Each morning, after waking up, I set an intention to have an amazing day and connect with extraordinary people. I have been engaged in that practice for years. Each day, it works. I don’t know where or when my path will intersect with those who were going about living their lives and were not on my radar screen until then. I delight in it. It gives me the giggles. It lets me know that there is a sense of order in the universe. Now, especially, we need it.
Here are the tales of crossed paths and full hearts in the past few days.
Hug-versation in the produce aisle. Just left a local supermarket smiling. As soon as I walked in, decked out in my HUG DEALER shirt  a man unloading a pallet, commented on my shirt. I explained that I do the FREE HUGS thing. He told me that he is married to a woman from a Latin American country and she and her family are very affectionate. He had invited a friend to their wedding in her homeland and warned him that he would most certainly be hugged and kissed. His friend was a stoic person who came from a country that is not known for being warm and fuzzy. Somehow, he survived the ordeal but said he didn’t understand the affectionate inclination. We laughed and hugged and I went on my way, filling my cart and my heart. A few others noticed my shirt and we did ‘virtual hugs
Cosmically coincidental, right place, right time encounter. I stopped at CVS in my local town of Doylestown, PA to pick up a few things and noticed tattoos on the forearm of the young woman at the register. She told me that one in particular was especially meaningful. It was a bunch of blue butterflies that remind her of her grandmother who had died fairly recently. She shared butterfly stories that she was certain related to her beloved grandmother, whose signature and a message of love surrounded the winged ones on her arm and I reciprocated with stories about my mom who told me that she would come back to visit as a butterfly. Since 2010, when she died, I have had many encounters. There was an older woman behind me who was listening and said that her husband of 60 years had also recently died. We all cried and hugged. They both said that they needed the hugs. Me too.
My day kept getting better and better. I met an angel named Alice. As I was getting in my car after picking up vegan hair color at Sally Beauty, a woman who was parked next to me commented on my hair. which at that moment was a faded purple, thus the purchase of vivid pink and purple dye that I will apply tomorrow. Hers was exquisite with cornrows and braids wrapped around her head. We stood talking for 10 minutes. She told ne she had just retired from SEPTA (the Philly area transportation company) three years ago. My dad had been a SEPTA bus driver too. She was telling me about her children and grandchildren. She told me her philosophy of loving herself, life and other people. She talked about kindness. At 78, she is not on any medications and said the secret was drinking apple cider vinegar in water each day. Her doctor told her that whatever she was doing, she should keep doing it. I pointed out the message on my new t-shirt which was inscribed with the words KINDNESS EQUALITY INCLUSION DIVERSITY PEACE LOVE. She told me that she believed in those things too. We hugged and blessed each other on our way.
Next stop was for a purple pedi. I had an ouchy ingrown toe nail and Somi who has taken care of me before, gently extracted it and had suggested ways to heal it afterward. She said she hoped that this would be the worst part of my day. I laughed and regaled her with the way cool interactions I have had over the past few days. She smiled and said that I created lovely starts to people’s days. I reminded her that she does the same at her job. More than just pretty nails, but pampering and listening. She is what I call a privileged listener, like therapists, clergy, hairdressers and cab drivers. People leave the nail salon uplifted, feeling better than when they entered.
I’m not sure how this occurred or who was the ‘yenta’ that introduced me to filmmakers John Manulis and Peter Jones, but I’m glad the connection happened. The two men, along with a crew of long time friends created an awe-inspiring film called Fortunate Sons. What brought these men together was that they were privileged kids who grew up in the 60s and 70s and attended the Harvard School which was an elite, military program in LA. They came together for the 50th anniversary of their graduation, initially via Zoom, since it was in the time of COVID. The film highlights the downside of privilege, the impact of toxic masculinity and the love and support that brought them through the experience. I watched the password protected version last night and cried through it since I am around the same age as these guys and lived through the same cultural experiences. As a therapist, I nodded in understanding about some of the traumas they survived and perhaps even thrived through. Many of them found careers that put them in a position to be of service. The film will have its debut at the Dances With Films Festival in LA on June 21st. I will be interviewing John and perhaps Peter for an upcoming GMP article.
A sweet bonus story from last weekend. I drove down to the Northern Neck region of VA; turned out to be 7 hours each way, but well worth it, since it was a magnificent occasion. The wedding of Donna and Jeff is what called me there, as they had asked me to co-officiate, along with the former minister of their Unitarian Universalist fellowship. I have known this amazing couple for over 10 years and they make me smile every time I think of them. I called it a ‘hippie wedding’. The ceremony was held on their dock with a river view. Dress was casual and for some of us, flowing and colorful. No bare feet that I noticed. (: We were ushered in to their front yard with sage and another friend led us in ice breaker exercises and a beautiful ritual in which we offered each other water, bread and fruit, with the invocation of “May you never thirst and may you never hunger.” The reception was held at their UU building with glorious food, a beautiful cake and cupcakes that the bride baked and decorated. Karaoke kept us entertained and their two year old grandson stole the show by belting out, in his own toddler language, every song he could. Donna and I sang I’m Gonna Be (Five Hundred Miles) by the Proclaimers. It has special significance, since, years ago, we went to a bar to hear friends of hers sing it with their band. That night, we, along with two other friends, danced wildly to it. Those who attended were part of the various overlapping soul circles in their life. Afterward, I thanked them for bringing us together to experience joy that we so desperately need now. In the midst of the chaos in the world, we simply have to refill with love and beauty. Wishing them a long lifetime of love together.
I invite you to test that intention and allow for miraculous encounters. As I am typing these words, I am sitting on my back deck, watching the magnificent sunset and listening to one of my favorite hippie songs from the 1960s called Get Together by the late Jesse Colin Young. “Come on people, now, smile on each other. Everybody get together, try to love one another, right now.”
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This Post is republished on Medium.
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Photo credit: iStock
