Seeing isn’t Believing, Believing is Seeing

What if the only thing holding you back was the story you’ve been told to believe?

Yes, Christmas is over, but I’m going to be sharing one of the most impactful movie quotes I got hit with when I was a kid. My favourite Christmas movie of all time is… Get ready for it… The Santa Clause. 

I may have watched this movie over a thousand times, yes one thousand times as it was also a movie that helped me a lot with my sleeping anxiety when I was younger. 

Aside from a great cast Tim Allen, Wendy Crewson, Judge Reinhold, Eric Lloyd and David Krumholtz bring to light a different yet wonderful take on the story about Santa Claus. 

This is not a movie review I promise. 

I loved anything ‘Tim Allen’ when I was a kid–I was a HUGE Home Improvement fan (still am today). 

The movie has a line in it when Scott Calvin (SC:Tim Allen’s character) has a hard time wrapping his mind around the fact that Santa Claus is real, let alone that he has become Santa. His elf executive assistant, Judy, played by the talented Paige Tamada and SC have a back and forth that stays with me to this day:

SC: I’m talking to an Elf. And I stopped believing in Santa Claus a long time ago.

Judy: That’s not surprising, most grown ups can’t believe in magic. It just..sort of grows out of them.

SC: This is fabulous. Is that a polar bear directing traffic out there? I see it, but I don’t believe it. 

Judy: You’re missing the point. Seeing isn’t believing, believing is seeing. Kids don’t have to see this place to know it’s here. They just…know.

Damn. 

Judy just spat out some knowledge that benefits us more than we could ever know. 

As I’ve mentioned on this blog before MANY times, I grew up in a spiritual home. The kind of background that inspired me not to dismiss magic as some unrealistic woo woo nonsense. 

But really… 

The magic I’m referring to is the boundless power within each of us–the ability to shape and create our reality. 

Growing up, I was taught the profound truth that we are the architects of our own experiences. 

While it’s taken me a long (and ongoing) journey to fully understand and embrace this, each step has deepened my understanding of what it truly means and how to bring it to life.

The journey begins with belief. 

My relationship with believing myself has been a tough one, to this day I have a lot to learn about it. 

So far I’ve learned that it doesn’t matter how many people believe in you, if you don’t believe in yourself. This is by far one of the most difficult lessons to learn for me. This is exactly what Judy was talking about in my opinion. 

Belief is a thought provoking topic. 

How we believe is determined by a few different factors: 

• Personal Experience: We trust what we’ve lived through or consistently witnessed.
• Social Influence: Our beliefs are molded by trusted authorities, cultural norms, and the people we surround ourselves with.
• Cognitive Framework: New ideas are more likely to stick when they align with our existing thoughts and worldview.
• Emotional Resonance: The beliefs that shape us most deeply are the ones that connect to our emotions and identity.
• Repetition and Consistency: Familiarity breeds belief; repeated exposure makes ideas feel true.
• Need for Meaning and Certainty: Beliefs provide a sense of purpose and help us navigate uncertainty.

Of all these factors, social influence holds a powerful sway over us. Society shapes what we accept as truth far more than we realize.

We were taught to disbelieve in magic.

We were taught to see ourselves as separate from one another.

We were taught to doubt our own potential.

And now, as adults, the work begins.
We must unlearn these limitations and teach ourselves to believe again:

In magic.
In connection.
In ourselves.

Where to begin? With our emotions. 

Our emotions are the key to unlocking the infinite wonder that this life has to offer us. 

I used to believe that I couldn’t become a daily meditator, or a consistent reader and yet here we are soon to be three years later–I’ve proved myself wrong on that front. 

The sauce? Connecting with my emotions daily and learning the difference between leading from my heart versus leading from my head. It’s as simple as following the feeling that feels warm, not cold.

Our emotions hold the power to make us believe in anything, but here we are focusing on all that can go wrong instead of what could go right. 

Like Judy said, ‘Believing is seeing.’ Perhaps the real magic lies in our ability to believe first and create the rest.

I invite you to think of all the things that can go right in your day today, and don’t let the little fucker in your head tell you otherwise. 

Sending you love