This post was published during the first month of our blog’s existence. It illustrates how synchros can happen anywhere, at any time. This one occurred in Rob’s yoga class.
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Saturday I was the fulcrum for a synchronicity between two women in my yoga class. Just before class began, I asked one of them, a snowbird, when she was heading north. She said she was delaying her return because it was snowing in northern Maine and she mentioned that she lived in a small town on the border called Houlton. At the mention of the town, the woman next to her said that was where she lived. They talked briefly and found out they had friends in common, not surprising since it was a small town.
But, hey, what were the chances that those two women, who didn’t know each other, would come to a yoga class thousands of miles from where they lived, find places next to each other, and discover they were from the same town in Maine? What were the chances that I would start a conversation that would result in the name of the town coming up?
What was really astonishing to me, though, was that the two women didn’t seem very surprised. They quickly accepted the unlikely scenario without even commenting on the oddity. I’ve taught that class for seven years and never met anyone from my original hometown, Minneapolis, or even from Minnesota.
The point here is that synchronicities happen all the time and they’re often shrugged off as nothing unusual, nothing special. It’s when we recognize how special they are that we open up to insight on our existence here and how meaningful this existence really is.
I remember reading this story. I think you are right we have to realise how special synchros are.
Pretty amazing synchronicity! I agree with you, in that the “miraculous” is always happening around us, and most of the time, people don’t even notice — unfortunately, for most of us, an entire angelic choir could be performing in the back yard and we wouldn’t notice because we’re thinking about the laundry list. Maybe that’s why synchros seem more obvious when we travel………gets us out of the routine reality.
But I’ve also thought that these amazing meetings (I’ve had a few myself) are not surprising to the people who experience them because the people are already connected to each other on some level without realizing it. I think of Kurt Vonnegut’s “Karass” idea (probably wrong spelling)……….that people are connected to others in strange ways that seem meaningless, but they keep popping up.
I remember something like that myself – John Rosen was a man Ihad a brief affair with in my early 20’s in London, and forgot about him when I left. 10 years later I encounter him when he’s dating a roomate in Berkeley, California – and I still didn’t like him particularly. Then in my mid 40’s I did a craft show in a little town in Arizona, just north of Phoenix. Going to get a cup of coffee after the show who should I literally bump into – but John Rosen, recognizable by his English accent!
What a good synchro and weird story, Lauren! I always liked Vonnegut’s karass idea. Makes perfect sense to me!
I just finished Anne Tyler’s new book, “A Spool of Blue Thread” yesterday, and a synchro is at the heart of the story. I enjoyed it very much, too! 🙂
Now I’ll have to get her book!