THE COIN

I held my hands out in front of me, one of the hands holding a coin, hidden by a closed fist.  I asked the eight-year-old girl to guess which hand held the coin. She scanned both hands, deciding which hand held the coin.   I stood still and silent. She wondered for another minute, then pointed to my right hand.  "Not there," she said, slightly disappointed. 

I moved my hands behind my back again to to hide which hand held the coin.  This time, with my hands still behind me, I told her “to not guess”-- to not try to figure it out----to not have to be right.  Instead, "Let your instinct, and your body point to the hand.  Allow yourself to be wrong, and trust your body to select the hand with the coin.  Let it not matter.  Just point instantly.

Most of us learned to try hard to be right. to pick the right one of anything,  Embarrassed if we are wrong.   I encouraged her to go beyond guessing, and let her body just point, without hesitation, as soon as I show my hands. 

She did it.  Without a second of hesitation, she instantly pointed to the hand with the coin.  Again and again, ten more times in a row, she transcended her mind's need to be right, and instead, instantly pointed to the hand with the coin.  We were both elated.  We were done. 

Later, with a hidden coin in one of her hands, she calmly instructed another young person to "let your body choose which hand I hold a coin."