Finding the good in the not-so-good experiences

A week or so ago, I was listening to a speaker who was talking about her beliefs that something good can come from things that may not appear so good on the surface, which is a concept I believe myself. Such as when a client's animal was hit by a car years ago (which is obviously not good) but when they went to the vet because of the injured leg, the vet found a tumor that they would have never known was there, as the animal seemed to be in perfectly good health. If the tumor had gone undetected, it might not have been treatable, so in a strange way, being hit by the car ended up being a positive, since it helped them detect and remove a tumor that could have taken the animal's life far earlier.

This speaker also said that we are meant to meet the people we encounter in our lives, no matter how random the meeting may be . . . that there is a reason for everyone we cross paths with. I have had this experience myself many times. One instance that stands out in my mind is many years ago, the holistic healer I was working with told me that I would be able to help myself more if I developed better body intuition. I had no idea what he was talking about or how a person might go about developing body intuition and I left his office feeling rather confused.

Two days later, I was scheduled for a conference call with some work colleagues. We were using a conference call system where each person dialed in using a specific number, so that we could all connect. When we got on the call, we discovered several other people on the line who weren't part of our group. We realized the conference service had double booked the line, so one of my colleagues said she'd call the conference service and get it straightened out. She asked me to stay on the line, so I could let the rest of our group know what was going on. While we were waiting, I asked the other people on the call what they were meeting about and they said "We coach people on body intuition." My jaw dropped. (and yes, I ended up working with them to develop body intuition, not knowing at the time that a couple years later, I was going to change careers and really need that skill).

Last weekend, I was unfortunately involved in a bad car accident. I had stopped for a pedestrian, who was waiting at a cross walk and the car behind me stopped, but the car behind them barreled into us at a very high rate of speed. All three cars were severely damaged. (The pedestrian was fine.) We spent several hours on the side of the road waiting for police and EMT's to arrive. It was a long, frustrating night, followed by an even longer and more frustrating week.

Hours were spent on the phone dealing with insurance companies and car repair shops. The realization that the guy who caused the accident did not have insurance, even though he said he did, made the experience even more frustrating. On top of that, my back and neck were injured far worse than I thought at the time of the accident and by Wednesday, I was at a chiropractors office getting x-rays and hoping they could give me some relief from the physical pain I was experiencing.

When I met with the doctor to review my x-rays, he said, "For as awful as it was that you were in a car accident, it may have actually been a good thing because there are some things going on with your spine that really need to be addressed." I thought it was interesting, since I had just listened to the speaker the day before the accident reminding me of my belief that something good can come from things that don't seem so good on the surface. I thought the timing was interesting . . . that I was being reminded of this, the day before I was rear-ended.

As for her other message, that everyone we meet, no matter how random the meeting, come into our lives for a reason . . . I have been thinking about that a lot as well. The couple who were in the car behind me were two of the loveliest people I have ever met. They were an older couple, about my parent's age, maybe a little older. Since we were on the side of the road for several hours, we had a lot of time to visit. I remember at one point telling them that of all people I could have been involved in an accident with, I was grateful that it was people that were so nice, who I felt so safe and comfortable around. They said they felt the same way.

Since the accident was one week ago tonight, I decided to call them and see how they were doing. I ended up talking to them for 40 minutes and in spite of the difficult week we have all had (with insurance issues, car problems and back pain), we had a lovely conversation. I don't know yet why we all met each other, but the ease and pleasantness of our interactions make me feel that there is some good that will come of it. Before we hung up the phone, the husband said, "We feel like we have a new friend in you" and I admitted I felt the same way.

And there is one more interesting piece to this story. My previous chiropractor no longer works in my neighborhood, so I had to find a new one this week. I remembered that over a year ago, I received a glowing recommendation from a woman who took her dog to the same holistic vet that I took Lucky to. I dug through my old emails and finally found the name and number of her chiropractor. When I called, they had just had a cancellation 5 minutes earlier, so they were able to get me in that day. At one point, the gal who runs the front office asked me what I did for a living. When I answered her, her eyes got really big and she said, "Someone just told me the other day that I should find a reiki practitioner to help me with a health challenge I am facing, I'm so excited to meet you."

I guess the long and short of it is, I am really glad that I listened to the speaker that day, because it was a nice to be reminded of these concepts. It gave me a different perspective in which to view the events of the last week, helping me to see the positives instead of letting myself get mired in the negative aspects of what I have had to deal with this week.

I am going to be able to get some issues with my spine addressed that I didn't know existed, I have some new friends and possibly a new client. I like being able to focus on all of those aspects of the experience, as it makes it much easier to keep moving forward with a smile on my face.