So What's Wrong with a Little Magic?

Some of the people I talk to say I engage in “magical thinking.” They maintain that I sometimes ascribe illogical outcomes to actions I take, or on the other hand I tend to attribute the cause of some experiences and developments to strange, mystical factors. It is decidedly untrue, and I can prove it using geometric logic, a branch of reasoning I learned from Humphrey Bogart.

Just because I think there are causes for certain things that are not immediately apparent, and just because I don’t always trust my subjective impression of reality, and just because others may think I am illogical, there is no reason to assume I am necessarily wrong in my thinking.

You see, I am convinced that we are all affected very much in our lives by the thoughts of others. Wait, before you line up to sign my commitment papers, let me explain. We all have prejudices, ways of categorizing what we experience. It's not malicious. It's a means of survival in a complex, confusing and sometimes downright scary world. So my thoughts influence the life of everyone with whom I come in contact (ooh, I feel so powerful). We all run the same risk and hold the same responsibility to monitor the way we think because we can actually harm others, even if we don't intend to. Conversely, of course, the good in our thoughts can significantly benefit others. Just ask any good parent about the positive effects of properly dispensed praise.

So, why do people give me strange looks when I tell them that the biases of others affect us all significantly in our lives, sometimes playing the major role in important outcomes? Well, okay, I don't always put it in such carefully-chosen words, but the point remains the same. What does that mean for me, or any other human being? To me, it is just this: I owe myself the good judgment to be careful in how I express myself, and how my behavior affects others. Not even for their benefit, but for mine. That's right. You can live a fair and decent life merely out of self-interest as opposed to any altruistic motivation. If that in turn benefits others, so much the better.

So I guess what all this rambling gibberish means is that a little magical thinking isn't all that bad. If it gets you to a better place, what does it matter? It seems to work, at least for me, geometric logic or not.

But I'd still like to know who ate all the strawberries.