Who’s to say

Before I had kids, I stumbled upon a quote by Roald Dahl:

“Those who don’t believe in magic will never find it.” 

I didn’t know then how often those words would come back to me. Not just in parenting, but in the way I look at almost everything.

It’s one of those quotes that gets brushed off easily. It sounds sweet. Childlike. Maybe even naïve. But it holds something deeper. Not just about fairy tales or fantasy, but about the way belief shapes the world around us.

It’s not that believing guarantees you’ll find what you’re looking for. But if you don’t believe at all, how would you ever recognize it when it shows up? Magic is just the metaphor that makes it easier to see. It's vague enough to hold space for doubt, and bold enough to demand a little courage.

I see it when I talk to my kids. The question always comes: “Is Santa real?” And I never give a straight answer. Not because I want to trick them. They’re smart. They know the truth, or at least they’re beginning to. But I don’t think the real question is about Santa. It’s about wonder. About whether we’re allowed to hold onto something that can’t be proven but still feels true in its own way.

So when my son asked, a little hesitantly, as if he wasn’t sure what kind of answer he wanted, I said, “Well, honey, if you don’t believe, of course he doesn’t exist. But what if you choose to believe? What if it’s not about the person, but the feeling? The lights. The quiet kindness. The sense that something special is happening, even if you can’t explain why.”

The same goes for the tooth fairy.

He asked, “Is it just you putting the coin under the pillow?” And I could’ve said yes. Could’ve ended the story right there. But instead, I asked, “How about we just both wish it were real? Not say we’re pretending. Just… keep the magic alive together.”

He liked that.

I liked that.

Maybe there is a tooth fairy. Maybe she’s just very efficient and appreciates a little help from parents when she’s got a busy night. Who’s to say?

That’s the thing I keep returning to. Who’s to say? Maybe magic isn’t about spells or sleigh bells. Maybe it’s about choosing to see the world as more than just facts and logistics.

Maybe it’s about staying open ... to wonder, to beauty, to the small possibility that something lovely might be waiting just beyond what we can prove.

And if you don’t believe in that… well, how would you ever find it?

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