Syncronicity

        I have always been attracted to patterns, any kind of patterns.  I seek them out in music, in art, in nature, in the way we speak and even in physical habits and behaviors.  It’s gotten so that now I see them everywhere I look.  And there are other larger patterns around too, patterns that affect our lives.  There are weather patterns and symmetry and other types of patterns that we never notice.  I’ve used pattern awareness to learn and remember things.  When learning a new piece of music, I try to find the patterns and learn those first, making it much easier.  Practice works that way, too.  Because you repeat one small section over and over until it’s learned, it’s become pattern, which is easier to remember.  When I try to create a new habit, I think of it as part of the pattern of my daily routine.  Some people say that there are invisible patterns that act on our lives, sending us signs or otherwise guiding us.  This is sometimes referred to as synchronicity, the law of attraction or kismet. 
graphic credit: https://livinglovelee.com/2017/05/10/signs-universe/          
​        I enjoyed reading “The Celestine Prophecy” by James Redfield.  It’s written as a novel but is a very spiritual journey.  It is all about synchronicity, the importance of being open to it and noticing when it does manifest.  I know that I have experienced this phenomenon many times in my life.  It shows in the stories of how I met the important people in my life and many random opportunities.  They say that the more we notice these occurrences, the more they seem to happen.  That may be true.  I’ve gone to Germany and Switzerland to share music because of a random connection, and this May, I’ll be going to China because of another one.  I could write pages and pages of synchronistic events but will only share a few here.
        In the mid-80s, I was working at The Albany Free School in Albany, NY.  My husband and I had been looking for a keyboard player for our band, General Eclectic, so I started saying what we needed out loud.  Not much later, a family who was relocating to the area, came to check out the school.  I took one look at the man and thought, hmmm … I wonder.  I went up, introduced myself and quickly asked if he was a musician.  He played keyboard, guitar and sang.  He became a great band member for many years.  Another time we needed a rehearsal space and had no money to rent a place.  Once again, I spoke to the ether about what I needed, and we soon were offered a free basement space.  Then there’s my Fender guitar …
        When I was leaving my 20-year marriage with my first real love.  It was understandably a very hard time for both of us.  In addition to having loved each other and raised a family together, we had been bandmates during that time and co-songwriters.  Being in the band, even when it was just the two of us, was like a separate marriage because sharing music is such an intimate and bonding thing.  I had always been the lead singer, also playing percussion and occasionally keyboards while he was a phenomenal rhythm guitarist.  Although I had trifled with guitar when I was young, I gave it up when I started playing with him.  I knew that I now wanted to be musically independent and decided I needed my own guitar.  I was dirt poor, but I knew I was getting paid $200 the next day, so I stood out on my front porch in Stephentown, NY and said out loud to no one in particular, “I need an acoustic guitar preferably with a pick-up in a case for $200.  Oh, and a tuner would be great.”  I came home from work that next day, starting fixing dinner when there was a knock on the door.  It was my neighbor with his cousin’s guitar, checking to see if we knew anyone who might want to buy it.  It was exactly what I had asked for, right down to the random addition of the tuner, for $200. 
        One of my favorite events was when I bought my Kia Rio.  It was in 2011.  I had been driving an old Volvo that really was a lemon, causing me to pour thousands of dollars into it every year.  It was given to me to drive at a time when I really needed something, but its time was nearing the end.  I had to figure out what to do.  My partner at the time kept encouraging me to buy a new car.  He kept insisting that I could get a car loan easily.  I was resistant because I had a bankruptcy on my record from when I unexpectedly my raised one-year-old granddaughter, incurring childcare and other extra expenses.  Also, I still didn’t make very much money and didn’t think I could afford a loan.  One week, I started hearing commercials on the radio about leasing cars.  I also heard about Kias for the first time on the radio that week, not knowing anything about them.  Then there were ads about credit ratings and loan options.  I figured I’d better pay attention to these patterns and look into it. 
        My Credit Union just happened to be having a big car sale in a few days.  They approved my loan, understanding my bankruptcy and acknowledging the growth of my business and my efforts to reestablish my financial credibility.  The morning of the sale, as my partner was yelling upstairs to hurry so we could avoid the rush, I felt compelled to pick up the local paper.  I can’t explain why I needed to do that, but I did.  I opened up to a random page and saw an ad for the movie, Rio.  I shook my head, thinking myself very silly for taking the time for such an unimportant thing and raced out the door.  We arrived at the lot and started looking around.  Everything was so expensive, and I had only asked for a small loan.  There were lots of luxury cars and SUVs, not at all what I was looking for.  I was feeling discouraged, and my partner was done.  He started heading for his car when I stopped.  I just had a feeling.  I shouted, “Wait,” and quickly walked to the far end of the lot where I saw my car.  It was under the loan amount approved and as I realized what model it was, I suddenly understood everything.  It was a Kia “Rio.”
        Whether or not you believe in a higher power, what harm is there in trying to notice?  How many times have you heard a certain song in a few days’ time?  Or heard about a certain topic or person?  I went looking for a graphic for this post and the one above is the first one I found.  It prominently displays 11:11.  My husband was born at 11:11 am on 11-11-55 and always had an attraction for numbers.  We try to think of him at 11:11 am or pm when we notice, which happens often.  Isn't that interesting that this graphic came up first?  Why not pay attention and see what comes your way?  Certainly, you could also drive yourself crazy trying to find the meaning in everything, but hopefully you’ll let go of some of them.  I learned that sometimes, I’ll never know what something meant, if anything at all.  After all, there are also just coincidences.  Or, are there?

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