The world is fascinated by magic, wizards, medicine women, potions, amulets, spells, mythical creatures; they all show up in one form or another in every society across the globe.  A quick Google search of the word “magic” will give us thousands of hits that include fiction writings to serious religious practices. In modern society, “magic” seems to be used synonymously with “fantasy.”

What does it mean to gaze back at what gazes? What are we missing? In the words of poet Kaia Sand, how do we notice what we notice? How do we notice what we don’t notice? How can we see that which has disappeared?

As a college student, I witnessed a classmate leave pregnant on a Friday and return Monday as a new mom. In a handful of days, she gave birth and came right back to class; only now she needed to care for her newborn who would dominate her time and energy.

There was a time during what now feels like the distant past when being lost in an unfamiliar place was a familiar and near-universal experience. Without a phone with which to input an address or location so we could be assuaged with step-by-step commands to a relevant reference point, most of us experienced the disorientation associated with our inner cognitive map’s learning curve.