kismet

by Rain Trueax

This week, I got to thinking about how much of life is about luck and timing. Those two items can go either way for whether we consider them good or not so much. In my own experience, timing has sometimes been amazing how a series of events leads to one result. 


There are many examples, but an early one goes back to college. I dropped an acting class at the beginning of my sophomore year. That rearranged my schedule, and I had to take a make-up social dance class as part of my PE requirements. 

When I got into the class, the teacher told those of us there making it up to cut in on a partner. I saw a cute guy out there, who I remembered from a class we'd taken together as freshmen. I tapped the girl's shoulder, and the guy said hi, and he knew my name. That was a surprise as we'd never talked. Another girl tapped in, and I went off to someone else. 

When the class was over, the cute guy told me he knew more than my name as we walked back to the main hall. The previous year, he'd looked me up in a school directory. I guess today a girl might think that was stalking although he'd done nothing about checking me out. By the time we had exchanged names and then parted, I was very impressed and going home that night said I thought I'd met the man I wanted to marry. 

Turns out I did, and 54 years later, we're still married. Now think about the coincidences involved in our beginning. Had I not changed schedules, I'd never have been in that class. Maybe we'd have met another way but perhaps not. Do you believe such things are determined by some preordained plan or is it just the luck of the draw? 

Such timing doesn't always work out in ways we would remotely consider positive. The day of the Super Bowl, a party was going on at a home in California. In the air above was a man flying a plane that for whatever reason appeared to break up and dive straight down. It could have hit the wide street, but it did not. It went straight into the house with the party. Five people died. Now the one in the plane maybe had an idea of what was coming. The ones in the house, not a clue. Fate again or kismet-- planned fate? 

This all goes true for so much of life not just about love or death but also about career choices and how they work out. Think of how many beautiful girls are in Hollywood hoping for their big break. What makes it happen for some and not others? It's not all explained by talent or beauty as many have those gifts.

Even in the more routine workplace, promotions or hires are determined by preparation but also being in the right place at the right time-- or not. While networking plays a role in some outcomes, it can't always explain it. 

I've gotten plots for books from dreams-- some that worked out amazingly and some that were just fun ideas that went nowhere. When they work out, I call it from the Muse. What exactly is the Muse, I am not sure, but I don't blame it for the mistakes I have made. That's all me :) 

So what do you think about fate? How about kismet, which to me is more designed than pure happenstance? 

Some would say we make our destiny, but do we or do we try to recognize it when it comes along? 

Serendipity is another word I like, which is always positive and for me generally involves small things that come together in a providential way (as I see it at the time).