Metaphysical Monday: Serendipity

I’m a big fan of the idea of serendipity.

In fact, I kind of count on it to keep my life interesting.

So far, I haven’t been disappointed.

I’ve stumbled into most of the great things in my life–my relationships, my jobs, my most interesting ideas and experiences–almost always while looking for something that, at best, was only vaguely related.

Being able to accept the kinds of happy accidents that serendipity provides is a key part of being a Searcher. If you are too focused on the goal you have set out after, you miss out on the added benefits of the journey. Very often it is those side discoveries that provide what is really needed… even if you don’t know you need it before it is found.

Serendipity sometimes has odd sense of humor about it, leading you to find something quite the opposite of what you were expecting. That kind of whiplash can lead to a whole cascade of realizations all its own. Sometimes it can even change you (often for the better) to the core of your being.

You can open yourself up to serendipitous experiences by being observant in your daily life. It’s the signs and portents around us that let the subconscious play and connect random dots into strange pictures. You also have to be secure enough in your ability to adapt to deep changes in your situation–otherwise your natural psychological defense mechanisms kick in and suppress the realization of the new information added, potentially prolonging your arriving at both your intended destination and the (potentially more important) one serendipity has placed along your path.

A second way to open yourself up to serendipity is to be slightly vague in your stated goals from time to time. Doing so allows both your mind and the Universe to be flexible with how ultimate solutions are reached. It may take a little longer–but, again, the journey is a learning experience all its own and may be more important than the destination.

For those needing a third way to encourage serendipitous happenings, I offer this simple idea: Chase the White Rabbit. It worked for Alice. Something odd caught her eye and, diverging from the path she had been on, she followed it. Her adventures are something we’re all familiar with and, if nothing else, a study in stumbling along into interesting things. If we put the energy into exploring the tangents that appear around us, we become accustom to shifting our focus and accepting new ideas and directions.

Our mundane day to day lives can be tedious and boring. They can sap us of our creativity and active energy. Even worse, they can strip from us the vitality we need to thrive and live the life we deserve. Being open to the serendipitous, being flexible and aware enough to notice is and being brave enough to follow bits of it, can revive our joy in life.

Or, at least, keep us distracted and entertained until enlightenment kicks in.

What kinds of serendipitous experiences have you had? How open are you to randomness in your life?