Do you pay attention to synchronicities in your life?

Life speaks to me in birds

When I was younger, I lived in a small mountain town in Colorado. I always remember the excitement of spring. Because the winters were long and brutally cold. I knew spring had arrived when I would wake up to the sounds of birds chirping in the morning. It was warm enough for them to return.

When we lived there, my older brother had a dove named Floyd. We used to play a game with him. We would coo like the dove and he would repeat the same numbers of coos we did. It would entertain us nightly. I lost my brother four years ago in April. Right around that time this April, the coo of a dove echoed through my courtyard every morning for 3 days. I looked up into the immense tree where it came from but could never catch site of him. It is not typical to hear this kind of bird. Our neighborhood is filled with crows and parrots. But a dove? He felt meant just for me.  

My grandmother collected statues of birds. She used to always say “I’m for the birds.” A large feeder was outside her kitchen window. She would sit in her rocking chair daily and watch for her favorite – the red cardinal – to show up. She had binoculars and my grandfather a bird encyclopedia so he could share it with her. She was hospitalized for three months one summer. On the morning she passed away, I opened my front door to go to work and there was a bird, sitting on my outdoor table a few feet away, staring directly at me - unstartled. My first thought was, she was gone. An hour later my dad called me to tell me she had passed. 

Synchronicities ignite a knowing in us. A spark of deep meaning. Like the wind whispering in our ear. A message from a place unknown. But we know. Some might say this is woo woo. A term used to describe non-science based mysticism. However, scientists have studied synchronicities throughout time. Carl Jung studied it back in the 1920s. There are so many things we can’t really explain in this universe, but we can feel. Our very spirit alone and how our energy effects others. One thing we do know is that synchronicities make us feel part of something bigger than ourselves. It makes life feel like it serves a purpose. That we are all interconnected. And that, is something we feel in our bones.

Do you even find synchronicities in life? Little messages from the universe that feel they were meant for you. Like when you venture on a new path and good opportunities find you? They are like little nudges from the universe telling you to stay the course. It might be a meaningful number showing up? A person you randomly meet?

But the real question is, are you quiet enough to notice? Are you open to it? I find when my list of to-dos grows long, I begin to become overwhelmed. I get anxious. I hurry. I begin to become more of a machine than a thoughtful human being. But I realized lately, that the slower I go, the more intentional my work is. The more I tap into the meaning behind the work I do. The more I feel an energy and flow behind the work that comes out of me. Sometimes I’m not even sure where my work is going, just that I’m excited to show up and see. And if I’m quiet enough, I hear the whispers.

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Last Sunday I opened my door to discover snails were devouring my new marigolds. These snails were hug. There is something so endearing about them. Kind of like sloths. How slowly they move through the universe. Maybe it is their zen energy? The charm of their little tentacles that look around with little eyes taking in their surroundings. I watched them for a bit before I gave them some leaves far from my marigolds. I plucked a total of 7 of them feasting on my plants. I had to give then a treat after they inspired my art practice for the day.

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I was gifted a terrarium for Mother’s Day this year. My husband was inspired to get me one by Ben Newell. During Covid he dove into the world of terrariums. His Instagram is a rabbit hole of intrique. He just published his first book this month called Hello Tiny World. I love tiny things. And I’m fascinated by tiny creatures. If you are too, check it out.