It’s weird to think about how time is essentially what dictates our life. Time decides when we wake up, when we eat, who we see on a daily basis, the people we meet and even the mistakes we make. A single moment can completely change the path of your life. These little wrinkles in time happen for a reason and you can’t exactly explain the reason for them. Life is something you will never be able to plan for.
I am mostly fascinated with how people meet. You pass hundreds of people during your average day. Most likely you are going to recognize a few, but the others are all strangers. At some point, all of the people you know now were once strangers too. So what can decide who stays a stranger and who becomes someone you get to know better? Timing. Timing controls exactly how we meet people.
One of my favorite examples of timing is the story of how my parents met. So many people think their boyfriend or girlfriend right now is their soul mate, and some of the times it will work out. My dad and mom both lived in Chicago during their twenties. One night my dad decided to crash my mom’s friend’s party that his brother had heard about from someone. When they showed up my mom knew instantly that they weren’t invited and approached them confidently to kick them out. My dad always says that’s the moment he knew my mom was the one, still don’t completely believe that it all happens in one moment like that. So, my dad turned around and left. No cellphones to exchange numbers, no friends in common, just one moment that lasted no more than five minutes.
About a month or so later my dad recognized her sitting by the water reading while he was biking through the city. He did a double take and thought it would be funny to confront her about kicking him out of the party. So that one confrontation ended up leading to a three hour conversation, exchange of numbers, and the start of the strongest friendship. I know all the hopeless romantics thought they would probably start dating, but it doesn’t always happen like that for some people. Timing was off and they started off as best friends first. My mom was passionate about traveling and they were both so invested in work that they just decided to stay friends and eventually dated people on and off but the feelings were clearly always there.
Fast forward to the day my dad proposed. Timing struck again. That same exact day my mom had gotten a letter from someone she fell in love with when she was in Greece. Can you imagine my dad’s reaction? This guy who she had left behind because of distance tries to swoop in on the day of his proposal. My dad simply let it go and told my mom he would pay for her trip to Greece to see if she still had feelings for him because if he made her happy that’s all he wanted for her. At that point, my mom didn’t even think twice about the other guy in Greece. They have been happily married and set an example for what I someday want. Someone who would sacrifice anything for you.
Timing can make people restless, unsure and fearful. Situations always work themselves out even if you think that timing will get in the way. I randomly came across the phrase “que sera, sera” the other day and curiously looked it up. It means, “whatever will be, will be.” This is something I will continue to keep in the bottom of my heart because I know that things in life end up working out for everyone. No matter how fallen apart things could feel right now, there is a time for the pieces to be put back together. Just keep living your life FOR YOURSELF and only yourself. The rest will fall into place. Let it happen.
