MAGIC IS SOMETHING YOU MAKE

I was walking through one of my favorite local stores shopping for some last minute gifts when I stumbled across this amazing journal. The pages are bound in leather with the etched phrase, “Magic is something you make”. I didn’t second guess the purchase. I knew that these pages would soon begin to contain all the magic that is swirling around in my head as I begin a year full of promise and possibility. It would be a place to create, reflect, dream, and plan. Throughout the day the leather etched phrase kept replaying in my head. The more I reflected, the more I realized how much it spoke to something I’ve struggled quite a bit with over the years and need to finally reconcile once and for all.

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Throughout our lives we learn from so many people. The relationships in our life and the experiences that we associate with them help shape the people we become. There are relationships that model characteristics we want to emulate and others we want to avoid at all costs. Each relationship is tied to experiences, positive or negative, that teach us lessons about life. Though I have gone through a few turbulent seasons and experienced some tough lessons, I feel blessed that my life has been rich with a wonderful family and friends that have wanted the very best for me and have loved me unconditionally.

My life story is a compilation of chapters full of lessons and learning that are connected to so many people. When I think about my 25 years of teaching experience, I know that my teaching philosophy and style has been influenced by incredible mentors, my professional learning network, books, podcasts, and colleagues that I’ve been fortunate to learn from. In fact, I’ve learned so much from so many people throughout my lifetime that I’ve all too often struggled recognizing my own magic. The dialogue that takes place in my mind goes something like this:

“What I am doing is nothing special.
"My ideas are just a mix of other people’s ideas."
"I am not as creative as {insert name}."

​Do you ever have a similar mixtape playing in your head? If so, press STOP! In fact, replace it with an entirely different narrative. 

What you do IS special. 
You've mixed learned ideas with your own unique skills, personality, & creativity to create something beautiful.
You are unrepeatable. Your genius can't be replicated.

Magic is something YOU make.

Have I learned so much from so many. Yes.
Should I acknowledge and give credit to those people and the impact they’ve made. Absolutely!
Should I discredit my own ideas because they are a compilation of life experience and learning from incredible people. Heck no, and you shouldn’t either.

Not one of us spins ideas from thin air. They all take root from another source and when woven with our personality, skills, experiences, and current reality they swirl into a magical recipe of awesomeness that is all our own. We all have a story to tell. We all spin our own magic. Don’t sell yourself short. Your magic is unique to YOU.

As I think about the coming year I know that I have a lot of magic to make. It would be easy to let my negative mixtape play on repeat and listen to the narrative telling me lies. But, not a chance I'm going to push play on this nonsense anymore. Instead I will play the truth that tells me my story is not only worthy and beautiful, but it’s also only mine to claim. 

Magic, my friends, is something YOU make.
Own your story.
​It is beautiful.