There is magic in everyone, it can not be measured or weighed, but this source does exist. I have always known this source ever since I was young. My siblings thought I was psychic.
PSYCHIC
I could find any lost item. Do you remember the Dear Saint Anthony Prayer? The prayer went like this, “Dear Saint Anthony, look around; something is lost and can’t be found.” I would picture the object we were looking for in my mind and imagine my family rewarding me with praise once I found it.
ATHLETICS
As I got older, I realized it worked with Athletics too. The first time we had a field day at school, I imagined winning the fifty-yard dash, the long jump, the shoe tie race, and the throwing contest. Sure enough, I had four blue ribbons by the day’s end. At the same time, I imagined winning the events, and I also held the feeling of my family congratulating me on getting first place in all my affairs.
From that day on, before I fell asleep, I would pray that I would become the fastest and most assertive person in the world. I never became the world’s most muscular man or ran in the Olympics, but it enabled me to have a successful career in the athletic world.
Could it work for the team?
Seventh grade was the first year of organized sports, sure, we did flag football, basketball leagues, and junior Olympics, but this was a considerable time. In a town of fewer than one thousand people, sports were the talk of the city: Junior High School, two grades, seventh and eighth.
The high school was in a big city of almost twenty-five hundred people. We won only two games in football, basketball, and track that were not worth mentioning in this blog.
I was so excited to be a part of a team representing the school that I had forgotten all about the magic I used when I was younger. So I began to pray that our football team would be undefeated the following year. Sure enough, we won seven games and lost zero.
I was so focused on football that basketball and track fell by the wayside, but we still managed to make it to the league championship game in basketball, and in track and field, we won the league.
High School
Playing High School Football was the most fun I have ever had. Our Coach was a big-time disciplinarian that knew how to win. I had injuries throughout my freshman year and had no connection to the magic. I made poor decisions over the summer and chose to hang out with an older crowd, not taking my conditioning seriously as I had since I was a young boy.
My sophomore year was a success; the magic had returned; we won six games, lost three, and missed the playoffs by one game. One of the highlights from that year was playing a rival we had not beaten in eighteen years. I prayed and envisioned running for two hundred seventy yards and scoring five touchdowns. We won the game forty-two to six; I ran for two hundred twenty-five yards and scored four touchdowns.
Once our Junior year came, it was time to run for the state title. We all worked hard and knew this season would be something special. Praying and visualizing success for this season for several years now, doubt crept into the back of my mind.
For the last couple of years, I have been reading about this athlete from one of the more prominent schools. He was breaking records and his team destroying opponents on the field. This guy must have been praying about being the fastest and the strongest kid too.
Our season was a success; we won eleven games and only lost two. We lost two games to the prominent school, once in the regular season and once again in the state championship.
Most starters were returning for our Senior year, minus a few key positions. We were all confident that this was going to be the year. I received many accolades from the year before, rushing for one thousand yards along with three other running backs returning; we had a stable of weapons in the backfield.
I always used magic, praying, and visualizing our team’s success. We ran the ball ninety percent of the time, and ball security was always a top priority. For some reason, as I was visualizing one night, a fumble appeared in my mind. I immediately blocked it out and would not give it any more attention.
We started the season just as good as we all thought; we blew out the first two teams we faced. The third game of the year was the prominent school from the year before, they were number one in the state, and we were number two. For a regular season game, it did not get much bigger than this. Thousands of people lined the stadium; track, camera crews for television stations, hell ESPN was there. It was a tight game; we were up four points and driving toward midfield. Fifty-six power, which meant it was my turn to run the football. After gaining a couple of yards, and breaking through to the second level, one of their linebackers hit me perfectly and jarred the ball loose for my first fumble.
In the next play, their stud running back took a toss to the short side of the field and scored the winning touchdown. It was only a regular season game, but it took a lot out of the team. We knew we would see them again, but this loss stung.
PLAYOFFS
We rolled through the rest of the regular season and headed to our first game in the playoffs. Because we crushed every one of our opponents, except for one, we never played a second half that season. Going into this game, we were beyond confident; cocky was an understatement.
At this point, I had forgotten about the magic. The ego had taken over, and I thought we were unstoppable. Right before the game, I knew we were not taking this team seriously. We lost this game, and some never played another down of football.
What is this magic? Quite simply, it’s our imagination. We all have this gift. It is in our best interest to use our will to focus on the greater good rather than the negative or anything we do not want. Our thoughts are powerful; our thoughts will produce our life regardless of whether we want the result. Disciplined use of our will to change our beliefs or focus on the greater good is how we use our imagination to create the life we want. It is similar to cement from a truck; without a form, it will pour out and not serve a purpose. But adhesive can take the shape of a porch, a patio, or a sidewalk with a document. Stand guard to your thoughts and be disciplined to have them take shape how you want them to in your life.