A magic trick

He told me he was a magician and had the ability to transform soft objects into hard form. But I had to close my eyes.

Ambreen Sheikh April 05, 2014
It was the second day of Eidul Fitr. My khala was visiting us with her husband and three kids; two boys (15-year-old and 13-year-old) and a 10-year-old girl. I, on the other hand, was five-years-old at that time.

These are the characters that are directly and indirectly related to the ultimate magic trick.

I remember all of them and all of us sitting near a gas heater, bonding away like families do over such occasions. My mother, with my three-year-old sister sleeping in her lap, and my khala were discussing family issues, while my father was convincing my khalu to join him in his business and how much more a business can offer these days as compared to a nine to five job.

My khala’s daughter was sitting quietly in a corner. Her eldest son was sitting with me while the younger one went to explore the Eid festivities going on outside. As we were all enjoying the chilly evening weather, the doorbell rang and my phupho along with her husband came to pay us the traditional Eid visit.

With the crowd increasing, everyone decided to depart towards the living room; the men started off with their ‘men talk’ and the women with their regular chit chat.

My mother, after placing my sister in bed, went into the kitchen to fix some tea and snacks. My cousin and I were the only ones left in the room. After a few minutes of awkward silence, he told me that he is a magician and knows how to do some great magic tricks. I, like a charmed child, got excited by the mere sound of the word ‘magic’.

He told me that he possesses power over material objects and has the ability to transform soft objects into hard form and vice versa. I was a curious child and the thought of witnessing a magical transformation amazed me.

He folded his hand and pointed his index finger towards me, and said that with his great magic power he is going to make his index finger as soft as cotton. I could not contain my excitement. He got up, closed the door and turned off the light. I tried to run away but he grabbed me. I told him to switch the lights back on because I was scared of the dark. He gave me a warm smile and explained that his magic trick will only work in the dark. With the conviction of his words, I agreed to stay, but only if he would hurry up with his magic trick.

The room was dark and the only vibrant green light was glowing out of my Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle watch. I was anxious and wanted him to start the magic trick. He made me lie down on the couch besides him under a blanket and asked me to hold his finger and close my eyes. I simply followed. He then asked me to feel the finger and I did as I was told. I told him that it was still hard and bony. He asked me to keep my eyes tightly shut as the magic trick was about to start.

A fear crept up in my heart as quickly as it vanished.

I could feel something very soft in my hands. I told him, with a tint of excitement in my voice, that the magic trick was working. He asked me to hold the soft finger tightly and feel it from every angle to make sure that every part of it was soft. I grabbed his soft finger in both hands and felt it from top to bottom and made sure that he is not lying.

He really was a magician, I thought, he did actually transform his hard bony finger into a soft boneless finger.

Soon after, I got bored and told him I wanted to leave. He stopped me and asked me to wait for the second part of the trick, where he will magically convert his soft finger back to its hard form. By this point, I was bored because I was only allowed to touch the soft finger and not see it. I didn’t want to be there for the second part but because he was being really polite, I decided to stay.

I was told to hold his soft finger for four to five minutes and then suddenly, I could feel his soft finger turning hard in my hands. I was lost in wonder and excitement. My young heart could not fathom how he managed to do it. The magic trick really worked, I thought in excitement.

I smiled at bhai jan, thanked him for generously showing me his magic trick and for choosing me from amongst all the other kids around to witness the trick.
WRITTEN BY:
Ambreen Sheikh A Software Engineer who works at Ericsson. She focuses on the development of women leadership in the world of technology. She tweets @anbreensh (https://twitter.com/anbreensh)
The views expressed by the writer and the reader comments do not necassarily reflect the views and policies of the Express Tribune.

COMMENTS (24)

12homesus | 6 years ago | Reply Cleverly written article. Awesome work and great information. keep the good work going.
Lalit | 9 years ago | Reply thanks for enlightening us....
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