Was it Ordained? [V18, #09]

In the last article (link)I talked about how life happens and what we do about it matters. It matters for it creates the experience of our lives in that moment. At the end of that story I was waiting at O’Hare airport for the bus to come to take me to where I had parked my car.

The bus didn’t arrive as scheduled. Instead it arrived a half-an-hour later.

I was the first person to get on the bus. Yet there was a young man already seated. I started joking with him as I didn’t see him get on the bus. He told me he had and I must have missed him.

It turns out he was just teasing me. He had gotten on at the international terminal. Thus, he was already situated when the bus pulled up to get us domestics.

We chatted for a while. He revealed to me deep wisdom at the tender age of 23. I was impressed. I asked him if I could contribute to his life and offered to gift him a copy of my book. He joyfully accepted.

I didn’t have a book on hand so I gave him my email and asked him to write to me with his contact info. The next morning I woke up to an email in my inbox with him letting me know how to find him. He was willing. He was interested. I was grateful to make a contribution.

Suddenly my mind made up a story that perhaps that it was destined that we meet. I made up a story. The bus didn’t show up so I could meet this young man who blessed me with his conversation and in exchange I could give him a gift in return. I put meaning on our meeting.

Ahhh, that thought took me out of the grumps and back into gratitude.

Once settled in my car, I looked at what had occurred again. I challenged myself. Was it really ordained? How could I know that?

There is a popular saying, “Everything happens for a reason.”Does it? Or do we put meaning on everything? Perhaps the truth is we make up reasons for everything that happens.

I made that up. It made me happy to think that it was set up for us to meet. A useful interpretation as it calmed me down and lifted me up.

But what if the truth is Life happens and we make up stories as to why.

If you are going to make stuff up, and you will, as the mind is a meaning making machine, I suggest you make up a story that works for you. Use your power of interpretation to take you to a place you’d prefer to be.

Blessings,