I am not a firm believer of destiny working on its own and neither am I a non-believer that it does somehow work like an awesomely, unexplainably, fantastically timed machine….but definitely pre-timed by an all powerful being here/there/everywhere around me.
What amazes me the most is the way things are timed to happen just when they happen.
Me waking into that supermarket at that particular time to meet that particular person.
Me thinking about that topic at the precise moment when I need to know about it.
Me talking to that person as the precise moment I need to talk to them.
Of course the challenge of philosophers over centuries is whether or not destiny is directed by our choices.
Well, that is totally a different argument. My intrigue is fueled more by the constant concidences and surprises life keeps throwing at chosen times. One of the unsung wonders of the world: I know that the Wilderbeest Migration is an awesome spectacle…..but honestly, more awesome are the miracles that happen in my life from time to time(ok, yes…I have not been to Masai Mara yet…you are right)
But for me the natural wonders of tiny miracles happening each day are free( or wayyy cheaper at least) and much more spectacular.
How exactly an action done subconsciously can lead me to a choice I can live to cherish is amazing. How can you explain that? Yes, you cant.
I know that some things also happen that bring bad things with them…and that is life. With each good, a bad is hiding somewhere waiting to pounce- Life’s sense of humour and variety.You must realise that even bad things appear in a line-up of events that must happen in your life for some future good thing to take place.
One thing gears into the other that is forthcoming.
How that gear perfectly correlates with or leads to the future joy-gear is a mystery.
So all this makes me wonder….should I really live my life so carefully as to be scared of what choices to make? Yes, I know there are somethings you cannot play around with such as unsafe sex, walking in Uhuru Park at 3am, flashing your iphone in River Road……yes….please don't leave caution to the winds on that kind of stuff….
What I mean is….should I be VERY VERY scared of the kind of job I choose as my first? The kind of car to buy? Should I use pure logic to choose the kind of partner I want to date…….or do I purely use my ‘gut-feeling’ or ‘instincts’?
When can we make the perfect trade-off between using logical reasoning and using gut instincts to make life choices?
And if you look around you today….who are the happier people?
Those who rely more on their guts or those who rely more on their logic?
Hmm…..well....’happy’ is a relative term….but you know what I mean…
In my definition, happiness relates to freedom to just be; to be in harmony with self, others, things, the world…..bla bla bla
Most people associate gutsy people with ‘freedom’ or as being ‘freespirited’.
Most people associate logically/reasoning inclined decision makers with ‘uptightness’
Sometimes…though hardly, it is vice versa.
So what exactly makes you cook your life into a better pie?…is it using guts mostly or using logic mostly or a cocktail of both?
Ask my mum and she will tell you guts take you only to Athi River if you want to go to Mombasa…..yes, I am a freespirited kind of person which at times rubs my mum the wrong way; Ask her and she would definitely point out how my way of life is ‘risky’.
Most inventors, artists, trend-setters, self-starters all over history are known ‘free-spirits’
Most successful managers, business gurus, movers and shakers all over history leading a group of people are known to have strong bias for logic/reasoning
You might say, to lead people/organisations you need to use more logic than guts.
I am not saying I will be a great inventor, artist, trend-setter…..and I am not saying that I will not…..who knows…maybe I'm already one…:-p And you might say that to lead change and innovation you need to use guts more than logic; Because logic usually opens a magic door into the world of doubts and ‘I cants’. True.
And you might say that different circumstances lead to either. So one person uses either guts or logic at different times? I agree.
And you might say that ‘free-spirits’ can also be very logical thinkers.
True.
But note: Here, I am referring to where a person’s highest propensity lies when faced with key life decisions and esp. those might-change-your-life decisions that crop up.
So is there a formula for my personal life as I walk and chart my own life path? I may not invent a new piece of technology….I may not lead a global organisation with multicultural teams…..but I may need to decide which country to travel to next year, I may need to decide which job offer to take tomorrow, I may need to decide which friend to keep and which one to let go of…..these are the everyday decisions that I keep wondering how to handle : to use my gutsy toolkit, to use my logical toolkit or to use both?
These are decisions that every single human being is faced with. Personal life decisions. One ‘wrong’ one could alter the entire course of your life. With such huge responsibility on even the simplest of choices…its no wonder self-help books are telling us to follow our instincts.
And maybe they are right. Maybe my gut feeling is destiny’s way of giving me a clue towards what is best for me.
But then…..if destiny is talking to me….then maybe my choice really is pre-determined….maybe destiny is just a nice person….otherwise if ‘she’ was mean, she would just make things happen without having to make me feel like I am deciding things on my own. And i am guessing that would not make for a good script in the syndicated television series called LIFE.It is more fun to make us think we run things; And definitely more ‘humane’ of Destiny to do that for us.
Just as in the Adjustment Bureau(fantastic movie :-))- The guys in the hats say that we do not have free will but just an appearance that we have it.
So maybe destiny is just a kind old woman making us feel independent, stroking our ego every now and then making us feel like we are in charge….but in the end, decides it all on her own or decided it a long time ago.
Oh well….I cant worry about that too much. I am happy enough witnessing her miracle workings on my life day by day, coincidence after coincidence.
Wherever this will take me…..thank you Miss Destiny….
I cant miss My Destiny….
I am watching- I even have popcorn!