Snow on the trees.

When I see the trees covered by snow, I get to think, "now that's magic." When people think of magic, they think rabbits out of hats, ribbons out of air, a woman changing into a tiger. Now that's not magic. That is illusion. You'll see that in Las Vegas, Disneyworld, and dusty bars at the corners. Magic is a baby laugh with you, a dog licking you on the cheek, an elderly couple dancing the waltz, trees blooming for the first time, the heartbeat of the world beneath your feet, the breath of the breeze through the oaks, and the moonlight dancing on the leaves. I was exposed to that when I was a teenager. I was this close (first fingerand thumb showing almost no space betwen them) before giving up on life. Everything had been hard on me; verbal, physical, emotional abuse, neglect, you name it, I experienced. I was the invisible one in the family unless they got in the mood to lash out on someone, or if I dared to get in trouble, even if it was a 'C' in grade, or talking back to an teacher. One day, I went to a store to read comic books, to get away from the world, and a cover jumped out. It showed a group of elves suffering, crossing the desert, desperation and resignation on their faces, yet the leader carrying a wounded elf in his arms, had determination on his face despite exhaustion. I felt something stirring in my stomach. I opened that comic book, and more pages I turned, more I felt that spark growing from an ember to a fire. In two weeks, I got Elfquest book two and book three, and let me tell you.. the elves suffered, they fought for their right to exist in the world, they embraced what life threw at them, and to "make lemonade of what they got," and the lemonade was good. I learned that I can choose my battles, that I have the right to live, and that I need to stand up for myself. I started to pick battles with the family, and in the end, a parent and I went to the hospital for severe injuries. But that fight showed them that I wouldnt' take crap from them anymore, and they left me alone. I started to bloom. I learned to laugh. I started to develop an identity, and I will tell you one thing- I started to see magic in everything. Nature is beautiful, and people can be beautiful, as long as they do not have intentions to harm. It's a miracle for a woman to grow pregnant, and for a man to build a treehouse in the oak tree. Magic between friends while they talk over coffee. Magic when a person hold out a hand for help and for someone else to take that hand to give help without asking for a price. From my experiences, I learned that hardship might be necessary to make you resilient, but it is not necessary to be hard or cruel. Magic is when you choose to discard your upbringing and stop the cycle of violence, by starting to help people to cut their own cycles of violence and starting with yourself.