What magic lay in the cookie!

The population of North America (Canada in this writer’s case) in the modern age is one that surprisingly believes in magic in the most traditional and ancient sense possible: witches placing hexes and removing curses upon families, people coming under the influence of demonic possessions, cleansing tools and grimoires that can be purchased online. Yet I think to myself now, what about the ancient ways of survival, where people knew seemingly forever how long to cook something to get the highest caloric intake, the different ways to cook things like eggs, and how to make so many amazing and differing varieties of cheeses from various different animals as examples - is that not magic to ponder and let the mind wander and wonder about?

I think of different sewing techniques used by so many varying cultures that would have had no contact with each other - it doesn't matter which, any will do -, of the clothes that the differing olden and ancient peoples of the world wore (and some still wear) that are designed through an intuitive nature over the course of thousands of years to be the most effective for the environment the individual wearing and making may be in - keep heat in the cold, keep cold in the heat. Kilts made of wool for the scots to keep warm that will naturally stop blowing water from drying into the material to those who live in the hottest regions of the world that still seem to be able to completely surround themselves in cloth and robes, yet still remain impossibly cool and with a temperature regulation that is uncanny.

More thoughts swarm in: what of the differing building techniques that each culture had, great stone palaces and churches, teepees that are so simple to pack up and travel with it seems impossible, sod houses used to mix and mingle the home with the heart of nature. What of the foods created from every single culture around the world, juices and wines created from berries, passionate and romantic dishes that use plants for garnish, ovens used to create bread, which brings me into my next point and the thought that prompted this article idea.

Think of the magic - the emotion, the planning, the forethought, the concentration, the dedication, the ritual, the science, and the love for the current and next generation - that would have gone into making something seen nowadays as so commonplace, so matter-of-fact that a child could follow the recipe at 6 years old (and some do!), but I urge you (yes, you!) as a reader to sit and empty your mind for a moment, empty your prejudices on everything and perceive from a new perspective. I implore you to think of what processes lay behind the creation of something so amazing!

One would have to grow and mill flour of some kind (and understand the science behind that AND keep it maintained from disease and the consumption of vermin and pests, obtain a sweetener like sugar or molasses (and once again understand the science and growing and harvesting MORE plant life), get some salt from a merchant or salt mine (no big deal), make and have butter ready and on stand-by and obtain eggs (now there's animals involved on top of the plants, and one must feed the animals to get the by-product) as a final ingredient, but obviously each type of cookie would have a different list of ingredients so don't set that in stone - I read and write and work, never really bake much.

Now, after obtaining those things (and more for add-ins) understanding the science and process behind every aspect of making those cookies, then one would have to heat them at a certain heat for a certain amount of time and understand all the science and theory behind THAT, and then they would be good to eat - and not only would this be able to help you survive, it would taste good, it would improve the ones quality of life! There are people today who can’t even cook a meal that LOOKS edible...there are people who can’t even make cereal without messing that up.

I mean goodness! For even more context, the oldest cookie in the world is the Italian pizzelle and that recipe is from the 8th century!*

Yet still, still, to this day there are people who refuse to believe that magic lies in everything, everywhere, all around everybody. Once you begin to look at things from the perspective of one who has never been to this world, never before seen the beauty of anything in the world, once one begins to FEEL what they perceive around them as the artist, the poet, the CREATORS FEEL as they create and think, rather than one who is expecting something from the world, expecting it to just be placed upon one's lap when they least expect (and deserve) it.

Once one begins to see the cookie, and the building, and the book, and the Christmas wreath, and the bird's nest, and the language around one (I could go on forever) with a lens of such intense curiosity (how did this get here, who made this, how did they make it, when was it made, I wonder what this and that symbolize, what could possibly be inside that object) that you cannot see anything BUT magic in everything!