Everything Happens For a Reason

Looking back on my life, I have come to believe that, yes, things happen for a reason. I am not a terribly religious person nor am I a big fate or karma believer. I just simply have found that there are things in my life that if they had not happened, I may not be where I am today and for that, I am grateful.

It has been precisely one full year since I moved from Connecticut back to my home state of Oregon. A few months ago someone asked me if I wished that I had made the move sooner. Now if someone had asked me that question three years ago, when I was wishing like crazy that I could get the move, well, moving, I would have said that I couldn't get there fast enough. A year ago when I was going through the whole pack/ship/rent/move chaos, I was dyeing to just get it over and done with, I would have said HELL YES I wish I was already there. So when this question was posed to me it gave me pause because I had not really give it any thought since I had arrived back.

I answered the question by simply saying, "no, I actually think I arrived at exactly the time that I was supposed to."

It was sometime after that question and answer that I got to discussing it with my sister (she was there when the question was asked and answered). Since my return I have found that:

• I have knowledge about building websites, using technology and social media for which there has been an expressed interest and a desire to learn about by  residents. It has resulted in me teaching a variety of classes such as Kindle 101 and Facebook for Business.
• I became involved with a local group called the Topic Club which works in conjunction with the library. I moved back at the precise time that the library started to move in the direction of bar code all of their books, start their own webpage and join Facebook.
• Several months into my return, my brother-in-law's father passed away and it was very helpful for me to be around to help out my sister and brother-in-law with the dog, my niece and to take over handling my own parents affairs while they spent the winter down south.

If just feels as if I arrived at the exact time that these things were needed. At the same time, I arrived at the right time that worked for me. I needed to be back in the environment where neighbor helps neighbor and where everyone values the fruits of a hard day's work.

This is really just one example of a time in my life when things feel like they happened at just the right time and for the right reason. Another great example is in my post Standing on the Corner of Success and Failure, where I talk about how flunking out of college for a year led me to spend 14 years in Connecticut.

What about you? Do you feel that things in your life have happened for a reason?