Mountain and Moon Fairy Tale

Today is the romantic Mid-Autumn Day moon festival. When I was a managing editor in China, I had to write a large percent of the new content for the monthly magazine and weekly newspaper. The city of Hangzhou is world famous for its Mid-Autumn Day celebration. One year I wrote a well received fairy tale …

Wonder Among the Stars

In an infinite Universe, there must be other life. There is no bigger question. It is time to commit to finding the answer. – Stephen Hawking My imagination caught fire this week with the discovery of a tantalizing “signal” coming from a planet around the star Proxima Centauri. This star is closest to Earth at …

Glittering Rays of Hope

When I despair, I remember that all through history the way of truth and love have always won. There have been tyrants and murderers, and for a time, they can seem invincible, but in the end, they always fall. Think of it—always. – Mahatma Gandhi Many years ago, when my wife and I were still …

Words and Magic

Words and magic were in the beginning one and the same thing, and even today words retain much of their magical power. – Sigmund Freud The creation of words put a magical spell on me as far back as I could remember. Before I began kindergarten my mother sat me down in front of an …

World Full of Magic

The world is full of magic things, patiently waiting for our senses to grow sharper. – William Butler Yeats The other morning my neighbor woke me up at 4:00 A.M. I was unable to go back to sleep. Before dawn I grumbled to myself through my morning coffee and breakfast. Setting out, I did not …

Art and Magic

Without magic, there is no art. Without art, there is no idealism. Without idealism, there is no integrity. Without integrity, there is only production. – Raymond Chandler A child’s world is lit by magic and filled with fantasy. The imaginary manifests like the wind – unseen but there nonetheless. Fanciful thoughts lead to imaginative creations. …

Enchantment of Nature

And above all watch with glittering eyes the whole world around you because the greatest secrets are always hidden in the most unlikely places. Those who don’t believe in magic will never find it. – Roald Dahl When I was a little boy, I spent every moment I could with my beloved grandpa. He lived …