Omens

I once heard someone say there is no such thing as coincidence. In ways, I agree with this; everything is inextricably connected although we may not be able to divine the connection.

Earlier this winter, I was sitting at a café talking to my sister on the phone. At the time, I was struggling with the thought of what to do when I grow up. I had been considering several things such as starting a school, returning to the corporate world, becoming an illegal immigrant in the USA, and other lucrative prospects. The one choice I had decided on that day was to return to Laos

Just as I uttered those words to my sister, a bird pooped on my journal. I laughed and thought “Ok, if that is not a clear omen I don’t know what is”. In Italy it is considered good luck to have a bird poop on you and although I don’t think anyone who has ever worked on a chicken farm puts much stock in this superstition, I like to think it is not completely random – there is no such ting as coincidence, right? If nothing else, perhaps such events prompt us to direct the energy of our subconscious towards manifesting our goals. I’m not sure. It doesn’t always work. Maybe not all bird poop has the same potency. Going on blind faith, I locked in my plans that day and have worked towards my decision.

Over the months of sorting out a myriad of papers and research and maps and such, I felt an uneasiness. No others birds made any deposits on my journal. In fact, no birds deposited on my car, my shirt, or anything else. I began to wonder if I had made an erroneous choice based on a completely silly wives tale. However, not being one to upset old wives, I persevered despite an overwhelming absence of omens. Then, the other day after buying my plane ticket the cosmos winked and grinned at me.

I was sitting in a different café sipping my morning coffee when I looked up to see a sight very unusual here in North America, but all too common in Asia. A young puppy who had been tied to a table leg while its owner was inside getting coffee had managed to climb up on the table to get a better view of the goings on inside the coffee shop. During my last trip to Thailand, I noted the how frequently I saw dogs resting on the orange concrete table outside of homes and I noticed when I returned to Canada that the dogs all slept underneath tables. I don’t think it really means anything yet at the same time it means everything.

I suppose my point is that sometimes when I am wondering if I am completely off in outer space it takes something like that to assure me that outer space is really not so bad. It’s actually sort of exciting, at least for me and the dogs.