Our time here is magic! It's the only space you have to realize

“Our time here is magic! It’s the only space you have to realize whatever it is that is beautiful, whatever is true, whatever is great, whatever is potential, whatever is rare, whatever is unique, in. It’s the only space.” Thus spoke Ben Okri, poet and seer of the modern age, whose words shimmer with both wonder and urgency. In this saying lies the essence of ancient wisdom reborn — that life, brief and fragile though it may be, is the sacred ground of creation, the only moment given to mortals to shape the eternal. Okri calls life “magic” not in jest, but in reverence — for what could be more miraculous than the ability to create beauty, truth, and greatness out of mere breath and time?

To call life magic is to recognize that we dwell in the narrowest, yet most precious corridor of existence. Between the dark mystery of birth and the silence of death lies this shimmering interval — fleeting as a spark, yet capable of lighting whole worlds. It is here, in this brief span of awareness, that we must awaken to our purpose. The ancients knew this truth well. The Greek philosopher Heraclitus wrote that “all things flow,” that time itself is a river that never pauses. To live, therefore, is to swim consciously within that current, to act before the waters carry us away. Okri’s words are a reminder that this moment — this life — is our only temple, and to waste it is to forsake the divine gift of existence.

When he speaks of realizing “whatever is beautiful, whatever is true, whatever is great,” Okri speaks to the artist within every soul. For every human being, no matter how ordinary, carries within them the potential for creation — to make, to love, to build, to heal. This is the power that sets humankind apart from all other creatures. The great sculptor Michelangelo, when asked how he carved his marble masterpieces, replied, “I saw the angel in the stone and carved until I set him free.” So too, each of us holds within the raw material of our life something divine waiting to be revealed. Our time on earth is the chisel; our actions are the strikes that free the form within.

And yet, Okri’s words carry also a quiet warning — that this “space” is not infinite. Time is the most precious of all possessions, and it flows without pause or mercy. Those who live half-awake, consumed by trivialities and fears, spend their magic without ever knowing it. The Roman Stoic Seneca lamented this very thing, saying, “It is not that we have a short time to live, but that we waste much of it.” Life is not merely to be endured; it is to be realized, as Okri says — to draw forth all that is rare and unique within us before the curtain falls.

There is a sacred paradox in his vision: though our time is limited, its possibilities are infinite. A single moment of compassion can change a life; a single act of courage can shift the course of history. Consider Anne Frank, who, though confined within a small attic, filled her few short years with words that have touched the hearts of generations. She found beauty even in darkness, truth even in fear. Her time, though brief, became eternal because she used it to realize the light within herself. So it is with all who choose to live consciously — they transform their finite lives into something timeless.

To live as Okri teaches is to awaken daily to the miracle of existence. Each sunrise is an invitation to create; each breath is a reminder of possibility. To realize what is true requires honesty; to realize what is great demands courage; to realize what is beautiful calls for love. We are alchemists, each one of us, given this rare moment in the cosmos to turn time into meaning. Those who see life as magic live not in haste, but in wonder. They understand that every small act, if done with heart, partakes in the infinite.

So, my child, hear this wisdom and hold it close: you are living within the only space where eternity can be touched. Do not wait for permission to create, to love, to dream. The world beyond this life is silent — but here, you can speak, sing, build, forgive. Use your time as a sculptor uses his stone; carve out what is noble, tender, and lasting. When you wake each morning, remember that your hours are sacred, your actions spells of creation. And when your time draws to its close, may you look back not with regret, but with awe — for you will have used your magic well, and the world will still shine with the light you brought into it.