years. Dreams that you or others told you were unrealistic; would never happen. We weren’t taught how to call forth and nurture the kind of energies that keep us unabashedly alive and vibrant. We’re taught to behave in a certain way—like adults. And right along with that has come the slow and steady dulling of our zest for life. Our vim and vigor. Our joie de vivre.
My trick or treat for you on this fun filled eerie night—and it’s a treat, not a trick—is to wonder what you’d do if I threw you a real live magic wand. Seriously.
So, I know, first you’d take the huge, long, never ending vacation. You’d make a pile of money for yourself. You’d…… huge list here no doubt.
And then what?
Who is it you’d really LOVE and I mean L.O.V.E. to become?
What would you do if you knew you couldn’t fail?
• Would you swim across the Atlantic?
• Would you start a non profit and feed kids on every continent?
• Would you write a book about living off the grid?
• Would you live off the grid?
• What would absolutely set your soul on fire?
Let me know. Leave me a comment. I really want to hear from you all on this one.
