All of life seems a flow from one happy accident to another – each with the underlying message – I am cared for and guided on my path. The inner and outer seem to meet – my inner dialogue, dreams, longings, needs seem to be read and reflected into the outer world in such a way that defies explanation.
You have this experience too, right?
I have few such incidents that are bubbling to the surface today.
Years ago I found a 20$ bill on the ground in my wealthy, large lawned neighborhood where there was no one to return it to. I said a little prayer over the money, that I could give it to someone who needed it more than I did at the time. In finding this money, I had the realization of my material comfort. I put the bill in my pocket. Later the same day, I was approached by a woman in a parking lot trying to sell me a bag of pecans from a tree; she told me of her great needs. I was able to reach into my pocket and hand her the twenty. I got to pass on a bill that was never mine – and play a bit in the universal flow. At this same time, I often felt like a failure for just being home and raising my kids in a pretentious and competitive environment. A tap on the shoulder from a higher lens was well-spent on me then – a clue to keep on going – not all was as it seemed.
Last fall, I was meeting my friend for breakfast on an easy sunday morning, when I was hit from behind, which crumpled the body of the car in a way that damaged nothing except the aesthetics. The insurance paid me $1686 to get the body repaired. The next week, my car needed $1700 dollars of engine repairs. Money that would be hard to come by was now serendipitously HERE NOW in my account from the fender bender.
The past few days have been a flow from one sync to the next. Here’s just one: My daughter, Chloe, and I headed out to spend time together with no destination in mind. We chose at each intersection, right or left, and ended up at a casual spot for a little snack downtown. As we pulled into the parking lot, we recognized our next door neighbors from Charlotte, NC, from 6 years ago, were walking into the very restaurant right at that moment. Mr. Johnson had been like a grandfather to my daughters. He snuck away from his table and joined us at ours, caught up with Chloe in his loving way, in the gloaming hour. We returned from the restaurant to watch the film The Beginners, which we had never seen, and found that the main character Oliver carried out the motif of driving first with his mother and later with a lover by pointing the ways to go at each intersection – the film mirroring our freewheeling ways from earlier in the evening – driving without a destination in mind, ending up exactly where we ought.
In many 3D ways, my life may seem a mess. When I am open and clear, I see the pattern behind the mess. I will be where I need to be; I will see what I need to see; I will do what seems like my doing – but it will be more than that. And I will see the inner reflected in the outer.
The Sync Book is a fun romp through the experiences of many wise voices on this topic.
I find that I do not tire of these tales. The melting between the inner and outer and the melding of the self with everyone else points to the mystery and the deeper layers that actually are present in every moment – if we are open to flow.
There are 5 videos in a row,here, all a few minutes long.
Life as Improv 