To be or not to be Enchanted…What a Dumb Question!

I cannot fathom the idea that some people do not ever feel enchanted by the world, much less experience daily enchantment. Today, I climbed to the top of one of the highest natural points in San Francisco, and looked down upon the city—the various neighborhoods, the unique architecture of every skyscraper, Golden Gate Park, the power lines and cell towers atop hills, the crimson towers of the Golden Gate bridge, the brilliant ocean and the expansive blue sky thinly painted with swirling clouds. Gazing out upon this vista, I could not help but feel a speechless sense of enchantment, “that energizing and unsettling sense of the great and incredible fact of existence” (Bennett 159). Today, I was awed by the power of music and amazed at how easily a bike can be balanced on two thin tires. I could have stayed all day in the Chinese restaurant I ate at just to watch others eating and interacting. I was inspired by the twisting and spiraling of tree trunks atop the hill I climbed, got to watch a golden retriever pant his way up the hill, and experienced the best moment of my day when a goofy man in a funny hat crossed through an intersection on his scooter. What I am trying to say is, the possibility of enchantment is everywhere, and all we must do is be open to experiencing it.
Perhaps it is fairly easy to find enchantment in a beautiful hilltop view of San Francisco and the Pacific Ocean, where one is distanced from life and sees a beautiful mask but cannot discern the disturbing details, but how do we discover enchantment when we return to the thick of society and daily face its ugly issues? Through my work at the needle exchange, I have discovered that it is not only possible to discover enchantment, but that the possibility for enchantment is just as great in places like these as it is anywhere else in society. I am working with the outcasts of society: drug users, ex-prisoners, people who cannot afford medical insurance, people who have Hepatitis C, HIV, and AIDS. My work involves waiting around for several hours, and every once in a while calculating some simple addition and putting some various sized needles into a brown paper bag. To anyone who hasn’t experienced it, this job seems depressing, mind-numbing, and the largest discourager of enchantment. Yet, I have met some of the most interesting people, and every time I work at the needle exchange, I have some experience, however small, that I have never had before. My interactions with the people who come to the needle exchange have led to many moments of enchantment, and I have realized that enchantment does not just occur in the presence of a pretty sunset or happy situation, but “enchantment does coexist with despair” (Bennett 159). “To be enchanted is, in the moment of its activation, to assent wholeheartedly to life—not to this or that particular condition or aspect of it but to the experience of living itself” (Bennett 160). Every human (and animal, organism, and object’s) life is interesting and beautiful in the sense that it has never been lived before, and thus every life is worthy of enchantment and wonder.
Enchantment is everywhere, and the simple realization of this fact is all it takes to cultivate an appreciation of life, others, and the world we live in. “The modern story of disenchantment leaves out important things, and it neglects crucial sources of ethical generosity in doing so. Without modes of enchantment, we might not have the energy and inspiration to enact ecological projects, or to contest ugly and unjust modes of commercialization, or to respond generously to humans and nonhumans that challenge our settled identities. These enchantments are already in and around us” (Bennett 174). Enchantment inspires me to continue my work at the needle exchange, even though I have already completed my required hours. The needle exchange is proof that we live in “a turbulent and unjust world,” but “the more aware of wonder one is—and the more one learns to cultivate it—the more one might be able to respond gracefully and generously to the painful challenges posed by our condition as finite [and imperfect] beings” (Bennett 160). Humans can no longer passively witness suffering and blame their non-action on the idea of a pointless and disenchanted world. Disenchantment is figment of the mind that can be easily cured, and we must instead cultivate wonder and a profound attachment to life that will inspire us to activate positive societal reform, no matter how small the scale.