Before leaving for SF I went out for dinner with my family and was lucky enough to obtain 2 fortunes. The first said that I would have a chance encounter with someone from my past. Obviously seeing some familiar faces at SF wouldn’t count, nor my work colleagues from the gallery that I was scheduled to meet with the following day: there was nothing chance about these meetings. The next afternoon I wandered around Noho, ducking into familiar shops, re-acclimating easily to my old haunts and stomping grounds. As I walked down the hall of Thornes toward Cedar Chest I ran into my old roommate from my Noho days (the first posts I made in this blog took place during that time some 2 years ago!). I knew immediately that this was my fortune making good on its promise. I greeted her and asked how things were, what she was up to? She said that she was moving—maybe some 6 months from now to North Carolina—of all places! I was confused. She’d lived in Noho for years (11, 12 ?) and the way she and I had talked before she made it sound as though this was very much her home, and she’d most likely stay for another 10+…. well, it turns out that after I left for NB, she had booked a trip on a vegan cruise to the Caribbean and met, she said, “the man of her dreams.” His business is in NC so she planned to move there and make a life with him. If I can be honest, and I hope at this point in my journey I’ll be nothing but, part of me was jealous… I’m not sure I even registered the jealousy until well after saying our goodbyes. What did register in the moment was surprise, and genuine happiness—which I still feel, and believe these are the truer, more lasting feelings that I have with regard to her news. I was (and am) happy for her—very much so. In fact, despite my jealousy, or perhaps in spite of it, my happiness far outweighs any negative emotion, because it makes me hopeful. Her story demonstrates that life can change in an instant—with one decision, or one experience. That even now, many years after I’d thought I’d have found my *person*, there exists that (very real, very tangible) possibility. I’m elated. I’m ecstatic! I’m so pleased that her story has (re-)opened that avenue which I think in the back of my mind I’d labeled “CLOSED,” and given up on. Life is funny, strange, and unpredictable. It can change you in an instant. This I had already gleaned, mostly through adversity, but what a breath of fresh air; what relief to know, to be reassured that it can be for the better, for an amazing, unforeseeable, and potentially Universally sanctioned best.
The second half, or subsequent tale, is that in light of these events (which to me feel as though they are the Universe speaking) and a feeling that has persisted for months now, I’ve written myself a charm in hopes of further opening this door. This blog is about my creative journey, and I’d like very much to keep on that trajectory, but I also believe that in a way, our professional journeys are bound up in the other paths our lives take, so I thought this anecdote apropos. If anything should come of it, I reserve the right to elaborate later. ^.<
Metal Urges Imagined 