Let’s All Have a Good Sit for Tea at the Periodic Table of Elements

I often have ideas that are based purely on speculation, entirely around the fact that I simply want things to be spectacular in some way, I want there to be a twist to life that makes it more than simply neurons flashing impulses in my brain and molecules reacting to eachother.

In youth, we are reared on religion. We are told wonderful stories of magickal men healing the sick and parting giant seas and being swallowed up by whales. It is presented to us as fact, these insane myths of worldwide floods and resurrected heroes. We give those myths special days of the year where we all sit down and have a big slice of ham and talk about how thankful we are for our magical god to allow us to be so fortunate. And as if that wasn’t enough, we throw in bunny rabbits who hide painted chocolate eggs and breaking and entering fat old elves who tip toe through the homes of children to drop off presents.

Then at some point we become disillusioned, first with the Santas and Peter Cottontails, and for many of us, even the Jesus Christs. It all becomes very clear that science is in everything, all aspects of life can be explained, from the quick flash of lightning on the horizon to the very nature of human existence. At first it seems so alluring, after having spent all of that time pining over whether or not God will approve of our behavior, suddenly we can begin living our lives for ourselves, knowing that nature and science don’t distinguish between good and evil, so your actions have no direct influence on your outcome.

But then that all becomes very bland as well. To look at a tree and simply see the process it went through to grow into a tree as being a series of chance events and calculations is to forget how massive that slender splint of bark and sap and leaf is, how it has been here for hundreds or thousands of years, watched man after man born and to die, squirrels have stored massive amounts of acorns in its holes and more birds have flown in, out and around it then there have been airplanes ever built. Eventually, you begin to see the magick in things. At first it is just an appreciation for the world. For the relationship of the buzzing bee and its taunting seductress the flower. For the cracks in an old abandoned warehouse and the smell of aging civilization. For the gentle twitch of a young girl’s hair as she looks at you for the first time in the way that she will only ever look at you, and only this one time.

Soon enough, if you don’t pay too much attention but instead just let it happen, you’ll start to see the magick in everything. It will drive you a little mad at first, laughing at yourself because you can see the ridiculousness of believing in it, having been trained quite literally in the basis of protons, neutrons and the like, but eventually it will all become clear…

If you let it.