Mystery Solved

Serendipity envelopes me like a bright sunny day every so often. I was taking the above photograph on the beach yesterday having come upon another of the mysteries of nature that I wrote about a couple of days ago. Three women were strolling by and one said to me, "Oh, you're photographing the egg casings. I love to do that too." I didn't even have to admit my ignorance as one of her friends asked, "What are they from?" "Welks," she said, "You know, those big spiral shells we see all the time."
I thanked her for telling me that they were from welks and that I, too, love photographing them, they are so graceful. I am enlightened and also have some of that warm, happy feeling I get when serendipity enters my life like this.

Those who like to make patterns and find reasons for things have been known to say that these coincidences [kind the cars that pull out of a handy parking space just as I arrive, and other such events] are due to being in sync with the world or due to good karma or a blessing one somehow deserves. I don't really believe any of that although it would be comfortable to do so ... and yet not so comfortable for a person of my practical attitude. I like noticing the happenings and don't feel a need for an explanation.

Done! Well, almost...

A couple of hours of shopping, and about half an hour of VERY slow traffic, and I am done with purchasing Christmas gifts. I came home and wrapped them ... well, I'm almost done. Doesn't something always remain as a tag end? One gift to go but it is one of those "make a donation in my name" kind of things and I know what I'd like to donate to but I don't know if that's particularly appealing to the giftee. So I'm pondering. I've got time as he's out of touch during the week so ... I can procrastinate. That is one of my premier traits; I've been working on perfecting it most of my life. That's why, only there days before Christmas, I finally went and purchased the last of the gifts.

Going to the mall was insane! But I wrapped myself in my down jacket and a resolve to be patient and off I went. I thought parking will be a nightmare, for a bit it seemed like it was, but then, moving from back lot to front lot a space opened for me, magically almost. When done there, at the next shopping area, same thing. This used to happen often 30 years ago when I lived in mall-land [not NYC where I had no car]; it seems to be happening again. Why this luck? Many things do not have explanations and I can just accept them and not look for "why?" when it's good, like a very nice parking space, I notice and I'm happy. I believe it was Ben Franklin whose quote I read in a blog recently but cannot recite verbatim. The gist is that true happiness is the little every day pleasures, not the big wish-come-true that hardly ever happens. We know it's happiness when we pay attention to those small pleasures -- the car backing out of the parking space just as you turn into that lane. My word is serendipity.