Ponderings (April 2006) - “SERENDIPITY”

According to Merriam-Webster's Dictionary …

Serendipity is “the faculty or phenomenon of finding valuable or agreeable things not sought for”

Sharing my thoughts …

Believing in and being open to serendipity has enhanced my life with a sense of wonder, joy and adventure.  By exploring the unexpected with an open mind, while listening to my inner guidance, I often discover things work out better than I could have planned.  I’ve learned to look at chance happenings as possibilities for guiding me on my right path, helping me see, use and honor my unique talents, teaching me important life lessons, and contributing something positive to the world.  Of course, not all unexpected circumstances appear positive.  Sometimes it requires the passing of time and hindsight to see the serendipity in what happened.  But, almost always, if I am patient and open to the process, I find the gift in “things not sought for.”

Questions to ponder …

1. How will you stay open to serendipity?
2. What will the belief in serendipity do for you?
3. How often do you notice serendipity in your life?
4. How do you normally respond to unexpected outcomes?
5. What relationships have you formed due to accidental encounters?
6. How do you listen to your inner guidance when serendipity strikes?
7. What desired outcomes are you holding onto that are causing you emotional pain?
8. What shift is needed in your perspective to find the gift in outcomes not expected?
9. What negative events have you experienced that ended up being positive in the long run?
10. Recall a recent unexpected event.  Was serendipity involved?  If so, how did you respond?

Related quotes …

Like many of the finest things of life, like happiness and tranquility and fame, the gain that is most precious is not the thing sought, but one that comes of itself in the search for something else.  [Benjamin Cardozo] 

The only way we can learn to adopt serendipity as a personal philosophy is to let go of  committing ourselves emotionally to one desired outcome.  The outcome we expect comes from our intellect, our conscious mind.  We are restricted by the myopia of our intellect, of its willingness to embrace only one anticipated scenario.  Looking at the spectrum of choices with which our soul allows us to diversify our expectations, realize that the possibility of the unexpected – with some adjustments – can be better than anything imagined.  [Linda Brady]

Look for something, find something else, and realize that what you’ve found is more suited to your needs than what you thought you were looking for.  [Lawrence Block]

What happened, happened either for your growth or for your guidance. … You drew the happening to you by conscious or unconscious forces within yourself. … Sometimes what happened, happened not for your benefit, but for the benefit and profit of someone else. … Until tomorrow becomes today, men will be blind to the good fortune hidden in unfortunate acts.  [Persian fairy tale, “The Three Princes of Serendip”]

When you “dip” into life with “serenity” everything that happens has meaning.  [Marcus Bach]