By Kelly N. Retz

I recently tried my hand at being a professional athlete again. I was informed of a tryout being held near my city for a professional league in my sport, and the dreamer inside of me was ignited by the fire to compete. So I began training six days a week. I went on my crazy performance-based diet. I got a trainer. And I once again hung the Olympic flag on my wall. I posted pictures of those who inspire me on the mirror. I filled my iPod with songs which fuelled my attitude. I taped a picture of a world renowned coach on the treadmill for my 90-minute runs. It had been years since I played competitively. I knew I would be almost too old to play again in this particular sport. But for some reason, with all that I had surrounding me - the photos, the music, The Biggest Loser reruns - I felt empowered. My body remembered the training from years ago. My mind remembered the successes I had had. My memories fueled my passion. And it was those trigger-trinkets I had surrounded myself with that kept me focused.

As it turns out, I won’t be playing professionally anymore and my body is thankful. The tryout was fantastic but what was it that made me think I could be a 20-year-old again? The trigger-trinkets. It was the trigger-trinkets. 

Last summer at a writer’s workshop, I learned the word talisman. Several reference books define the term as having some magical powers to ward off evil, associating it with occult practices. But it is the definition of “something producing apparently magical or miraculous effects” that I think the colloquium lecturer was getting at (Merriam-Webster). He used descriptions like a writer’s fetishized tool to promote powerful or magical thinking, and a continuity connection to past successes.

Now that I have turned my attentions from sport back to literary work, I look to find talismans to help me in my day-to-day job as a writer. I framed an image of the title page of a friend’s book, autographed to me saying that she can’t wait to read my first work. The image reminds me to pay attention to the lives of my characters. A photo from my sister’s wedding reminds me to give my characters sensory triggers by using an anchor of sensation from my own physical world. The music mix playing for white noise gives me the emotions of scene: The music creates narrative flow, while conflict and resolution materialize in the rise and fall of a song’s intensity. The pile of manila folders containing the chapters of my book reminds me that I have to write every day if I am going to make this a successful career.

World news reporter Diane Sawyer used the exact term while being interviewed. The interviewer asked her how her new morning schedule suited her having come from GMA. She explained it suits her well but that she has a difficult time focusing in the morning if she has not had her coffee in her red cup.  Sawyer then asked her interviewer if she had a “talisman” of any kind. From athletes to correspondents to writers, the use of talismans is inclusive. Sigma Tau Delta too, while an English society, is comprised of learners from diverse disciplines. What a time it would be if we came together next spring for Convention to share our talismans, a commonality that could unite the hundreds of us. 

Now go ahead, pull that bobble head of Shakespeare out of the desk drawer, play Bocelli’s Sogno album, put on your lucky newsboy hat and inspire the moment of creation. Live inside that captivating world and make happen something truly magical. Hang the Olympic rings above your desk and see what dreams come of it.