Is it fate or destiny?

This section of the blog is just for teens and young adults who want to know more about the Spark. Search ‘Tips for Teens’ on the blog to find practical advice, simple tools and inspiration to help you stay connected to your Spark and let your inner light shine.

Sometimes life just puts you in the right place, at the right time. Whether it’s fate, destiny, coincidence or luck, some days the stars align and those magic moments occur when you least expect it. It can happen in an instant – you meet someone unexpected, or take a wrong turn and end up somewhere pretty cool. The trick is to take as much as possible from those right-time-moments, and if you’re clever, create more.

DOLPHIN calling

Let me tell you about one of those ‘right place, right time’ days. Down in the sleepiest corner of England, right on the Cornish coast, famous for its pirates and pasties (delicious pastry goodness) I was quietly soaking up some unexpected rays. It’s a perfectly restful, heavenly place – little boats dotted across the horizon, the clear blue sea kissing the rocky outcrops and grassy verges; hardly a breath of air, just warm, lazy sunshine. Heaven.

Suddenly, in the quietest, most-English and reserved way, a rumour was gathering momentum. Someone had spotted a pod of dolphins swimming further out to sea. Now, I’ve never been to Sea World, I haven’t done the dolphin-swimming-in-Mexico thing – the closest I’ve ever been to a dolphin is through a TV screen. I’m also not the most outdoorsy of people. Water is not my friend, boats and sea = potential disaster and/or embarrassment.  But the locals were zipping into action and a boat was leaving at any moment to seek out these magnificent creatures. If I wanted to be on board I had to move quickly.

Should I risk making a fool of myself by falling in the sea / not knowing how to put a life jacket on / looking ungainly while getting on the boat (i.e. potentially landing on my butt)? Or should I take this opportunity to potentially see the dolphins? In the most unlike-me way ever, I jumped at it.

THE CALL OF THE WILD

We bounced aboard and set sail, much in the way that our ancestors surely did when exploring new continents and attacking marauders a few hundred years ago (well, if they had speed boats). The wind whipped up our hair and the excitement was palpable. As we got closer we saw the dolphins with our own eyes – a dozen or more, circling and playing, as if they were performing for us. The captain killed the boat’s engine and we drifted in as close as we dared. The dolphins just carried on jumping and swooping, arcing in large circles around the boat. It was quite simply incredible.

Some say that dolphins are heavenly creatures that have special healing energy and spread positivity in their wake. As a sense of profound calm descended on us all, that idea seemed to ring true. I sent up a silent thank you to God / the Universe / Mother Earth or whatever you want to call it, because in that moment it definitely seemed like we weren’t just a part of some random experiment on a planet hurtling through space, but experiencing a perfectly orchestrated moment for some greater purpose. It just seemed like fate.

Being in the right place

The sense of calm I experienced in Cornwall stayed with me for a while after. I couldn’t forget the feeling I had when I came close to the dolphins, and it made me wonder whether more moments in life are also perfectly orchestrated to help us on our path. Maybe what seems like a coincidence is actually synchronicity – a meaningful moment that is destined to be. Bumping into that old friend, coming across a really insightful article or book, meeting someone who has just the piece of information you need – could it be that these small ‘coincidences’ hold a greater truth?

When I reflected on my dolphin experience I realised that it would’ve happened whether I’d been on that boat, or not. If I’d stayed back on land because of my worries or fears the others would have had that amazing experience and I would’ve carried on with my life regardless. I wouldn’t have known what I’d missed out on, not really, but I wouldn’t have had that profound opportunity and the learning that happened as a result, through my reflection and thinking afterwards.

WHAT ARE WE MISSING?

Maybe these opportunities are waiting for us, every day, but we fail to experience them because we hold ourselves back, or let negative thoughts create reasons not to go for it. Maybe our eyes are too firmly fixed on the ground, instead of looking up to the sky, or in my case, out to sea.

Where might life take us if we create an air of expectancy and excitement about what’s coming next?

What might happen if we say yes to opportunities, or put ourselves ‘out there’?

If I hadn’t had that experience, I wouldn’t be writing this now. Seems like those dolphins are pretty special, after all.

Have you ever had a right-place, right-time moment that changed your life? Are you now actively creating these moments? Share your synchronistic and destined moments on Instagram or with our Facebook community.