I have not been a big believer in the supernatural. This isn't because the subject holds no interest for me; it's because I've not had many personal experiences to prompt such belief. I've always been willing to listen to the experiences of others, and while there've been times I've been fascinated with some of them, usually I think they're figments of the imagination. It's true I've had a few experiences that some might call "spooky." But I tend to minimize them.
The way I came to discover the Watchtower Society isn't what I thought it was is, in large part, owing to my observations of and experience with a woman. A few times in my life, this woman has had an enormous impact on me. Don't get me wrong. She didn't attempt to show me anything about the WTS. It was actually watching her study with JWs and listening to her questions that led me to the real truth about them. It's impossible to describe it all in this post, but I'll just say that reflecting on my experiences with her, it is incredibly tempting to think she was "brought into my life" or that (at least) some force led us to one another for a time.
Could it be random coincidence? Sure.
Recently I was working in Florida, and had the opportunity to meet up with Jst2Laws. He introduced me to some good reading on quantum physics and related subjects. I decided to start with "The Field" by Lynne McTaggart. It's subtitle is, "The Quest for the Secret Force of the Universe." It appealed to me, since some of the other authors were described as being "good at presentation, but lacking in science," while "The Field" presents hard scientific studies on the "interconnected universe." I'll just say that, while I'm only a few chapters into the book, it's allowing me to open my mind a bit.
A couple of weeks ago I reported what I thought was a pretty freakball occurrence. You can read the original thread by clicking here if you like. The details: One of my clients sends me to a different U.S. city every weekend, where I put on group presentations about college planning and financial aid. I also conduct interviews with individual students and their families. One of these families lived in Fresno, California; I met with them about a month and a half ago. Apparently the father of this student thought I seemed like the kind of guy who'd be interested in investing in gas and oil futures, as he does. He called the main office in New York and was told that, as a field representative, I couldn't be contacted. He then conducted a nationwide search of my name, eventually found me, and called my home number. A bit creepy? Yes, but as he told me about this investment opportunity, the conversation turned to a discussion of "planning for the future" in general and the fact that I was formerly part of an organization that discouraged both college--and long-term plans. You guessed it: he turned out to be an active JW. But an open-minded, active JW. We actually had a very nice conversation about the organization's failures and the foolishness of not planning for the future.
I estimate that each year I sit with seven hundred to eight hundred families, and that in more than two years I've sat with about two thousand. In that time, only one of these famlies has attempted to contact me outside of the workshops we put on. In so doing our conversation leads to a discussion of Jehovah's Witnesses. He turns out to be one, admits to having many personal doubts about the organization himself, and we have a very "productive" discussion about it.
Could it be random coincidence? Sure.
So that brings us to last night. I'd been working in Norfolk, Virginia this past weekend, and had a late flight back home at 4:10pm, with a connection in Detroit. I actually really enjoy being in Detroit's nice, new Northwest terminal. I used to fly through there nearly every week when I lived in Michigan, so I was having a very sentimental evening. I ate at my favorite Japanese sushi place there. Delectable sushi, mouthwatering soup... But, ah yes, with the bad storm there are delays in my flight back to Phoenix. So I just decide to go for a walk. And, if you've never been in this terminal, let me just say there's LOTS of walking to be done. It is a perfectly straight, 1.5 mile veritable shopping mall. As I walked, I thought about how nearly all of my family and long-time friends were within an hour and a half's drive of where I was then. None of them will talk to me anymore, since I'm regarded as an apostate. It's been one year since I spoke with my mother; the rest of the family a lot longer. I thought about what it might be like to run into someone I knew. I decided that if it were a Witness, I'd still approach them and try to talk.
I'd had a few glasses of wine in the first class cabin and a beer with my sushi, so I was feeling pretty loose, free and nostalgic. As I meandered this way and that, I began to reflect upon what I'd been reading about how all matter in the universe truly is connected, and decided that, if there was anyone in that airport I knew, I was going to try and "connect" with them. Don't misunderstand. I had no idea of how to do such a thing; just tried to be open to it. Within moments I was standing face-to-face with my cousin.
Thoughts... I practically live in airports, and have never seen someone I knew, aside from workmates who are on the same flights. Are you thinking that, since I am from Michigan, this greatly increased the chances I'd find someone I knew there? Well this cousin (and his entire family) happens to live in Tennessee, nearly six hundred miles from Detroit, and was in northern Ohio on business. Before last night I'd seen him twice in the past ten years. He was always my favorite cousin when we were little; he's four years older than I. What is also most unusual is that, out of a field of approximately thirty JW family members, this is the only one (other than me) who has walked away from the organization. He did so when still a teenager, never actually getting baptized, and never being willing to discuss his reasons with any of us. But now he was discussing.
We had only about six or seven minutes before his flight boarded, and in that time he told me he'd finally made peace with his upbringing and had actually begun attending a Baptist church a couple of years ago. He even helps with Sunday School. That said, he also dwelt upon his being convinced that God does not reside within the little religious "box" people keep wanting to put him in. He was aware that I'd moved "out West" and that I'd left the Watchtower. We exchanged cell numbers, hugged, and he promised to call me.
As he boarded, I proceeded with my bittersweet stroll. It took about two minutes for the tears to come, blurring my vision while I wheeled my computer case along the moving walkway. I didn't know how to process this, so I just cried. Was this some type of cosmic connection? Had I allowed myself to tap into that vast, invisible web of linked energy?
Could it be random coincidence? Now I'm not so sure.