You tried to stay awake. It\u2019s human nature to resolve the mysteries around us, so catching even the barest glimpse of the deliveryman in his gift giving glory would be a victory.<\/p>\n
I did the same. We all did.<\/p>\n
It never worked. At your youngest, you thought it was a midnight delivery. But midnight was still a mythical place to you, something that couldn\u2019t possibly be real.<\/p>\n
Until the day it was.<\/p>\n
Yet you passed through midnight with your own cookies and milk without ever witnessing any part of the delivery.<\/p>\n
Until one day, you nodded off for just a moment and missed everything. He even ate your cookies.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s when you started playing with chemistry sets and reading books about astral projection and the aliens behind the pyramids. Those traps you set never spring.<\/p>\n
Sure, you were old enough to know the truth, but you also knew the power of perception, the art of sleight of hand, the secrets of illusions, and ultimately, magic.<\/p>\n
Now you\u2019re older. You perform on massive stages across the world. You\u2019ve had experiences difficult to reconcile with all the truths you\u2019ve been taught. Puzzle pieces that used to fit perfectly seem out of place now, so you return to that old question. That mystery.<\/p>\n
You don\u2019t need traps anymore. You make it through the mists of midnight with ease. You set gifts out for your own children, all nestled and snug in their beds.<\/p>\n
The deliveryman arrives in the weak pre-dawn light. You catch a glimpse, nothing more, in your reflection on your phone.<\/p>\n
You aren\u2019t just the magician. You are the magic. You are the mystery. And you, all this time, were always destined to play the role and deliver.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"