January 26, 2021 2 min read

This picture started it all… (found this gem in my journal after leaving it unattended for a short stent).  My heart melted…tears swelled up a bit! I will never lose this page and it will forever be apart of my journal!
This made me stop…  and ponder… am I being intentional enough?  It seems to me like we’re all under a spell?  Yeah… if you can’t tell I’ve been doing some late night reading with my kids lately “The Golden Princess and the Moon“.  It’s a retelling of “Sleeping Beauty”  We are almost done and our family has really enjoyed it.
But really follow me for a moment…  we all see it but do we notice it? The cold glow of that harsh light reflecting from our phones, tv’s, iPads, readers, tablets, heck you can’t even drive your car any longer without looking like a “glow in the dark swatch watch”!  Our eyes have become the victim of hypnosis (the spell).   
Our minds have become rooted in a stream of constant engagement (spellbound).  But imagine with me for a moment… what if we could break the power of it’s spell over us?  What would that even look like?
Would we be more patient… kind… loving?  Could we see our neighbor and their needs?  I wonder if just reading this “lengthy” post your mind is already being pulled towards the next stream of engagement?  The magic is working… but not in our favor.
WELL… STOP AND BREAK THE POWER OF THIS CURSE! 
Understand: I’m most certainly not “dad of the year” preaching to the masses… I’m a dad just like you who is trying (with many failed attempts) to pour into the next generation. 
 
Moving Back Into Reality:
In fact before I began typing this email I first penned the words into my journal. There is something special about the texture of pages between your fingers or the feel of the pen gliding between the blue lines…  I wanted my kids to visibly see me think and write… without the glow.
I made a decision awhile back to turn the TV off and read to all my children before bed.  This has been a huge success and now they are begging every night to hear me read the next chapter.  Every chapter has ended with, “read just one more… “
But, the power of the spell is strong and continues to pull me back.
I want to hear what you think… reply to the blog below or better yet… write it in your journal and get out of the stream.
Oh… and if you don’t hear from me before Christmas… (hoping that one, or both of us can break the spell…) 

I TRULY WISH YOU A MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR!
The Definition of Magic
“That depends on what you mean by magic.  Some think of magic as tricks and illusions, willing things to be otherwise than what they are.  That is not magic but deception.  Magic is true to the harmony and nature of things, nurturing things to grow into what they really are or purifying them into what was originally intended” –The Golden Princess and The Moon