Real Magic

My hypothesis is: that books about magic are really about, in a broad sense, religion and about God or divine powers. Magic is a metaphor for spiritual power.

For example: in the book of Exodus, Moses confronts Egypt's Pharoah and does a trick that divine inspiration told him to do. Pharoah calls his court magicians and orders them to duplicate it. They do, but Moses trumps their tricks. Moses proceeds to do more "magic" that just dumfounds the Egyptians.

In more modern times, magicians often try to duplicate religious magic: for instance, turning water into wine was one that Christ Jesus did originally. Tricks of levitation were probably demonstrations again from the Bible of Jesus ascending. I think that these and other magics were part of theatrical presentations about the gospels.

In the super-popular Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings books, magic is a power that can be used for good or evil--like the "Force" in the Star Wars movies and as most religions hold, the eternal battle between God and the Devil. 

We all possess some "magical" or God-derived powers. Use them well.

Hippies on Martha's Vineyard

The longer we live here on Martha's Vineyard--one year, as of Halloween--the more pleased and surprised I am by the year-round inhabitants. Few easy characterizations except: 

In general, the voting adults seem "liberal" in the good, old-fashioned, sense. 

There are a lot of single moms. 

Lots of community activism and volunteers. 

Many people work two jobs. 

I feel more comfortable here than I have in some other places I've lived; tho I tend, as a writer who sits with his computer most of the time, to be fairly comfy everywhere, here I'm comfy when I'm away from the computer.

Couple weeks ago we went to a "Buy Local" fair at the Agricultural Hall up-Island in Tisbury. It's a semi-rural atmosphere, still, and many of the folks and especially the kids are comfortable in rural surroundings. Here's a young girl (named, as I recall, tho I didn't write it down, "Pearl") whose father let me photograph her long long hair.