Fate

Fate. I figure most believe in it. Cinema and literature haven’t helped in disproving its existence either. Yet subconsciously, very few people feel they are destined for something. Some may have the idea ingrained in their minds, if some odd circumstance of family-sponsored brainwashing came to be. But that is not fate. It is not the feeling that something was meant to be, without the explanation of why and when. That is why when the rare opportunity arises that one actually encounters fate; it is overwhelming, yet at the same time not overwhelming enough to cause you to pursue it. It may be very vague, in the respect that you have a general idea of what your destiny is, yet not clear enough about it as to pursue it further. It may also be very precise, but so obscured by the ordinary and routine around it, that you’ll overlook it out of instinct. It will tickle the back of your mind like a déjà-vu. And you’ll wonder, did this really happen before? Was I to follow my gut feeling, would it really be all it could?

And sometimes, fate strikes you right in the chest. When you least expect it, it’s sitting there smiling at you with a devilish grin. And if you were lucky enough to pick up on it before, or even during, you could handle it properly, knowing this is what was meant to be. This is the ideal case. There are less ideal as well. More… unfortunate cases .Where even when it hits you in the head, trying to tell you to pay attention, you look away, and even go to the extent of striking back. And you shouldn’t be to blame really. I mean, rare are the cases when one encounters their fate face-to-face. No one prepares you for it, no one tells you how to recognize it, what to do, what to say, how to ‘handle the situation’. Sure, there are plenty of sources you could look at for help, but none expects you to believe, or conceive for that matter, the full extend of fate. And for all you’re concerned, not even these lines should teach you any different.

How then, is one who encountered, recognized, and identified beyond a reasonable doubt their own fate, supposed to react to it? In most cases, they are not expected to react at all. Fate is supposed to affect you, not the other way around. But in most cases it requires some help. And by help, I don’t mean go out and buy a boat just because you somehow got the idea that you’re destined to be a navigator. I mean go with the flow. Recognize the signs, and use them to your advantage. Go with the flow without fear when the waters are furious, and float peacefully when they are calm. Don’t try to rush it, but not to deny it either. After all, if you believe in fate, there is no point in fighting it. If you don’t believe in it, then all this can’t possibly affect your free will and clear judgment, which is not bad either. And if you are as lucky as to believe your fate exists and has come true, then you shouldn’t be disappointed about dying either, since you knew all along where you were heading, and being stuck in a box underground or as ashes in an urn shouldn’t come as much of a surprise now, should it?