way his dad always seemed to, Jeff noticed
the reactions of the disappointed families
around him. He watched as a young girl
began to tear up as it set in that she was not
going to get to take the dog home. In that
moment Jeff made a resolution with himself
never to cheat again. He would use his
magical powers only for good, not evil.
Another early inspiration was Martin Nash,
a top card magician who appeared at the
Pacific National Exhibition in Vancouver
each fall. Jeff watched him like a hawk,
always striving to sit as close as possible to
the stage. This admiration was not lost on
Nash, although his reaction was not ideal. As
Nash scanned the crowd at the beginning
of his show, his gaze would fall on the boy
watching avidly from the front of the house,
eyes wide and eager to take in every nuance
of the performance. “The front row is for
grown-ups, son. You’ll have to move.” So,
Jeff did move. But not very far. And he came
back again and again.
From Nash, Jeff learned not only card work
but also the rhythm of magic; how to keep
the show going, interacting with an audience,
setting up expectations and dealing with
the unexpected, all the tricks of the trade
that a gigging magician needs to know. As
it happened, Mr. Best knew Martin Nash
and took Jeff to visit him. Nash gave Jeff a
close-up mat that became one of his prized
possessions. For a time, that mat was the focus
of Jeff’s world. He spent hours working with
it, practicing his technique with cards and
developing his own routines. The training he
acquired then was akin to the “10,000 hours”
that any artist or craftsman must commit to in
order to master their skills. And day after day,
Jeff put in the time. He found it fascinating
and much more engaging practicing faro
shuffles and second deals than say, studying.
Thanks to Mr. Best, magic and school
had always been closely related. When
Jeff eventually enrolled at Simon Fraser
University in their Bachelor of Education
program, he continued to share his work
with any audience he found around him. One
day, as he performed an ace transposition
he’d learned from Martin Nash for some
classmates, he asked a young lady to act as
his volunteer. She had caught his attention
in class better than the science methods he
was meant to be learning had, but she had
apparently not yet noticed him. Her response
to the trick, however, was rather positive.
Very positive, actually, as they started dating
shortly afterward. Amazingly positive, in fact,
as they just celebrated their 28th wedding
anniversary.
Over the course of those years Emma, Jeff’s
wife, confessed that she had not really paid
any attention to him until he got her to join
in with his card trick. To this day, when Jeff
performs walk-around or close-up magic at
corporate events, he loves to present that
same trick and introduce it with the statement,
JANUARY | 2020
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