Backyard Magic

On Saturday, I witnessed a paleoanthropological event in my own backyard when my three-year old son began to perform some sort of ritual nature magic.

Pictured here is the talisman that he constructed to imprison a “bad guy.” The sticks are very deliberately placed, which was made clear when, in typical toddler fashion, he kicked over the structure, only to rebuild it. This happened three times, and while there was some variation upon each iteration, the general design was remarkably similar. He made sure to place many of the individual branches in the same position and orientation each time. The placement of the pinecone was especially important.

I think I was witnessing the birth of some sort of nature-worship, a curiosity about the structure and arrangement of things coupled to the notion that objects have a power that might be unlocked or channeled under the right conditions.