Recently I attended an evening event downtown. Linda wasn't interested, so I went alone. I took the bus down as it was such a hot day, but planned to walk home in the cool of the evening, and was looking forward to that pleasant hour.
At the event, I met some of my young poetry friends. Which was nice, but before it was over, they wandered off together, leaving me behind, which reminded me of my own youth back in those hippie years and my similar reactions then to people of my parents' generation. Anyway, afterwards I wandered around downtown alone, a bit lonely in that beautiful evening air, and more so by the minute. Me there and Linda at home. I guess I did a loop of about eight blocks, finally arriving back where I had started, more or less, where the buses stop. So then I had to decide whether I to walk or not. I thought what a waste of a heavenly walk if I were emotionally down the whole way. Yet, what a waste too to take the bus. In the end, I decided to get home with Linda as soon as possible. My mood would change quickly.
My bus came in about ten minutes and I got on. It was surprisingly full. The long front benches were filled. I glanced back and could see the occasional single empty aisle seat. The first one had the guy's bag in it. What a selfish guy, I thought. The next one was beside a very wide person, so I climbed the steps up into the back. There were two isle seats, the first one wouldn't work and then I came to the last space, in one of the last rows. The woman had her purse on her lap. As I was beginning to sit down, I looked up at her face. It was Charmaine E. Elijah! She's the indigenous poet who acted as the organiser of our last open mic, which featured indigenous poetry and history. As we talked, the unlikelihood of us sitting there together began to sink in. The chances against it are astronomical! There had to be some person there. A random person. But somebody I know? And, most especially, Charmaine?
Charmaine is one of my favourite people. She is truly one of the wisest people I've ever met, someone who has lived a life of wisdom; she hasn't just thought it. Her wisdom is all the more interesting because some of it originated from her indigenous background, some from contemporary society, and some simply from her own struggle with life. An even more odd thing about running into her like this was that that very day I had thought I should contact her again soon. We're planning a lengthy interview with her, a live one, taped. At the open mic, I had asked her if she would be interested and she had said she could do it. But because of some other stressful things that happened at the open mic, I had been wondering if she might have changed her mind. So, on the bus, amongst a lot of other things we talked about, which cheered me up enormously, I asked her about the interview, and she said she was still interested in doing it. (We're doing an extended interview with the indigenous historian David D. Plain first, and in the process learning, hopefully, something about indigenous history and culture, which should be helpful in the interview with Charmaine.)
Anyway, I told Linda about this chance meeting when I got home, also my sister by phone, and they were both as astonished as I was. It was as if the whole evening had been set up just so I would end up taking that bus and have to sit in that seat! But of course, that's nuts. I'm not the centre of the universe. Life doesn't revolve around me. And anyway things just don't happen that way. Everything has its immediate cause and effect. Period.
But still, this kind of thing happens so often in my life that I've practically come to expect it. For instance, back in my youth when I was trying to backpack across Canada I got so used to being rescued from situations that would otherwise have killed me or at least have totally derailed my trip, rescued by very last-minute occurrences, out-of-the-blue situations, that I actually began to lose my fear. I began to assume that something would come up in the final seconds. And yes it always did. And these things have happened all my life ever since. (My cynical but realistic self says that the only people who exult in all the rescuing coincidences in their lives are the few survivors, those who happened to have the dice falling their way so far. So far. The other risk takers were all eliminated along the way. They're not talking.)
Anyway, for me, sitting with Charmaine on the bus was my latest example. If we hadn't met there, I don't think I would have died, or even have been derailed. But it was Charmaine! Who knows what that could mean for the future?
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Paula Dawn Lietz believe it - it was indeed to happen
everything about it - set you there
wonderful
Unlike · Reply · 2 · 15 mins
Donna Allard we forget one IMP rule of the universe... let life happen, we must stop controling it or beautiful moments will occur less or maybe not at all.. wink emoticon
Unlike · Reply · 1 · 10 mins
Stan Burfield That's what I've found for sure. Well, more a combination. Make things happen, but at the same time be open to what IS happening.
Meredith Moeckel Really a lovely story Stan? Wasn't it you who recently wrote on the topic of synchronicity? I have had similar things happen to me quite often, and have taken to simply smiling to myself..... Anyways, I'm sharing a couple of quotes regarding synchronicity smile emoticon (well it won't allow me to share two at once, so I'll attach one after this!)
Like · Reply · 41 mins
Meredith Moeckel
Like · Reply · 1 · 41 mins
Scott Alderson Calvin's theory of Predestination. Whatever, it's all good as they say.
Unlike · Reply · 1 · 35 mins
Stan Burfield It's very difficult for me to believe this, and yet, how to explain it. Yes, the previous one of these that I wrote about here was about April 20th, a month ago.
Like · Reply · 35 mins
Donald Brackett A nice story. A basic example of Jung's theory of Synchronicity. Not hard to believe at all really, upon investigation.
Like · Reply · 28 mins
Stan Burfield Well, I have pretty much of a scientific view of reality. Jung's ideas were more religious than scientific. Science just doesn't allow for this kind of thing. So I have to try to explain it all in terms of simple cause and effect in a complex world. The problem is that when it happens too often it definitely starts to become a bit weird.
Like · Reply · 18 mins
Stan Burfield And anyway I know there are things happening that science doesn't explain. Like telepathy. However, seeing something like the world organised (by who or what?) so that Charmaine and I would be sitting together is a whole different level of impossibility to what telepathy requires.
Like · Reply · Just now
Stan Burfield Here's what I believe: We have to look beyond our beliefs and favoured ideas and opinions to find out how the world works. If we don't, we don't see anything except our feelings. And there's only one method humanity has ever devised for seeing beyond our feelings into objective reality. That's science. Science doesn't know everything yet. But what it does know, and has thoroughly tested, is true. Anything we believe that contradicts those findings simply isn't true.
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