Volume 28, No. 2
January 12, 2003
Getting Out Alive
If anybody knew how to get out of a tight situation, it was Harry Houdini.
The charismatic magician captivated audiences around the world with his
mysterious escapes and death-defying feats. Here’s how he pulled off some of
his most famous stunts.
Whenever Houdini was placed in a locked container, he relied on hidden tools,
some of which he swallowed. He learned the trick while working in a circus
where an acrobat taught him how to swallow objects then pop them out again by
working the throat muscles. Houdini practiced with a potato tied to a string,
so he could retrieve the spud if necessary.
On stage, the magician would ask people from the audience to inspect the
safe, coffin or packing crate he was about to be locked in. After inviting them
to search him for hidden tools, he’d shake hands with each volunteer, one of
whom was a secret accomplice who would pass along a key or lock pick during the
handshake. Sometimes Houdini would hide a thin piece of wire (for picking locks)
in the thick skin on the sole of his foot.
He was just as devious when it came to one of his favourite tricks — escaping
from a giant, water-filled milk can with a lid secured by six padlocks. Though
they looked impressive, those locks meant nothing because the rivets fastening
the lid to the rest of the can were fake. Houdini could easily break apart the
two sections, step out of the container, then put the two pieces back together.
And since the milk can was always placed inside a box, nobody could see him do
it.
Houdini’s escapes were so fast during some of his tricks that he would often
sit out of sight of the audience, calmly playing cards or reading the paper.
When the tension finally rose to just the right level — “He’ll never get out of
there alive! — he’d splash himself with water, to simulate sweat, then make his
dramatic appearance. Ironically, the one thing Houdini couldn’t escape was
reality. While trying to demonstrate the strength of his stomach muscles, he
invited a couple of students to hit him. One of them did, before the magician
was ready, and the blow is thought to have caused internal injuries that
ultimately led to Houdini’s death on October 31st, 1926.
Like the famed magician, most of us spend a lot of our time trying to escape
self-constructed prisons: guilt, regret, pride, pain and emotional
dependency. Ever-conscious of those watching, we go to great and often dramatic
lengths to demonstrate our “freedom”; our ability to slip the chains of
everything from boredom and insecurity, to aging and unwanted responsibility.
It’s all an illusion, of course. There’s a big difference between escape and
escapism. When God doesn’t come first in our life, what looks like true freedom
amounts to little more than deceit or self-deception. Houdinis of the heart
must swallow the lies of the world and stage a phony escape by resorting to
hidden tools, including hypocrisy, addiction or a deep-seated dependence on the
approval of others.
We’re often aided by an accomplice — a spouse or close friend who’s in on
the ruse but stays quiet about the truth hidden in the thickness of a calloused
soul. For a while, the illusion works. But it’s only a matter of time before
each of us fails to break free of what no one can escape without Christ: death,
sin and spiritual separation from God. More often than not, the blow comes
before we’re ready.
It’s time to put aside the facade and let the Lord show us true freedom. “As
we know Jesus better, his divine power gives us everything we need for living a
godly life... He’s promised you’ll escape the decadence... caused by evil
desires and that you’ll share in his divine nature.” (2 Peter 1:3,4). Real
freedom — breaking free of your human mould and mortality — is found in knowing
Christ. Following him is a death-defying act, but we always get out alive.
By Rick Gamble, published in Cross Current, the weekly newsletter of the
Followers of Christ congregation in Brantford, Ontario, Canada. Reprint at will
in not-for-profit publications. To subscribe, contact
sgamble@bfree.on.ca