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Three seems to be the magic number. The first time something happens, I can tell myself, "It's just an accident." The second time? Merely coincidence. But by the third time, the Universe has my attention -- the synchronicity and "messages" are too much to ignore. Of course, sometimes, three turns into four and five and six, but eventually, I "get" it and know I have to pay attention. Hel-lo? Is anybody there? Yes, the light's on upstairs and I'm finally at home.

Not so long ago, a three-day workshop trip I took was jam-packed with "messages from the Universe." At the time, I was alert enough to recognize that memorable events were unfolding, but only after reflection and input from others did I begin to make the connections that create useful insight. And I'm still learning....

A rental car was the literal and metaphorical vehicle on this journey to awareness. No sooner had I signed the papers, taken the keys, and driven the car out of the lot than a dashboard warning light flashed. Whoa! Given that the drive ahead was more than two hours into country where I'd never been, I recognized smart action as exchanging cars. Of course, by then, another airport shuttle had dropped its passengers and I could no longer go directly to the service counter. The waiting line snaked out the door. Sigh. Still, I didn't want to head into the mountains herding a tempermental vehicle. I parked the car and joined the line.

Nothing unusual happened as I drove away a second time. Home free -- or so I thought. As the drive unfolded, views of small towns, rolling countryside, and pine-covered mountains balanced quick looks at the maps I'd spread across the front seat. But as I neared the end of the journey, the road signs and maps didn't match. No big deal. Unless I'm in a serious time-crunch, "wrong" turns represent opportunities.

I took the most likely looking option, only to find myself driving deeper into the forest on an ever-narrowing road. It didn't take long to realize that the business and resort-style buildings I expected to see weren't going to appear around the next bend. Obviously, I had to go back to the main road and try again.

In order to turn around, I picked what seemed like the widest spot in a very narrow space. But it wasn't wide enough -- and I heard the rear bumper scrape something solid. Ah, well, I thought. The noise sounded no more serious than any I've heard pulling into a parking space when the front bumper scrapes the curb or a speed bump.

Back on the main road again, and after more map-and-roadsign checks, I finally found the site I'd been looking for and settled in for the night. Next morning on the drive to the workshop location, the dashboard lights up. CHECK ENGINE flashes orange and my brain scrambles into problem-solving mode. I don't hear strange noises, see smoke, or smell anything burning. Since it's only a couple of miles to my destination, I press on and decide to call the rental company from there. What a way to start an "educational experience" where I'm supposed to be learning an entirely new process for my business. Groan.

At the first break of the day, I call the car guys and get their agreement to exchange cars -- they're actually going to send someone on that two-hours-one-way drive to bring me a new car. What great service! My problems are over, right? Well....

As the workshop unfolds, I find the assigned seating has put me next to a person whose demand for attention, spoken and not, virtually sucks the air out of the room and leaves me exhausted. By mid-day, the rental car fellow appears. I duck out of class to exchange keys and paperwork, and return to my place beside the in-your-face participant. Knowing that time alone will rejuvenate me from such encounters, I eagerly anticipate the end of the day and a retreat to my hotel room.

The next day starts with a call from the rental car company describing "significant" damage to the rear bumper of the car they picked up the day before. I'd forgotten all about that noise I'd heard when backing out of the tight space on the narrow forest road. But I can't ignore their demands and will spend break times during the workshop and evenings on the phone with rental company staffers, insurance people, and folks at home to resolve the issue. More stress. More exhaustion. My workshop-learning attention is split so many ways, it's a challenge to absorb any of the content. Is there a message here? Well, duh. But I still don't get it.

Not until the workshop ends and I share dinner, discussion, and a drive back to the hotel with a colleague whose departing flight options matched mine do I get a clue about what's been happening the last three days. I'd been up to my neck in alligators, stressed, exhausted, feeling I needed and wanted to participate actively in the workshop learning experience, but also facing communication challenges at home. As we drove back from dinner, my workshop companion listened to me describe my three days of upheaval and describes me in third person. "Sure. Sit her next to the energy vampire and see if she gets the message that she has to take care of herself."

Ah-ha. There is was. The message so clear I couldn't mistake it. I hadn't been taking care of myself. And contrary to ingrained belief, always giving and never feeling okay about 'taking' wasn't getting me anything but grief. Hel-lo.

I'd like to say that this is the first and last time I needed such lessons, but that's so far from the truth as to be not just wishful thinking but total fantasy. Three months later, another MFTU appeared when I was grilled by a housemate after I made a point of returning home late after a business trip rather than staying in place overnight and making the three-hour drive in the morning when I was fresh. In three more months, the MFTU of recognition finally came that I'd done all I could with the relationship and it still wasn't working. But it was yet another three months until the fender-bender MFTU reminded me I was totally exhausted from such efforts and needed to get myself back on my own track.

Messages from the Universe are everywhere. Don't think that they're always bad or always negative. They take whatever form is necessary to get us to pay attention. What we do after that -- or not -- is totally up to each of us.

Sometimes, the MFTUs fall like pennies from heaven.

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Pennies from Heaven

Nearly New Moon

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