Meridian Magazine :: Halloween and the Magic of Synergicity

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Halloween and the Magic of Synergicity
By Richard Eyre

Editor's note: Today's column continues a series on the Third Alternative of "Synergicity." This column winds up the discussion of the third alternative, "SYNERGICITY," explaining how the concept can replace the loneliness and isolation of "Independence." Write to Richard@meridianmagazine.com. with comments.

I've never been quite sure why, but Halloween was always my kids’ second favorite holiday. I guess it is because they got to dress up, but I also think kids are drawn to the supernatural. To them, the idea of magic is far from a black or dark thing; it is something wonderfully fun and exciting. And maybe they just like the idea of things that adults cannot explain!

Anyway, Halloween comes at a good time this year, because I am in the process of trying to explain, in this column, the marvelous attitude/paradigm/approach to life that we are calling Synergicity. It is the alternative to the idea of independence, and there is a lot of magic in it. Again, let’s remind ourselves of the definition of our new word, our new paradigm, our third alternative, the one that can replace the limiting and selfish notion of "independence."

Synergicity: A state of mind and spirit that acknowledges (indeed, celebrates) one's complete dependency on God and complete interdependency with others and develops synergy on all levels. An attitude and approach that gives all credit and gratitude to God, seeks His will and looks for His hand in all things, particularly in the timing and interconnectedness of events.

Now let’s talk about the magic!

We talked about service last week, and of what an indispensable part of Synergicity it is to serve others. And we referenced a little bit the "magic" of service and of how the bread we cast on the waters comes back to us a hundredfold. So let us define magic as things that defy natural laws as we know them — things that our faith let us depend on even though they don't add up mathematically. Why do we get a hundredfold for all that we give? Laws that we know can't explain it. So for today, for Halloween, let’s call it magic.

Think with me about the other magical elements and ramifications of synergicity:

Synergy, where 1 + 1 can equal 3 or more. When we work together with others, recognizing their superiority to us in many ways, understanding that they know things we don't just as we know things they don't, and respecting the stimulation and idea leap-frogging that takes place when we brainstorm or think through something with other people, we begin to benefit from a certain type of magic, and we find that the total is greater than the sum of its parts.
The Syncronicity of the Lord's timing. When we want things when we want them, we are often disappointed and frustrated. On the other hand, when we work and pray for righteous things, but trust the Lord's timing, we begin to see a bigger wisdom and to grow in faith and perspective. We develop patience and empathy and we learn to see the big picture. There is another type of magic in this, as it is revealed to us (usually after the fact) that the way things happened was for the best, and that there were things we could not have understood if things had not gone as they did (and happened in the time they happened.)
The absence of coincidences. Someone once said that "coincidence" is the word we use when we do not see or understand God's hand or His connections. Most things happen for a reason, even if the reason is small or hard to notice at the moment. And if we are looking for Synergicity, and asking ourselves, why is this happening right now, or why did I meet this person just now — we can sometimes find those reasons, or at least see opportunities in what is going on at the moment. There can be purpose in everything, and the magic is in finding it.
Relationships. When you think of it, almost every relationship is a kind of miracle. In this world of 7 billion people, how did you find your spouse? Or your best friend? And how did you end up with the kids you have, who, if we really look, were meant to come to us? There are so many "needles" that we really do find in "haystacks." Is it just luck or happenstance, or is it a kind of magic?
Service. The one we discussed last week. How do good deeds come back to us a hundredfold? That is mathematical magic. How does a bishop find 30 extra hours a week on top of the time required by work, by family, by personal needs? How does he find hours that are not there, to serve? And how is his life more blessed than when he is spending more time going after blessings? How did the loaves and fishes multiply? How do we always seem to get blessings when we give them?
Expanding on that last sentence in #5 —perhaps the most magnificent magic of all (and it is the very core of what we are calling Synergicity) — is that things do not diminish as they are given away. In fact, they grow and multiply. Temporal things deplete. If I give you an apple, I have one less apple. It is on spiritual things that the magic works. If I give you love, I have more love left than what I had before I gave it. The same is true with joy, or peace, or with what Christ called "good cheer."
The magic works with things that we don't usually think of as spiritual, but that really are. Compliments, optimism, empathy, sympathy, and interest are some of those things. The more we use up, the more we have left. The more we give to others, the more they give to us.

A world without these kinds of magic is temporal, and not at all spiritual. It is mundane and small. It is governed by lower laws and does not draw down or even take into account the powers of heaven. But a world with this magic is both a joy and an adventure. We are awed by what we do not understand. We feel God's love through the magic. We become good receivers as well as good givers, and we find the joy that Nephi told us we were sent here to gain.

Next Week

Next week, let’s begin our summation process, and look back at all three Alternatives, (Serendipity, Stewardship, and Synergicity) and at how they can work together. Then let’s begin to get into the "how to" part of this column and look for ways, means, methods, techniques, and whatever keys we can find to obtaining and developing more of all three of them.

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About the Author:

A former Mission President in London and candidate for Utah governor, Richard was the director of the White House Conference on Parents and Children for President Reagan. He served on the President's advisory panel for secondary and higher education. A graduate of the Harvard Business School, he headed a management consulting company for 20 years before giving it up to meet the growing demands of his writing and speaking schedule.

Richard and his wife Linda are parents of nine children and authors of a dozen bestselling family and parenting books. They are now focusing on the phase they are entering: Empty Nest Parenting. Through their web sites valuesparenting.com and familynightlessons.com, their frequent national media appearances and theirspeaking and lecture tours (see http://www.theeyres.com/), they continue to work at their mission statement which is, "FORTIFY FAMILIES, popularize parenting, bolster balance, and validate values."