Life is full of magic
It’s a golden hour dog walk listening to the birds, sunset swims at my favourite beach with my favourite people, watching the sun dance on the water. It’s finding a new favourite coffee spot, or a shop that sells beautiful things that I want to take home. It’s setting a table for dinner with friends, using the fancy napkins and lighting candles because why not? It’s looking at the sky when it’s just got dark, and feeling so tiny and small compared to the stars.
Dusk at Paihia, Bay of Islands, New Zealand
I use the word magic to describe all kinds of things, but really it’s an intentional and quiet sort of a feeling, one that makes you stop in a sort of awe-like way. I feel it in all kinds of situations and places, and I can’t define it in one simple way. But it’s the thing I suppose that makes life feel special and worthwhile, and like I’m so lucky to be a tiny person on a big spinning rock, with oceans and fields and people and dogs.
There is of course an opposite to my kind of magic too. It’s autopilot, numbness and just getting things done. Slogging through the week just to get to the weekend. It’s also doing things because you’re supposed to, or because people tell you to, and following a pre-determined timeline because well that’s just what you do. I’ve been stuck in that place so many times, but have tried so hard not to fall back into it.
Early mornings beside the Gannel Estuary, Newquay, Cornwall
I’ve tried so hard to choose intention, pushing myself to really sit with all the parts of life and work out what is a good fit for me, and what definitely is not. I’ve focused on the things that make me feel that magic feeling, even if it means going outside of my comfort zone or leaving situations that from the outside, looked perfectly okay. I’ve dissected and put things back together, each time really trying to choose what feels good and true and like me.
I’ve noticed that this way of seeing things seeps into everything. Whether it’s how I spend my weekends, the books I read or the things I choose to buy for my home. It’s almost as if once I started I couldn’t stop, and I’m so pleased that I didn’t.
Sunset over the sea at Ringstead Bay, Dorset
I’ve come to a place now where it’s seeped into my work - I guess it was only a matter of time! I can't help but see brands the way I see everything else, asking whether they feel intentional, whether they feel true to the person behind them, whether they make you stop for a second. That quiet magic feeling is something I'm always looking for.
Magic is a lot of things for me, and I’ll forever be adding to that list.
When you think of your own unique idea of magic, what do you feel? How does it show up in your life or your business? How can you invite more in?
