Haven’t you always wanted to find a door that leads into Narnia?
After watching a cartoon version of The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe at the age of six, I was constantly on the lookout for any possible portals into the world of Narnia. Being an expert at finding where my Mom hid our relatively small Christmas presents, I thought finding the entrance to an entire world would be a cinch. Closets, laundry doors, dangerous trap doors under stages—all were potential candidates. Constant vigilance!
But after twenty years of searching, I never discovered a portal to a magical place. And yet, a few years ago I had an awakening so powerful it was almost like finding a new world.
While living with a host family in Moscow, Russia, I went to see the movie Prince Caspian. The cinematography was stunning, and while watching the movie I could feel that familiar, childish longing to find Narnia. And yet, as I left the theater, I looked around at the raw, exotic beauty of Moscow and thought about how that movie was filmed in our world.
Indeed, all of those great fantasy films (Narnia, Harry Potter, The Lord of the Rings, Stardust, and countless others) are filmed in our own world. The world around us is the inspiration for those magical worlds of fiction.
When I first became aware of Narnia, I was living in Anchorage, Alaska—a magical world of its own; a tourist paradise. And twenty years later, I was standing in Moscow, Russia (a place many people have dreamed of visiting) wanting to find some magical world. But see, for those who have the eyes to see, the world in which we live in is magical.
Throughout my life, I have seen only a fraction of the magical things this world has to offer. I have seen the red Korean sunrise, photographed the harbor of a traditional Russian village, and traveled by train through the Siberian wilderness. I have stood next to a Saguaro cactus, eaten pie in Amish country, and gone for a swim in the Mississippi River. I have watched the Northern Lights over my Alaskan home, have walked through the vibrant colors of an autumn in New York, have celebrated life in Hawaii, and have pondered the universe while staring up at an Arizona night sky. I have seen Red Square lit up on a Winter’s night, have marveled at the Irish countryside, have relished every second of busy life on the streets of London, and have seen numerous sunsets over the Great Salt Lake.
And there is so much yet to be seen!
If you are depressed and feel like life is unexciting, boring, or without magic, I challenge you to find the door to Narnia by opening your front door and choosing to see the magic that is all around us. No matter where you may be, you are living in a world of wonder.
For truly, our world is ripe with magic.
The magic in this video starts at 3:45. Please watch. You won’t regret it.
But if you’re still interested, here are 20 Entrances That Are Clearly Gateways to Narnia.