When the Universe Conspires…

Posted on by sereichert

Do you believe in coincidence? Do you think…things just happen, at random and we catch them (or don’t) as they pass, and its simply a game of chance? Or do you believe in that beautiful swirling nebula of fate…a universal design that has an orbit, predesigned.

Lately I’ve been thinking a lot about connections, intentions, and the broader picture of a universe playing busy body in the minuscule lives of humans. Honestly, why would a universe care? And yet…sometimes, things align to a startling degree… It is a fine line between a nagging cosmos, and just good old fashioned human planning. I believe it to be true, that in both cases, our lives and our fates are made. The only thing that seems to muck up my semi-good theories is the addition of the fourth dimension, time. Or rather…Timeliness.

The first truth I know is that when you set your intention on something you want, often, you start moving in that direction. Disclaimer–you cannot simply set the intention. You tell the universe what you’re seeking and then, you start to make active (even if small) steps towards that something. You want to be a great painter, you set up a class. You buy the right supplies, you practice…You want to land a certain job, you research the company, find your matching skills, network… Setting intentions and the small movements you make forward set forth a path in the direction of your dream. Sometimes…it’s a very looooooong game. Like years in the making, and there are times you lose sight of your original intention, or get waylaid…sometimes its something as simple as working up the courage to try something new…baby steps are the key. Baby steps in the direction of your dreams

Secondly, I honestly believe when you put good into the universe, when you give love and compassion, outside of the ridiculous bounds of if someone “deserves” it or not and not for the reason of getting it back necessarily, you are building a nest. A nest of positivity and connection and a safe haven for those around you. Who feel safe coming to you when in need and who feel happy to help when you yourself are in need. Our nests are our families, our friends and our communities. They can be organizations we believe in, or programs that we want to see flourish, but when we invest our time and our love into those things, we are building a safe space for others and ourselves to explore and be supported.

All of these things are within my control, and yours too….but what I don’t get lately is how, on two separate occasions this week, I’ve been able to bring people, all of whom I love and want such good and beautiful things for, together in ways that are symbiotic and purposeful. And this is where that illusive magic of timing comes in. How on that exact day, how in that one moment of action…did everything align?

I think when we set a path and build a nest, things happen in good time. Its nearly always unexpected (I’m not a goddamn fortune teller) but it happens when the conditions (often that we build and foster) are right and the match strikes. And that’s why I believe… that fate and choice are two conspiring lovers, and in seeking out one you’ll never get the whole, but when you take care of the choices you make, the fate will follow.

So go build a nest, give love and compassion freely to all that are in need, pursue your dreams in small steps or large leaps of faith…

Everything will work out. Just like it should.

Fate vs Free Will

Posted on by sereichert

Throughout history numerous wars have been waged between opposing forces. Dark and light. Good and Evil. Nature and Nurture. Life and death. Star Trek and Star Wars, Marvel and DC… TP rolled over the top or under. (Only savages prefer the latter.)

marvel vs deathstrokeOpposite ends of spectrums that often are viewed in our tiny human brains as opposing sides of a coin. The polar ends of a hard line. The divisiveness of the universe that plays out in a constant cosmic game of tug-o-war. One such spectrum is the dichotomy between Fate (Destiny if you will) and Free Will (Choice).

Do our choices determine the path of our lives, or are our “choices” merely preconceived steps towards a destination we’re meant to arrive at? Does the idea of free-will make us feel as though we have more power in our lives? Or does the idea of Destiny free us of the responsibility of how our lives pan out?

I’m honestly asking, because I don’t know the answer.

When I was young, I believed in fate. Because fate is more romantic, and epic, and dramatic. It made me feel like I was on the path to something amazing. It made me feel that one day I’d fall into the life that had been preordained and made especially for me. That it would all work out, because it was foreseen by some great hand of Destiny.

Then I grew up.

And I started to realize that every single choice I was making was branching me off in an ever complicated tree of life. Going to a party or not, where I may or may not talk to someone who would, unbeknownst to me, cause waves of change in my everyday life.

red trees
Photo by nien tran on Pexels.com

Stepping into a dojo on a trial basis, no intention of becoming involved. Even going so far as recognizing that one heated moment in a shower could lead to a phenomenal, empathetic, intelligent beautiful being who shares my house and riles my bassets up with her french horn practice.

Every single moment I was living, I was making choices and those choices made my path. There was no destiny, only the narrowing of options as I peeled away the possibilities with strokes of priority peppered with chance.

But some days, some cloudy Wednesday mornings, I swing back… back to the idea that maybe… maybe every choice I’ve made, in this ‘long and scattering set of tracks’ has led me exactly where I’m supposed to be.

blur bubbles clear close up
Photo by Ruatsanga Hmar on Pexels.com

And I like feeling that way, not because I feel it relieves me of responsibility, or that everything will work out to be something decided long ago, but because it helps me to know that every pain, every ill, every challenge and heartbreak I’ve suffered has built the scar tissue I needed to be where I am and to be the person I am.

Did the universe know I’d be this person? Did the universe need this person? Am I meant to be here for the fate of someone else, to be their lesson, their ill, their challenge. . . their heart break? Or am I here for something better? To be the hand in the darkness. To be the mender. To be the balm for broken hearts, and the gentle touch after life’s severity? I suppose that, too, is a choice.

Fate or Free Will?

I’m not sure it really matters. Except that you can’t let your life be decided for you. And if you wait around for your destiny to find you, it might not be the one you expect or want. Sometimes, in that glimmer of knowing what you’d like to see your life manifest as, you must weave through the murky waters and make the choices that lead you to the end you want.

Life’s not much more than a “Choose Your Own Adventure” novel. There are about fifty ways to kill yourself prematurely, and only a few paths lead to success, but most importantly, it ends no matter what choices you make along the way.

So make the choices that bring you happiness, that bring you beauty. Make the choices that fill your cup.