Underpants

My  girlfriend and I attended a play called “Underpants”, a light comedy set in the mid-1800’s.  The story was about a young British housewife who while waiting to catch a glimpse of the King, lost her underpants. Her undergarments simply fell right down to her ankles right there in the street. While she handled the dilemma quickly by picking up her “drawers” and concealing them in her shawl, her husband was humiliated.  He, a self-centered man, was fearful that as a result of his wife’s carelessness, he would lose his job.  He worried out loud, “Did others see?”  Yes, of course they did and they delighted in what they saw!  Several men became obsessed with meeting the woman who lost her underpants before the king, triggering an unusual chain of events.

Similarly, in real life  one action  often triggers a situation that would not have otherwise occurred.  When this happens to me I am  left wondering  if the initial event was  just an  accident or part of some sort of divine plan.

For example, I saw many condos in my building before purchasing. My final decision was based on  the incredible view of the marina, the open-living environment, and the recently renovated kitchen and baths. I did not choose it because of the woman next door.  But the “woman next door”, Mickie, and I became friends, and she became more important than the view, the open-living environment and the recent renovations.  Stepping into one another’s lives was no accident. I am convinced that Mickie was part of a plan.

Mickie was not in good health when we first met and sadly her health deteriorated over the short 11 months that I knew her. At a recent Celebration of her Life, I learned all about this remarkable woman who was way ahead of her time decades ago.  She was a change agent, altering the way previously incarcerated women  returned to the community.  She liked everyone she came upon, and everyone seemed in a better place because of her.  By her actions she reminded all of us to help others.  Upon her death, se offered a last simple reminder to her visitors, “Do good.”

Mickie and I didn’t spend much time talking about our pasts, perhaps we both sensed that our time together was limited.  Instead we shared simple current moments.  We laughed about a new pair of shoes or one of my  dates-gone-bad.   We sang out loud together at the Cabaret when audience participation was not encouraged, and laughed all the way home about it.  Mickie had difficulty walking that day and while we only live 5 minutes away from the theater, it took us almost 35 minutes to walk home. We took a few steps at a time while Mickie caught her breath and I caught that moment of the “the plan.”

I am defining a plan as when one action triggers another and people who might not ordinarily meet are brought together. Both Mickie and I were grateful for our meeting because it  could just as easily not have happened.   I could have moved to another floor or another building and we may never have met….or would we?  

What if it was in the stars that Mickie and I were going to meet, somewhere, someplace?  What if I hadn’t purchased this condo and bought elsewhere? Would we still have met?  Does  a “divine plan” have alternative plans built in so that Mickie and I may have met in the supermarket, a small boutique shop, or in a local restaurant?  

I like the whole idea of divine plans with built in “just in case”plans  and so I am sticking with that. You are free to choose if my idea is flaky or not.  I think Mickie and I were destined to meet, for just a short time, and that would have occurred one place or another. 

I think these plans unfold frequently in all our lives. Call them part of a divine plan if you like,or an accident, or whatever you want, because it doesn’t matter–what matters is that you  don’t miss them!!!!!!