Hey guys!
So, we all have times when we are feel the urge to take action – we want to go to a certain place or we want to say something to someone – but we resist. Maybe we feel we should be doing something else, like getting work down, maybe we worry about how people will react if we speak up. But maybe it behooves us to just go for it. You never know what could happen!
I was at my favourite coffee shop last Saturday morning, a Starbucks which is situated inside a Chapters bookstore, doing some writing as I do a few days a week. I decided to get up and go for a little walkabout around the store to stretch my legs because, as we know, sitting for too long is not really a good idea. I was wondering the aisles of books and was struck by some Manga – not really even knowing what it was other than it was a Japanese style book.
Anyway, I hear this woman’s voice on the end of the aisle exclaim with a sense of dismay, “Oh! He marries Veronica?”
Immediately realizing what she was referring to, I felt compelled to ease her worry. I joined her on the end of the aisle, took the Archie Comic wedding collector’s edition out of her hand and flipped it over, saying something to the effect of, “But you see, he also marries Betty. It kind of presents a dual reality to show what life would be like if he took one path over the other. One of my students gave me this as a present because I always keep Archies in the washroom.”
We went on to talk about how Betty was a much nicer person and how, if it came down to it, she would be the obvious choice etc. etc.. And then the woman asked me what I taught.
I told her I was a singing teacher and she was intrigued. Her teenage daughter was apparently quite a good singer and was thinking about taking lessons in the near future. I gave her my card and the connection was made.
So, what happened in this scenario? Three things actually.
- I rarely go to the coffee shop on the weekends. However, they have been doing some masonry work on my building lately and they just happened to be right outside my suite. The sound of the drilling was so loud that I had to go somewhere else.
- I was inspired to take a break from my work and go for a walk at that exact time and I acted on it. I didn’t think, well, no, just wait until I’ve finished this paragraph. I wanted to get up so I got up.
- I was aware of my surroundings. I could have been stuck in my own head but I was listening to the world around me and, when I heard the Archie reference, again, I acted on it.
And all this led to a new connection and, perhaps, a new student.
The reason why I’m telling this story is to remind us all that intuition, instinct and divine inspiration are there to help us on our journey. All of those elements, from the masonry work to the Archie comic, came together to facilitate that meeting. Now, what will ultimately come of that meeting is hard to say right now. Maybe her daughter will study with me, maybe not. Or maybe something else will transpire from it. But just think of all those times when you wanted to do or say something and you didn’t for some reason or other? Who knows what where those actions might have led?
And it’s okay. No need for regret. And sometimes you have to differentiate between what is true inspiration and what is just a knee jerk reaction to fear or worry. But if you have a tendency to resist instinct or inspiration you might want to start trying a different approach.
As a creative person, life experiences are important to our work, serving as inspiration and support along our journey, and following our inspiration can help us find those valuable experiences.
Have fun! And if you have some cool stories of serendipity to share, post them in the comments section below. We’d love to hear them!
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