
Love is one of those serendipitous moments. We humans often consider it fate or destiny when we meet a person we care about. The Universe is moving in a certain direction, whether we are on board or not. But if we put ourselves in the right place, at the right time, and choose to be active participants, when we do catch that wave, even if only for an instant, our choices are what get us there.
You can never pine for a lost love or wonder "what if" if you actively put yourself in the right places at the right times, preparing to catch those special moments when they come along. Because when something like that does happen, meeting a person or perhaps reconnecting with an acquaintance, and suddenly, there's chemistry--it can feel insane. But it's not insanity. It's destiny. Yours. You need to see those moments through. Why? Because when they occur, it is what scholar Joseph Campbell refers to as "The Call to Adventure."
We are all the heroes of our own life cycle. Campbell identified, through an intense study of over 1,000,000 years of human story, a certain common pattern or thread that exists in all of it. This thread transcends time, space, geography, culture, economics, social structures, and theology. He called it "The Hero's Journey." The "call" is where the hero must cross a threshold, going from the familiar world he knows into a new strange world. Most heroes are reluctant when they receive the call. Fear of failure dogs humanity to bitter ends. But when the hero, that is YOU, decides to move forward despite their fear, adventure awaits! And so does evolution. If you have the courage to be in the right place at the right time, and be ready for anything, you'll ultimately become the "Master of Two Worlds" in control of not only where you came from, but where you are going. That's worth a few risks, don't you think???
When we receive a "call" in love, the risks sometimes seem to outweigh the benefits. You can refuse it, turn your back on your destiny. But it's not going anywhere. It's your destiny, and only you can fulfill it. So even if you think you're done with a relationship that was over before it started because of your reluctance, all you really accomplished was prolonging the inevitable. In other words, the current of the Universe is going to move in that direction no matter what. I could have turned my back the moment the sea spray went up. But I didn't. In fact, the reason the picture exists at all is because I sat on that beach and took over 300 photos. There are many good ones. But only one instant like the one captured above. In order to find it, I had to see through over 300 other moments over the course of hours. No one said that finding your destiny was easy....
In #LOVE, you need to see through many friendships before finding that one unique relationship that blossoms into something more. In order to find it, you can't give up on any potential moment. You have to have patience. You have to believe that the perfect wave is coming...that your future partner is en route thanks to the ebb and flow of the Universal current.
Facebook might not seem like a magical vessel for Destiny, but it's definitely part of the Universal current of this century. Technology helps put you in lots of right places at lots of right times. So when you connect with someone through social media, don't discount that just because it's man-made. In order for me to sit at the ocean, I had to transcend space and time via manmade transportation. I had to hold technology in the palm of my hand to capture that special moment. Think of technology as a tool to help you actively pursue as many calls to adventure as you can find. And when you do get lucky enough to synergistically connect with another human being, don't let anything scare you away. Answer the call. Sure, there will be trials. But you will transform because of them. You will become a better person. And at the end of those trials, you'll find yourself in exactly the place you want to be in with the person you always imagined being there with.
#LOVE is magic. It turns a bunch of sociopaths into actual human beings. That's not just transformative, it's impossible. The reason the impossible can not only become possible but probable is thanks to the magic of #LOVE. So that guy or girl you had a thing for over the summer but something scared you away? Maybe they were attached. Or older. Or had something different or unfamiliar about their lives that made you think twice? But you find yourself thinking about them anyway. You quietly look for them using the tools of destiny--social media sites like Twitter, Facebook, Google +, and LinkedIn. Stop stalking and start living. Reconnect.
Destiny offered you a gift; don't refuse it because of fear. See through those opportunities you were present for. If you were present, and a connection was made, it's destiny--even if you rejected it.. And while you will eventually have to see it through at some point in your life (because that's how the Universe works--sorry, there are no "pass Go" cards, not really), your choices will become increasingly limited as you allow more space to grow between you and your destiny. Why does that matter if it will catch up to you anyway?
Because for every inch of space you allow to step between you and your destiny, you miss out on the most amazing opportunities. Things beyond your imagination, but not beyond what could be your reality. Why wouldn't you want to have more joy, more happiness? Why would you allow fear to deter you from that potential? Well, perhaps you don't believe you deserve it. Perhaps you feel magic is gone from the Earth. That #LOVE isn't real anymore. That the person who can complete you is a ghost, someone you imagined but will never be real. It's easier to look at the more convenient options and believe that proximity makes those options more real. You can see them. Feel them. No imagination required. The ones you imagine, however, are totally worth every effort. And yes, those individuals are real. Very real. And, within your reach. The moment you wanted and needed that person was the moment you were given the power to make that "impossible" relationship real, no matter what encumberments loomed large at the time.
It's my great hope, and even greater dream, to help people believe in the magic of #LOVE again. I was like you, too. I thought it impossible. But it's not impossible. It's very real. And when you accept your call to adventure and cross LOVE's threshold, you will be embarking on the adventure of a lifetime. One that will make your life whole. So don't give up. On yourself. Or, on #LOVE.
Destiny is real. And it's not just about fate. You have a choice in the matter. Make the right one. Not sure what that is? Hint: #LOVE always wins....