A coincidence is an extraordinary concurrence of events or circumstances that have no apparent or causal connection with one another.
A good example might be the following: In 1974, a moped driver in Bermuda was killed when a taxi ran into him. One year later, his brother was killed while riding the same moped on the same street. He was hit by the same taxi driver carrying the same passenger.
There is no crystal ball in “The Simpsons” writers’ room, but there are many viewers wondering about it. During its nearly 30-year run, the world’s most famous animated family has alluded to many real-life events long before they’ve actually happened; the Trump presidency, the Higgs particle physics theory and 9/11. By some accounts, the coincidences number in the 20’s or more. So is there something bigger going on?
In just a couple of days, I experienced two coincidences that astounded me. The first was when I bought some beverage (confidential) in Kenny’s Store that came to $13.75. I placed a $10 bill on the counter followed by every bit of change in my pocket; one loonie, a bunch of quarters and a few dimes and nickels. It added up to exactly $3.75. The clerk watching intently said, “You will probably put that in your column.” It turns out he was absolutely right!
Two days later at the Black Hatters lunch, we had our usual discussion comparing the latest series on Netflix. One of the guys had watched the first episode of “Bodyguard” the night before and so did I. If that wasn’t coincidence enough, another one added that he also watched the first episode the previous evening. That nearly blew my mind. If one more person had said it too, I’d be as astounded as my ancestor’s first encounter with fire!
The most incredible coincidence of all was the Abraham Lincoln – JFK one. I have never forgotten when the teenage girl next door told me this story. Lincoln was elected in 1860, Kennedy in 1960. Each name had seven letters. Both presidents were slain on Friday; both in the presence of their wives. Both presidents’ wives lost children through death while in the White House. Both presidents were directly concerned with civil rights. Both had their legality of elections contested. Kennedy’s secretary’s name was Lincoln, who warned him not to go to Dallas; Lincoln’s secretary’s name was Kennedy, who warned him not to go to the theater. Both of their successor’s names were Johnson: Andrew Johnson and Lyndon Johnson. Each name contains thirteen letters; both men served in the U.S. Senate; both were southern democrats. Andrew Johnson was born in 1808, Lyndon Johnson in 1908. Booth shot Lincoln in a theater and hid in a warehouse. Oswald shot Kennedy from a warehouse and hid in a theater. Both presidents were shot from behind and in the head. Booth and Oswald were both assassinated before going on trial. They were both born 100 years apart and each name, John Wilks Booth and Lee Harvey Oswald, has 15 letters.
When I first heard this spooky and amazing coincidence shortly after President Kennedy was assassinated November 22nd, 1963, I wondered if our history was actually controlled from the future. John Wilks Booth, could have been a sleeper agent, set in motion to unknowingly change the course of humanity?
So true – Satchel Paige, who pitched professional baseball until he was 50 said, “Don’t look back, something is gaining on you.”
One time while sitting in a café on Bloor Street in Toronto I noticed a man passing who I thought I knew from Ottawa. Bolting from my seat, I raced out the door finally grasping his shirt-sleeve a block or so later. I panicked as it wasn’t who I thought it was but recovered when I realized it was another person I knew, however from a different time and place. I didn’t admit that I mistook him for someone else though!
Have you ever experienced a coincidence so incredible that it left you stunned? If so, then you have just taken a step into the fantastic world of Synchronicity. No matter how carefully you design your life, a single random event will change everything; maybe a marriage breakup, an unexpected death of someone close or a lottery win which can skew all those plans. But a seemingly ridiculous idea could be a huge success story simply due to chance such as a career change and relocation to another part the world! Decisions are based on logic but no matter how clever, it is not enough.
I often wonder if I had only one of the important changes in my life or even one less of them that did not happen, would my life journey have been changed from what it is? I might have ended up being famous or even infamous. I guess I will never know!
