Magic and Perception: Clouds

Magic and Perception: Clouds

Imagine a cloud in your mind. In this cloud, are the molecules that bring it into being. The cloud's shape, size, and color can change, perceptively, based on the things like how many of the molecules saturate it, and where the light hits it from.

Imagine that cities can have personalities. It has a reputation for its people behaving in a certain way, and, likewise, that reputation causes that precise mindset to take root in many of the people who live there. The individuals have their own beliefs that fuel how they manage that mindset, but that mindset does have an effect on their decisions. Suppose then, that the people within that city decide they want to act against the norm. If the city's personality is truly as it suggested, the people who want to resist, will find opposition, and be fighting to swim against the current, so to speak. Likewise, if they decided to flow with the city's personality, they would find encouragement and an outlet of ease for their methods.

Reapply this view of the city to the model of the cloud. The people bring it into being, affecting its size, and the personality, or mode of perception [term acknowledged for Tarquinus], from that city, creates its shape and color. Makes it a fluffy cloud high in the sky, or an angry cloud raining judgment down upon us all.

Chapter II: Choosing A Reality

Lets take a step closer to home from the entire city. Lets zoom into the life of a single person in that city. Psychologically speaking, humans are socially dependent. In a sense, this is what creates the atmosphere where this person either swims with, or against the "current" of the city. Other people's thoughts and perceptions influence the person's thoughts and perceptions because that person is socially dependent on their input.

The star basket ball player of a small town's high school could be considered to be something like the town's pride, or personality node. The supporting thoughts of the town helps to influence and encourage the player to do better. That node would also be the point of contention in personalities with other views. When a rival team comes to play, that star player is bolstered by his support, but pushed down by the opposing Boo's.

Given the circumstances, the player can either succumb to the chants of the rivals, or rush forward with the cheers of passion aiding his movement. Rather than view his surroundings as the game where his victory means their defeat, he chose the reality that told him their defeat meant his victory. He chose the reality that coincided with the beliefs of the support, and it gave him the extra wind he needed to fly.