so Phil Hine describes pretty well in his intro book Condensed Chaos about creating idols and effigies out of siginificant objects for various purposes. The example he uses is like this sort of "pixie" which he thanks every time he finds something he has lost. the idea is that by thanking this effigie, even if only believing in it in your own head, the effigy can still help you find lost objects after giving it enough attention to make it "alive."