Life's Dreams and Serendipity

I never thought I would to actualize any of my Life's Dreams list. I thought they were great fantasies; just a way to while away idle time, or to read about and wish. It was my Wish List.

My wife, on the other hand, has an uncanny knack of wishing for things, and then they just seem to come to her! Case in point: she's always wanted to be part of Cirque du Soleil, so what do you imagine would happen when she went to one of their shows in Las Vegas? Right! She was called from the audience, whisked backstage, and dressed in a costume so fast that she didn't even know what character she was! (She ended up being "Mama" to a "child" searching the audience for her Mama.) That's only one of many instances. So I took a lesson from her.

I never saw the same kinds of serendipity in my own life. That is, not until I started taking my Life's Dreams list more seriously than a mere wish list.

One item that's been a life's dream has been to hike down into the Grand Canyon. It formulated back in 2001, on a 6-week road trip throughout Arizona and New Mexico. I fell in love with Arizona, and when I stood at the rim of the Grand Canyon, I had a remarkable spiritual experience. The sheer immensity of that canyon took my breath away! It made me painfully aware of my own insignificance. With that awareness I imagined myself shooting away from planet Earth, watching even this vast canyon become miniscule, and then even Earth became a grain against all the cosmos. Then I became aware of myself again, thinking that -- as seemingly insignificant as I am, I get to have this experience; an experience in which I was overcome with emotion, awe, and gratitude.

Ever since that experience, I've so wanted to hike the canyon. When I stood on the rim, far below I could make out specks that were hikers on the trails. I wished that I could do that someday, but I canceled out that wish by believing that it would be impossible for someone with back problems like mine, or that I just didn't have time and money for such things.

One day, I mentioned this life's dream to my wife and, lo and behold, shortly thereafter I came across a MAP OF THE TRAILS IN THE GRAND CANYON in a giveaway book pile! That's when I started to change my attitude about my life's dreams. I had experienced serendipity, but that meant my next step would require ACTION, not fantasy.

You see, a wish remains a wish only if you do nothing to make it start coming true. My wife, for example, had to SHOW UP at Cirque du Soleil to even be chosen from the crowd! My journey began far before I took my first step into the canyon.

ser·en·dip·i·ty: the faculty or phenomenon of finding valuable or agreeable things not sought for