I haven't written about synchronicities in a while, so I thought I would especially after a couple of really interesting ones happened one right after another. Well, isn't that part of synchronicity? The timing?
I’ve been on uneasy terms with the Universe lately. Or on uneasy terms with myself. Or with my path/journey/purpose. And I don’t know why.
Perhaps it’s because I’m getting used to a new side of me and wondering if the Universe is actually guiding me in that direction as it’s a bit different. And a bit scary. And a bit woo woo!
I’ve been exploring it, but still a bit tentatively. And the Universe has been patient with me, for which I'm grateful.
But, I think the Universe is beginning to lose patience.
A few things have happened recently that amount to a clarion call of “wake the fuck up, stupid!”
I was recently shopping on Amazon and a book title in the “Recommended for you” section of my homepage caught my eye: The Reluctant Tarot Reader: Adventures in the Gypsy Trade, by Raven Mardirosian. I was intrigued; there’s another reluctant tarot reader out there? So, I read the synopsis:
She's a gay girl in a Christian world, becoming the healer she was meant to be.
But what do you do with a gift that you really don't want?
Raven Mardirosian dreamed of being a missionary. A vet. An English teacher. Becoming a professional Tarot reader never crossed her mind. So, how did she go from staunch, born-again Christian and promising academic . . . to life in the woo world?
And there was more, but other than the girl part and dreaming of being a vet, it all resonated very strongly with me. So, I downloaded it. And by the first 40 pages I was hooked.
Where she had a tarot deck quietly pressed into her hand, I stumbled onto a couple of YouTube videos of some readings that resonated with me and I figured I had nothing to lose but the cost of a deck and a book or two and a little time to study.
Plus, Raven and I both come from an evangelical background and a good little Christian wouldn’t dare touch these wicked, wicked cards, let alone come out as LGBTQ. But, if I had already made peace with my Christianity and being gay, I could certainly get past the evangelical ghosts warning me of these little pieces of paper with pretty pictures.
As I read her book, Ms. Mardirosian revealed more of our commonalities. She would often refer to a second deck of cards similar to the Power Animals Oracle deck I use, so she was also aware of Shamanic messages as well. This was getting intriguing. She often referred to herself as a healer; one of the Power Animal cards I draw frequently is Snake. Isn’t a snake or two entwined on the medical staff? Snake is also one of my Spirit Guides. So, maybe I’m to be a healer, too?
The last few sections of the book kept repeating one particular theme: Tell your Story. Tell your Story. Tell your Story.
Maybe that’s how I am to help heal the world, by writing. Both here and my stories.
Okay, Universe I get this message. But what else were you trying to tell me last week?
I had three separate conversations within three days, regarding my spiritual journey. More precisely, certain aspects of my journey.
The first one happened with a complete stranger. (Is there such a thing as an incomplete stranger?… sorry, random thought.)
An insurance salesman came to review some supplemental policies I have. Upon entering my home, he immediately commented on the color. My living room is red and purple with espresso accents. He loved how calming it was. I commented on the fact red isn’t necessarily a calming color. He said, “No, but the tone you picked is very calming and it's just an accent wall.” Okay, I didn’t suspect anything when he first came in, but now he was commenting on the tone of the accent wall color? Hmmm, I began to suspect something…might he be one of the family? He then commented, “Oh I love your Buddha statue!”
"Thanks, I sit there and meditate every morning.”
“I didn’t get to meditate this morning and I feel off.”
Say what? Here's an attractive man in my living room talking about meditating? And the tone of my accent wall color?
He went on, “I like to meditate on how I can be a better me in this relationship, focusing on improving myself.” Okay, not ‘wife’, not ‘girlfriend’ but ‘relationship’? I’m picking up on things here. This might be interesting. Did I mention he was handsome? And closer to my age. We were discussing the minor changes in my policies when we were distracted by the flock of birds feeding outside on my patio table. I showed him a video of the crazy jay bird that likes to knock on my sliding door.
“Do you ever look up what that might mean?” He asked.
“You mean as a spiritual message?”
“Yes, exactly.” My jaw metaphorically hit the floor. He then shared an encounter he had with a roadrunner in the hills above his home. The roadrunner just stood by and watched him walk by with his dog. Didn’t move, run or hide. The bird just stood there, obviously not frightened. He then showed me a picture of his dog, in the car with his wife. Okay, now I know.
From there we moved onto our individual spiritual journeys. He’s barely starting out, taking baby steps, I seem to be a tad further along. I shared a story where I had 'sensed' something about another friend, which her husband had dreamt about two nights before affirming what I had sensed.
“Oh, you’re an intuitive, then? Like my wife.”
So, I’m sitting in my dining room having a spiritual discussion with an insurance salesman just feeling overwhelmed with it all. Why was it happening? What was the Universe up to? Enquiring minds want to know. Or, at least mine does.
Two days later, I make the 35 mile drive to my optometrist for my annual checkup. I’ve been going to this practice for so long, it seems more like a family reunion than a medical visit. Plus, the doctor is a bit of eye candy. Alas, he is married with two daughters. Over the years he would ask a bit of advice on navigating the school district which I was only too happy to provide.
So, he asked me how life and retirement were treating me. I answered I’m searching for a direction. He inquired about my writing. I responded that I think I’m hitting some deep cathartic levels I’m not sure I’m ready to face. “You’ll know when you are,” he replied. “Take that leap of faith!"
“I’m also discovering newer sides to me,” I told him. And I shared the same story of my friend, what I sensed and her husband’s dream and that I was getting used to this new aspect of who I am and concerned how others might react.
“Why do you care?” he asked.
Touché.
And somewhere in all this conversation he dropped the word ‘healer’ which brought me back to my Snake spirit guide.
Once the exam was over, I went to see the contact lens technician who is actually responsible for my coming to this practice. Decades ago, she and I had worked together in a now-defunct department store. I had casually asked her if she knew of an optometrist as I needed to renew my drivers’ license and check my vision. She referred me to her father's practice and he has since retired. So, she and I spend some time catching up every visit. And catch up we do; all of our divorces-hers, mine, her parents’; the births and subsequent growth of her nephew and niece; visits with her mother-who had been the contact lens technician in the beginning; her father’s subsequent remarriage; my career and retirement, my writings. See, it is like a family reunion.
I’m not exactly sure how it happened but the theme of the day continued. We seemed to suddenly be sharing about the numbers we see, their meanings and she launched into her own stories of intuition/premonition/whatever-you-want-to-call-it.
I’m still digesting it all somewhat. Within the space of about four days, I kept getting messages to "tell my story”, “have faith”, “be a healer”, plus meeting people who aren’t turned off by intuitives.
The timing of it all is still overwhelming.
Perhaps the strangest or strongest message came today.
I recently found an old gift card to Barnes and Noble. I found some books online about opening up to gifts of Spirit. The subtotal before tax and shipping was $22.22!
According to multiple sources, 2222 is a reminder to maintain a positive attitude and a firm belief in oneself. In other words, have faith that all will work out for the best. Touché.
I guess I now know what the Universe was telling me.
And for the record, my living room is actually cranberry and mauve. With espresso accents.
