The Magic that Grows

It’s the second night of summer camp, and a real-life fairytale has arrived. Suddenly, all the characters from every Disney movie I knew were there in a small country town in Texas or at least, that’s what I believed as a little kid. For the past ten years, that night has been the most magical of them all. As I’ve grown older, I’ve come to realize those characters were imaginary. But the magic of camp never left it simply transformed.

Even after all these years, it is hard to put into words what makes summer camp so special to me. As a young child, it was undoubtedly the activities what kid doesn’t love swimming, staying up late, and spending time with friends? But as I grew older, the magic of camp became less about the activities and more about the people and the way they made me feel.

Every night at camp for the past ten years, I’ve looked up at the stars, and the rest of the world has gone silent. In that moment, nothing else matters. It’s a peace that words can’t quite capture. And just like the stars in the sky, it is not any single moment that makes this place feel like home it’s the collection of memories and people, woven together to create something extraordinary.

As I’ve gotten older, that’s where I still see the magic I once knew as a child. It’s not found in one grand moment, but in the small, fleeting ones the laughter shared in the cabins, the quiet talks under the stars, the friendships that feel like family. Camp has been my second home since I was three years old, and its magic isn’t something I left behind in childhood it simply changed shape.

Being a child is one of life’s most precious experiences, a time when everything feels magical, and there’s a beautiful naivety in believing that the world is inherently good. As children, we believe in pixie dust, fairies, and princesses. Wonder fills our minds, and possibilities open the door to big dreams rather than causing stress or anxiety.

Yet somewhere along the way, often before we reach our teen years, those big, wild aspirations begin to fade. Why is it that as we grow older, we stop dreaming? We’re told to “get real,” to focus on the tangible, to listen to the voice of reason. But in doing so, we often forget the wonder that once made life so vibrant. It’s as though we’re taught to outgrow the magic we once believed in, like it’s something to leave behind as we grow older. Self-doubt and self-criticism are learned habits - they aren’t born with. But why let them stand in the way of chasing dreams that could make life just as magical as it once was?

The truth is, the magic isn’t gone—it’s just different. As adults, we don’t often believe in fairy tales the way we did as children, but we can still find magic in the small moments. It’s in the laughter shared with friends, the quiet comfort of a conversation with someone who understands us, or the way the world looks when we stop for just a moment to appreciate it. The magic is in connection, in moments of peace, in the dreams that still live in our hearts, waiting to be nurtured again.

Perhaps, the key to bringing back the magic isn’t trying to recreate the past but instead choosing to look at the present through a lens of wonder. Maybe it’s about finding joy in the little things—the way a song can take us back to a simpler time or the way a new idea sparks excitement and possibility.

In the end, the choice is ours. We can choose to believe that magic is something that only exists in childhood or in fairy tales. Or we can choose to embrace the wonder and possibility that’s still around us, hiding in the small, fleeting moments that make life extraordinary. Just like camp, where the magic transformed over the years, we can let our dreams evolve too—growing into something more meaningful, more grounded, but still full of that same sense of wonder.

After all, magic isn’t about finding a fairy tale world, but rather life is about seeing the beauty in the world we already live in, no matter how old we are. It’s about embracing the magic within ourselves and the people around us. And, like summer camp, the magic doesn’t have to be left behind; it can grow with us, shaping our experiences in ways that continue to fill our lives with wonder.