Awesome Moments are Magick

The definition of magick is a tricky one. It is slippery and misty. It is something that is elusive and undulating. Trying to define it is like trying to hold a fistful of sand. You almost get it, but it tends to slip right through your fingers. One of my favorite definitions of magick comes from Dion Fortune said: “magic is the art of changing consciousness at will”. Although I agree, I think I’ve stumbled on a much simpler description: awesome moments are magick.

Awesome

The word awesome has been totally dumbed down in our modern lexicon. I do it myself. Gwion says: “hey, I picked up some of that incense you like”. My response: “oh awesome!”. Is picking up incense really an awesome thing in the truest definition of awesome, no, not really. (I mean it is nice and all and I do appreciate it, but awesome it is not.)

Something that is awesome, should fill you with awe. Awe is a feeling of reverential respect mixed with fear or wonder. True magickal moments should leave you feeling a reverential respect that engenders both a little bit of fear and a little bit of wonder. I mean, that sounds good right?

Being struck with awe likely happens to you more than you might realize. Here are a handful of times I’ve been struck with awe in the last month:

• Standing on a cliff’s edge overlooking the Pacific ocean.
• Seeing a photo of my friend’s sweet baby.
• Watching my precious baby sign up for college classes.
• Being in my backyard to watch three deer have lunch.
• Hearing a raven calling, but not seeing a raven anywhere around me.

Magick

These are simple, small, seemingly ordinary moments, but each one left me with a sense of fear and/or wonder. This is magick. In fact, this is the magick that I crave. This is the type of magick that I sing to, breathe for, and lust after. These small moments that happen to us each and every day are magick. The world is filled with awesome wonders, we need only to open our eyes to see them.

That is why awesome moments are magick.