Unexpected Lessons

I want to remind myself about a lesson I learned from a book called the "Celestine Prophecy", written by a guy named James Redfield. I went to the local Barnes and Noble a few days agotopickup a copy of this book to give to a friend.

Before getting into that shopping trip, let me summarize the book: the book tells the story of the author's learning of, and subsequent search for, an ancient manuscript that details a spiritual and emotional renaissance to happen during our present day. Yeah, I know, it sounds like a G rated after-school special written by the contestents on "The Apprentice".

The book is fiction, and the "manuscript" is a handy vehicle for introducing the author's core beliefs on life, relationships, spirituality, and attitude. You see, this is a self-help book in disguise (because people who really need help rarely purchase self-help books).

I highly recommend checking out this book. One can probably tear through it in a day and it might teach you something and, quite possibly, it might not. But it is written with an enthusiasm that makes it entertaining either way. Certainly, reading it is no worse than watching young women eat bugs.

Personally, about two lifetimes ago it taught me a great deal, but I was, admittedly, quite behind the curve. This book gave me a vocabulary and introduction to perspective whose absense in my life, at the time, was the cause of much horror.

Enough about the book... On to the unexpected lesson...

The first insight in this ancient manuscript deals with starting to notice coincidences in your life that seem more meaningful and more frequent than what one would ascribe to chance.

That thar above paragraph is what we call forshadowing. 8)

...

Linda and I do not pretend to have the same interests in books and when we go into the local Barnes and Noble we split up and hit our respective interests. When one of us gets tired, we find the other and head home with any purchases. So, upon enteringthe ol' B&N to buy this book Linda immediately heads to parts unknown and I begin my search for "The Celestine Prophecy".

At the time, I did not know (or had forgotten) that is was listed in the Fiction section. I had also forgotten the name of the author. This is not a good way to start looking for a book in a book store.

Do I ask directions? Never. I start in the self-help section. No luck. I move over to philosophy. No luck. Alternative medicine. Nothing. Self improvement (which, apparently, is different than self-help). Nada. I spy a New Age section and look over there. Nyet.

I spent at least 20 minutes fruitlessly searching for this book. Was it out of print? How could it not bein the new age section?? And what the hell was I doing in the new age section anyway?

Finally, I relinquished my masculinity and asked for directions:
Me: Hi, could you help me find a ...
Disgruntled Employee: name.
Me: The Celestine prophec...
Disgruntled Employee: how do you spell it?
Me: C E L E S T I N E P R O P H E C Y, T H E
Disgruntled Employee: type type type
Me: wait wait wait

Then the disgruntled employee, wordlessly, walks away. I assume I am to follow as I will either find my book or become a stalker. She walks into the Fiction section, turns down an aisle and stoops next to a pillar and a chair (B&N has chairs in the aisles where people can sit and read).

She points to the bottom row, and I say thank you, and she goes back to help her next victim.

Isn't that amazing! No? Oh, I forgot something...

The chair two feet from the book I was looking for was occupied! By who? James Redfield? James Brown? James and the Giant Peach? No.

Linda was sitting there! I had spent 20 minutes looking for this silly book and Linda, randomly walking through the store, decided to plop down two feet away from it. Amazing!

Remember that little forshadowing I talked about above? This little trick of chance had me thinking about it... Those are the kinds of coincidences the book is talking about!

Now, do I believe that this was a cosmically engineered series of events that falls in line with the cosmic powers alluded to in the Celestine Prophecy? No. I don't believe that. If I ever say I believe that, you may hit me with a stick. Frankly, anyone who knows meknows Iwould rathereat a tube of toothpaste than suffer through most new age "stuff".

So why am I stoked? Shed the new-agy terminology and the celestine prophecy is full of good insights. I have rewritten that first insight for myself. It goes something like this:

Amazing things happen to you every day, you need to be observant and creative enough to recognize, personalize, and draw meaning from those events.

And that is why the book is so cool: the lessons are simple and easily personalizable. It was an unexpected lesson that, going to buy this book for another, I would be reminded of how a smart and creative person can learn from anything, even from things note normally communicated from within their "comfort zone".

Of course, a few people hate the celestine prophecy. Personally, I must admit that, by the end when people are vibrating onto different planes of existence either ourfriend James has taken his metaphor too far or didn't take his medication far enough.

It's a good book. Take from it what you can and use it as a springboard for further study, it is not a work in itself. Rather, it is an interesting and entertaining table of contents.