I often wonder how many of you ruminate to yourselves about the bigger picture, a higher purpose and the meaning of life? Do you contmeplate if the things that happen to us are merely a coincidence or if there is some type of pre-determined fate, or path already laid out for us? That is not to say we do not have free will, or we cannot take another route or even change our trajectory. But can it be as simple as two things colliding together with no meaning, no greater purpose simply just because that’s the way it is?
As I sit here, editing a few last bits to my website, I am not procrastinating publishing…honestly. I started reflecting on an experience I had earlier today. What I like to think of as a ‘divine connection!’ You know what I mean, those meetings with a person or situation that felt undeniably right and you were so grateful it happened due to some profound learning or an Ah-Ha moment. You leave with a tingly, buzzing feeling, grinning like a bobcat! I just googled a grinning bobcat by the way. Go on you know you want to.
So, I have been considering for over a week where I should get my nails done on this little island of Koh Phangan, only two months in, I am still getting my bearings. After one call to a place that was busy I found another salon called, ‘Cute Nails,’ I thought, "Okay, let’s check this place out. Anyway, I drove past it twice trying to find it, but when I walked in, there was this beautiful, smiling Thai lady called Dao who offered me some water and got to work. We talked and laughed for the entire 1.5 hours about everything you can imagine. We put the world to rights, obviously!
The whole time, I kept saying to myself, Oh My God, this woman is me…this is a Thai version of me! Every word out of her mouth was exactly what I would say or think. We were vibing for sure, but something that stood out to me was that we all have a choice to be happy, proud, successful and in love with ourselves. It was evident that this lady was so comfortable in her own skin, regardless of what anyone else thought, she could have lived a fast-paced life in Bangkok, maybe earning more money but for sure spending more and stressing more. Instead, she chose art, she chose peace and she chose HERSELF.
I loved sitting there today, listening to a confident woman tell it how it is (for her) and each time she said something it felt like an affirmation to my already present thoughts (so for me too, I guess).
Perfectly timed, during a period in my life where I have courageously (I hope) stepped out of the expected into the unexpected, taken a leap of faith and for the first time, I have no job security, no income, no medical insurance, no comfortable ex-pat package that I had gotten so used to and expected even, to give myself some time and space to figure out what it is that I want. How I want to show up in this world and what kind of legacy I want to leave. At one point I heard her say, “I like myself, I really like myself, maybe my skin is darker than what Thai's consider beautiful, I am not as skinny as some Thai women, but I am cute. I take care of myself, go to the gym, and eat my food. Because you only have now to be happy!”
A woman after my own heart...balancing working out enough to allow me to eat all the delcious food this island has to offer! Ha!
Just WOW! So inspiring, so profound and such divine timing! Thank you, Dao, you came in at exactly the right moment and I cannot wait to meet you again. So for now, the takeaway is to forget what…you THINK people think of you, or what you THINK you should do. Instead, do what makes you FEEL good, what are your truths? What lights you up? What brings joy to others when you do what you do ? Find those things and live by them.
“Well, look who I ran into,” crowed Coincidence. “Please,” flirted Fate, “this was meant to be.”
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