{"id":8418,"date":"2016-05-24T09:34:56","date_gmt":"2016-05-24T13:34:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/blissblog\/?p=8418"},"modified":"2016-05-24T09:34:56","modified_gmt":"2016-05-24T13:34:56","slug":"accidestined","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/blissblog\/2016\/05\/accidestined.html","title":{"rendered":"Accidestined"},"content":{"rendered":"

I marvel at all of the miracles, overlapping soul circle connections, meant-to-be interactions and delightful\u00a0surprises that pop up like so many wildflowers\u00a0on a green expanse. I am tempted to roll around in them, laughing my joy to the heavens. I do that symbolically on a daily basis. It is what gets me through at times when life gets lifey and the world is too much with me. As I am typing these words, I am simultaneously listening to the clamor of construction outside my window, soothed by the sonic sweetness of Yusuf Islam\/Cat Stevens who reminds me to listen to the winds of my soul and \u00a0understand \u00a0“where I end up, well, I think only God really knows.” Such an interesting juxtaposition. I could be annoyed and distracted by the rumbling of trucks and beeping backup noises…a cacophony. I have learned to shut them out and immerse in the music instead.<\/p>\n

What also charms me are the treasures that show up as messages from the Divine. My friend Paul Dengler<\/a>, who is a Forrest Gump impersonator (among other things such as being a singer songwriter, performer, writer and artist.) shared a concept with me that showed up in conversation he had with a friend of his. \u00a0He calls it ‘accidestined’ and defines them as “those things that seem random, but are really part of a larger plan.” \u00a0I still meander back and forth between the idea that all things are pre-ordained as if written by an unseen hand on a parchment that we unroll or if we are given a blank sheet of paper ourselves on which we inscribe and describe our days. Somewhere in between lies free will and a handy eraser. \u00a0We agree that our meeting was like that. We connected nearly two years ago at an outdoor music festival and bonded instantly. It turns out that although he lives in the Nashville area and I am in a suburb outside of Philadelphia, he grew up 10 minutes away from I make my home now. How cool is that?<\/p>\n

When I was a teenager, my best friend Barb, her mother Stella and I climbed into the car for a road trip from Willingboro, New Jersey to Doylestown, Pennsylvania where we went to the Polish festival at Our Lady of Czestochowa<\/a> shrine. It seemed to me at the time that it was on the other side of the planet when in fact, it may have been 90 minutes away. Now it is practically in my back yard, a\u00a0mere five miles or so\u00a0away. It is one of my go-to places to sit and meditate and commune with Mother Mary. She was a nice Jewish girl too, so we have that in common.<\/p>\n

Yesterday my iphone froze up. I couldn’t even turn it off, so I hightailed it over to the closest AT&T store. I had a sense that there was a reason for it and I would likely have an fun encounter as a result and naturally I did. I walked in and with a bit of dismay, saw a bunch of folks waiting to be seen. Sighs turn to smiles, as I noticed my friend Julie Druzak sitting with one of the techs, getting to know her new phone. We hugged and chatted a bit and acknowledged the serendipitous timing of our meeting. Although I needed to wait for likely another 30 minutes, I also got to watch (several times), a video of a young woman\/fashion designer who got the surprise of a gorgeous dress to wear to an awards dinner, created by someone she profiled on her fashion blog. That was followed by a little girl whose family was planning her birthday party. Her handy grandfather crafted a beautiful doll house and her culinarily talented grandmother baked her a cake that I’m sure tasted as good as it looked. I could have been growly and impatient, but instead, realized that if I had to wait, I might as well make it pleasant. I vicariously enjoyed the adventures of Kayla who called herself a ‘technista’ (conjunction of techie and fashionista) and Zoe, the beautiful birthday girl surrounded by her loving family. Both of these scenarios were actually ads for the various products that AT&T were selling, but the relational element added a nice touch.<\/p>\n

What if each moment of the day played out like that? What if we are always at the right place at the right time to connect with the exact right people for the adventure of a lifetime?<\/p>\n

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