0:00:14.839,0:00:19.505
Somewhere around the year 100 BC,

0:00:19.665,0:00:24.517
the very first documented use[br]of wrapping paper was found.

0:00:24.887,0:00:30.662
It was sort of a cloth-like paper mixture[br]used to enclose money as a gift

0:00:30.662,0:00:32.031
in China.

0:00:32.473,0:00:35.242
Now, this tradition has actually[br]continued throughout time

0:00:35.242,0:00:36.690
to modern Chinese culture,

0:00:36.690,0:00:43.126
where money is traditionally given[br]in little red envelopes like this.

0:00:45.020,0:00:51.010
But why, in the year 100 BC,[br]did they feel that need?

0:00:52.923,0:00:57.623
In current years, we seem to feel[br]the need to wrap our presents.

0:00:57.855,0:00:58.997
And among many cultures,

0:00:58.997,0:01:02.501
we feel the need to conceal[br]our gifts to others.

0:01:02.931,0:01:06.143
Staying true to form, I've chosen[br]to conceal something in here today

0:01:06.143,0:01:07.157
for all of you,

0:01:07.157,0:01:09.454
but I'll show you in a couple minutes.

0:01:11.398,0:01:13.561
First, let's try something.

0:01:13.891,0:01:15.659
Let's try to answer that question.

0:01:16.209,0:01:19.185
I want you to try to imagine[br]something in your hands right now.

0:01:19.185,0:01:20.201
Imagine anything.

0:01:20.201,0:01:24.791
It could be a pen, a notebook,[br]a sweater, air - it could be nothing.

0:01:24.791,0:01:26.880
But imagine it in your hands right now.

0:01:27.020,0:01:31.010
And take that item and place it in a box.

0:01:31.356,0:01:33.030
Seal it up.

0:01:33.370,0:01:37.632
Wrap it in a very beautiful[br]gold-foil wrapping paper

0:01:37.632,0:01:40.631
and then tie an elegant ribbon[br]right across the top.

0:01:40.931,0:01:43.960
Now you have that item[br]in that neatly wrapped package.

0:01:44.380,0:01:46.975
Take that same item[br]and hold it in your other hand,

0:01:46.975,0:01:48.824
bare, all by itself.

0:01:48.824,0:01:51.044
And give them both a friend.

0:01:52.114,0:01:57.724
What are we really giving someone[br]when we wrap something up and conceal it?

0:01:58.754,0:02:02.585
I think that we're giving[br]something more than what's inside.

0:02:02.795,0:02:05.222
Because both literally and figuratively,

0:02:05.412,0:02:11.225
we're giving something[br]in addition to the gift.

0:02:11.415,0:02:14.304
We're giving the idea of a gift.

0:02:15.344,0:02:16.970
We're giving the unknown,

0:02:17.270,0:02:18.397
anticipation,

0:02:18.397,0:02:20.981
which leads to excitement,

0:02:21.129,0:02:23.561
and we're giving what[br]Albert Einstein would describe

0:02:23.561,0:02:25.731
as the most beautiful thing[br]we can experience:

0:02:25.731,0:02:28.627
we're giving the mysterious.

0:02:29.197,0:02:30.825
And if that sounds heavy-handed,

0:02:30.825,0:02:32.107
it's still true.

0:02:32.407,0:02:36.565
And as someone who practices and performs[br]the art of mystery through magic,

0:02:36.920,0:02:39.240
I've become obsessed with that idea,

0:02:39.610,0:02:41.789
of giving that experience,

0:02:42.049,0:02:44.120
giving the unknown.

0:02:45.860,0:02:47.738
And when you start to think about that,

0:02:47.738,0:02:50.204
you start to pay attention[br]to not only what you show

0:02:50.204,0:02:53.672
but, almost more importantly,[br]what you don't show.

0:02:54.812,0:02:56.512
But what does that look like?

0:02:57.188,0:03:00.834
Well, I'll need the help[br]of a beautiful assistant

0:03:01.584,0:03:02.689
and these.

0:03:03.098,0:03:05.529
Sir, you're looking quite beautiful today.

0:03:05.529,0:03:07.329
(Laughter)

0:03:07.329,0:03:08.358
Will you assist?

0:03:08.358,0:03:09.355
(Man) Yes.

0:03:09.355,0:03:13.889
Wonderful. If you could[br]just select a card, okay?

0:03:15.996,0:03:18.898
You're just going to place your finger[br]on one of these cards.

0:03:19.128,0:03:21.891
Perfect. That one? Okay.[br]Great. You can have a seat.

0:03:21.891,0:03:24.267
And you didn't see the card.

0:03:24.267,0:03:25.452
I didn't see it.

0:03:25.452,0:03:27.147
No one else saw it as well.

0:03:27.147,0:03:28.608
So I'm leaving it right here.

0:03:28.608,0:03:32.721
I'm just going to place this[br]inside my jacket pocket,

0:03:33.851,0:03:38.252
leave it sticking out a little bit[br]so we can all keep track of it, okay?

0:03:38.632,0:03:40.045
Now, we can have a guess,

0:03:40.045,0:03:42.043
we can have an idea[br]of what is inside here,

0:03:42.043,0:03:43.934
but we don't really know.

0:03:44.804,0:03:47.263
Whether this has been manufactured or not,

0:03:47.263,0:03:50.889
we have created something essential[br]for the traditional gift -

0:03:51.589,0:03:53.526
anticipation.

0:03:54.196,0:03:57.279
Now, anticipation occurs[br]in a lot more places than this.

0:03:57.279,0:03:58.695
Every day when we wake up,

0:03:58.695,0:04:00.771
when we look into the day,

0:04:01.141,0:04:03.534
we have an idea of how it may end.

0:04:04.074,0:04:06.914
We have an idea of what may happen,

0:04:06.914,0:04:07.925
what's inside it,

0:04:07.925,0:04:09.934
but we don't really know.

0:04:10.764,0:04:12.745
We're giving ourselves a gift:

0:04:13.895,0:04:15.755
the gift of a day.

0:04:16.135,0:04:18.977
A gift of the present.

0:04:19.852,0:04:21.435
(Laughter)

0:04:21.619,0:04:22.980
So you might not always know

0:04:22.980,0:04:26.818
what is inside[br]this gift, this day, for you,

0:04:26.818,0:04:30.258
but you do know how it's all wrapped up,

0:04:30.678,0:04:33.105
what it looks like on the outside.

0:04:34.023,0:04:35.570
Brown postal paper.

0:04:35.660,0:04:37.112
Gold foil.

0:04:37.142,0:04:39.123
A red envelope.

0:04:41.263,0:04:43.527
And sometimes, how it looks on the outside

0:04:43.527,0:04:45.635
matters a little bit more[br]than what you think

0:04:45.635,0:04:49.402
because how long does a present sit,[br]waiting to be opened?

0:04:49.732,0:04:52.963
And how long does it take[br]to actually open it up and discover?

0:04:54.333,0:04:55.871
So consider this:

0:04:56.631,0:04:58.678
the next time that you receive a gift,

0:04:58.678,0:05:00.111
any gift,

0:05:02.751,0:05:06.486
pay mind to how you feel[br]when you hold it in your hands,

0:05:06.486,0:05:09.206
when you're holding the unknown,

0:05:09.796,0:05:12.390
when you don't know what's inside.

0:05:13.620,0:05:15.190
Because sometimes,

0:05:16.760,0:05:20.771
no matter how many[br]possibilities can occur,

0:05:21.071,0:05:23.162
no matter what the chances,

0:05:24.432,0:05:30.626
the beauty of our life[br]is not in knowing what awaits us.

0:05:34.545,0:05:39.231
The beauty of our life is in finding ...

0:05:42.121,0:05:43.713
It's in finding out.

0:05:46.061,0:05:48.101
(Applause)