This is deliberately the last image of a weekend of Summer Solstice swims. It is an entirely composed and invented view of the Bobbers reality. Magic realism at its most local.

Magic realism is a literary and artistic genre that incorporates fantastical or mythical elements into a realistic setting. It blends the ordinary with the extraordinary, often blurring the lines between what is considered real and what is not. Originating in Latin America, particularly through the works of Gabriel García Márquez, magic realism explores the coexistence of the mundane and the magical, challenging conventional notions of reality. 

Here’s a more detailed explanation:

Key characteristics of magic realism:

• Realistic Setting:The stories are typically grounded in a recognizable, everyday world with ordinary characters and situations. 
• Fantastic Elements:Magical or supernatural events, creatures, or phenomena are introduced into this realistic setting, often without explanation or justification. 
• Matter-of-fact Tone:These fantastical elements are presented as normal occurrences within the narrative, without the characters or narrator questioning their presence or logic. 
• Symbolism and Metaphor:Magic realism often uses these elements as metaphors to explore social, political, or psychological themes, adding depth and complexity to the narrative. 
• Cultural Hybridity:It often draws upon folklore, myths, and indigenous beliefs, blending them with Western literary traditions. 

Examples of Magic Realism:

• Gabriel García Márquez’s One Hundred Years of Solitude:Features characters who levitate, have premonitions, and experience impossible events, all within the context of a Colombian family’s history. 
• Franz Kafka’s The Metamorphosis:Gregor Samsa wakes up to find he has transformed into an insect, a fantastical event presented with a detached, realistic tone. 
• Isabel Allende’s The House of the Spirits:Blends magical events with historical and political events in Chile, exploring themes of family, love, and political upheaval. 
• Angela Carter’s The Bloody Chamber:Retells fairy tales with a feminist perspective, incorporating magical elements and exploring themes of sexuality and power. 

How is it different from fantasy?

While both magic realism and fantasy include fantastical elements, they differ in their approach to reality. In fantasy, the fantastic elements are central to the world-building and often require extensive explanation or rules. In magic realism, the fantastic elements are integrated into a realistic world, often serving as metaphors or symbols rather than the core focus of the narrative. 

The Bobbers started swimming at dawn and dusk on both the Summer and Winter Solstices during 2021.

In June 2021 we were still living under COVID Restrictions. A lot of Bobbers bobbed both morning and evening Bobs. We had not returned to real life.

4 years later and real life has returned. Bobbers are not as free to swim twice a day to mark the longest and the shortest day. But being there and not being there have some significance for all of us. Including the sun. In the real world the sun does not rise or set behind Drakes Island when viewed across Firestone Bay from Tranquility Bay beach.

In the real world only 2 Bobbers bobbed the morning shift and 5 bobbers, a dry bobber and a dog made the evening shift of 2025. Other swimmers raised the number to nearly a 100 in the morning and about half that in the evening.

But bobbers  and ex-bobbers, even non-bobber swimmers everwhere know how it feels to swim in this specific place and can imagine themselves there for those moments. And in everyone’s imagination the sun for sunrise and  sunset makes a perfect debut and finale just behind Drakes Island. Magic Realism is a powerful thing.