A statement heard some years back, stayed with me

Nothing is a coincidence * and nothing is an accident *

A statement that has had me dwelling on it from time to time.

Read this statement again in a book recently and set me thinking off

and with it rasied some questions too (don’t they always?:-)).

If nothing is a coincidence and nothing is an accident,

what of the times when we meet someone out of the blue?

or when we chance upon something quite unexpectedly – either positive or not so?

Are they happening because there is a connection? Is there a reason for things to happen?

Or should there be a reason at all, becasue we always want to attribute a reason to everything that happens?

The statement – nothing is a coincidence and nothing is an accident is doing a dance in my mind.

Two words that appear different but similar too – coincidence, accident..

If these two words aren’t enough, add the word serendipity *

Though coincidence and serendipity have a positive note attached to them

accident has a not so nice note attached to it, many times.

Accidentally when something happens, sometimes it is for the good too.

Penicillin was supposed to have been discovered by accident

Maybe it wasn’t an accident!! Maybe it was meant to be discovered by Alexander Flemming at that time and place!!

Maybe he was meant to make this invaluable contribution to the society and also get that fame and name!!

What happened by chance, when we think about it in hindsight, maybe happened for a reason..

So many maybe’s!!! No definitives though 🙂

As I was mulling over these words and of penning a blog on it, I chanced upon (now is this a coincidence or accident or serendipity or providence (adding yet another word) * ? :-)) a short video with Tom Cruise. He was narrating an incident of how he was once in the same restaurant as Dustin Hoffman, whom he hadn’t met but heard much about; and watched a few movies of his. He said that his sister who was with him persuaded him to meet Dustin Hoffman and talk to him; which he did after quite some push. At a later point in time, Dustin Hoffman asked him if they could do a film together and there on, the much acclaimed ‘Rain Man’ happened.

What made them be at the restaurant at the same time? What made his sister to push him to meet Dustin Hoffman, which he did?

All for ‘Rain Man’ to happen and there on name and fame for both?

a movie that showcases an individual with a neurodiverse need, that helps the society to understand them a bit more?

Free will at work and a reason at play?

Free will and destiny walking alongside one another?

Ooh!! and my brain is getting even more fired or fried, on this topic now!!!

As though these weren’t enough to fire or fry my thoughts, experienced something that is up close and personal.

We were on a travel and had the wonderful opportunity to stay over at a very good friend’s home. I was aware that they have a pet in their home. Not being very proficient with breeds, I had no clue about what breed their dog was or the colour. We go to their home and out comes a big black bundle wagging its tail and doing circles around us – Ms. N.

After the passing on of Mr. D, I haven’t had the courage to pet any dogs or go near any of them. Ms. N took away all of that and in a few minutes, we were running behind one another and chasing one another, in whichever space was available.

Ms. N disliked me hiding from her and would wait wherever she was looking at where I had hidden, just like Mr. D..

She would wait for a few minutes and let out a bark, the way Mr. D would..

If excited, she will shake her body a couple of times quite vigorously, that looked so much like Mr. D..

Someone new had come to clean an area of our friend’s home and Ms. N was happily lying on the sofa, paying no attention on the person who had come and did not even let out a bark.. I couldn’t but recall Mr. D doing the same, leaving us wondering how a double hound could be so lackadaisical..

There were quite a few differences between Mr. D and Ms. N, though the similarities were endearing.

The icing on the cake was this – As I was waking up the next morning, I heard the paw steps of Mr. N, walking towards the room. When she walked in, for me it was like waking up to the sight of Mr. D in my home. I had an excited “Hey Good Morning” in my tone.

She walks up to me, lifts her head up a bit towards my face and waits for a slight petting and leaves the room. Exactly what Mr. D would do many a morning. This incident left me in smiles for a while and it occured to me that it was just a week to go for the one year completion of Mr. D passing on. Well, he certainly seems to be here, in his own way,, Coincidence? Serendipity? Providence? Whichever it was, am I glad I met Ms. N!!

If we look back at quite some experiences of ours, we will find some of them falling into the bucket of what we would term as coincidence, accident, serendipity and providence..

Were they any of these, some of these, all of these or none of these? I am not sure if we would have answers to these questions.

If we think there was a reason for these experiences to happen, it is our perception. We have no way of knowing whether our guess for the reasons are right..

Every possibility is out here in this world. We may call it coincidence, accident, providence or serendipity..

Whatever it is, it may be for a / an

– new opportunity

– strength to build upon

– limitation to work upon

– revelation of ourselves

– chance to reflect

etc etc etc

Or it may just be the way life is playing out…

Let’s enjoy the play…

Be prepared for the magic to unfold!! Be surprised!! Be with the flow!! 

It is meant to be!!!

 

* Meanings (as taken from the online Cambridge dictionary)

a. Coincidence – an occasion when two or more similar things happen at the same time, especially in a way that is suprising and unlikely

b. Accident –

  1. Something bad that happens that is not expected or intended and that often damages something or injures someone
  2. Something that happens by chance, without anyone intending or planning it

c. Serendipity – the act of finding interesting or valuable things by chance

d. Providence – the care and control of god or of a force that is not human in origin