I am naturally curious, and I believe in synchronicity. Recently, I had another confirming experience of the powerful combination of these two forces. I was in Raleigh, NC, and I had scheduled to have drinks with my dear friend Darlene Goldbach. It had recently snowed in Raleigh, and the temperatures were wintery.
I arrived at the rooftop bar where I was scheduled to meet Darlene, ordered a glass of wine and texted her that I had arrived. I immediately heard back that she had forgotten and that she was not able to make it. I was initially disappointed to miss out on spending time with Darlene, especially knowing that I had told other Raleigh friends that I was not available that night. However, I promptly shifted into my standard perspective of synchronicity – everything happens for a reason, and it will be what it’s supposed to be.
As I sat at the window looking across the street to a parking deck with no cars on the top, I noticed a man coming out of the door and onto the deck. I was curious because there were no cars on that level. I also noticed that he was wearing a dress winter coat, and I wondered (curiosity again) how many people in Raleigh had dress winter coats, since even the winter weather is typically pretty mild.
As a result, my eyes scanned down seven floors to the sidewalk, where I saw a solitary man walking along wearing not a winter coat but a sport coat. I then noticed that this man had an unusual walking gait. Although I could not see the man’s face from seven stories up, he looked familiar, and I said to myself, “I think that’s Ralph DiLeone.” Ralph is a friend who now lives in Raleigh, but he’s from Cleveland. Ralph and I not only worked together at our first law firm jobs, but we later were partners in our own law firm. In short, I’ve known Ralph for 35 years, and now I was seeing him walking on the sidewalk below me in Raleigh, NC—all because I had been observing and curious.
I texted Ralph, but he did not respond. However, since Darlene was not going to join me, after I finished my glass of wine I headed back to my car and decided to stop in at the restaurant where I had seen Ralph enter. When I walked in, I found Ralph in the bar having drinks with several business contacts, and he was shocked to see me. I told all of them the story of the rooftop bar, the parking deck, the winter coat, etc., and they were mystified and said, “that’s crazy.” My response was that it was “pretty normal for me because that’s how life works.” Not lucky, but synchronistic, especially when we are observant and curious.
While this was already a great story, it got even better when Ralph and I were talking and sharing after his business friends left. I have recently been doing some research about places to live on the North Carolina coast, and I was considering traveling to the beach area on the weekend to explore a little bit. However, I had not decided, and the weather was cool and rainy, so I told Ralph that I was free to have dinner with him and his wife over the weekend. In response, Ralph told me that they were heading to the beach (Kure Beach) and that they would love to have me come down for dinner on Saturday and to spend the night. Yes, really!
By the way, I also learned that the reason Ralph was walking outside (instead of coming from the elevators where I would not have seen him) was that the elevators had not been working. Thus, the malfunctioning elevators were another factor in the series of synchronistic events. Again, yes, really!
Thus, as a result of Darlene missing our cocktail hour, and me being curious about parking decks and winter coats, I traveled to Kure Beach on Saturday and enjoyed a lovely evening with Ralph and Bonnie. I also had the opportunity to do some house exploring on a beautiful Sunday afternoon.
Here’s the thing – you can call the above story luck, or you can choose to see it as synchronicity. These kinds of things happen to and for me all the timenow, and it’s because I believe in synchronicity, because I’m curious and because I’m always observing. What an amazing combination of perspectives, which I believe will deliver to you the same kinds of synchronistic outcomes. You may not be able to plan for them, but you certainly can expect them and trust in them. Make sure to keep some space open in your life for these magical and unplanned moments. Stay curious, my friends!
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