OPINION – Winter has always been the wrong time of year for me.

I hate how it not only darkens the sky, but the soul as well.

I understand it is supposed to be festive and joyful, but for me, it’s just a drag.

I can deal with the warmth of summer and find delight in the colors of autumn, but spring?

That’s another thing entirely.

It’s fresh, a time of renewal, a time of promise, of fate and faith. Just ask any fan of the Chicago Cubs.

I particularly understand that part about fate, which is why I smiled when I read my colleague Bryan Hyde’s column on Monday where he pondered how many coincidences it takes for a miracle to occur because, well, aren’t miracles a result of the hand of fate?

Personally, I’ve been around long enough as a grizzled newsie to come to the conclusion that there truly are very few things in this world that are purely coincidental, that fate has a huge hand in all of our lives.

Besides, I had a grandmother who was a big believer in fate. When something happened that was inexplicable, or when she made a decision others simply could not understand, all she would do was repeat the title of the old Doris Day song, “Que Sera, Sera (Whatever Will Be, Will Be.)”

The older I got, the more I understood her reasoning.

I remember when I knew it was time to leave Los Angeles. I had reasons, and I have a vague collection of them, why. I had a couple of places in mind, including one in particular that, according to all the research and studying I had done, would have been a better physical, cultural, and emotional fit than Southern Utah.

But, still, 18 years ago I ended up here.

I said it was because of the beauty, the desire to scale back, the need to escape from the big city, but deep down I still questioned why it came down to this place at that time.

It took a long time, but I finally got an answer a few years back when my body and soul was rescued by a woman who, unbeknownst to me, had made the same exact decision I had made about coming to Southern Utah at the same exact time, actually arriving here a matter of weeks before I did. Oh, yeah, did I mention that the place she left was actually a place I had researched and thought would be a great place to relocate to until an inner voice whispered “Psst … “Hey, buddy … this is where you need to go instead.”

Had fate not tapped me on the shoulder I would have probably been stuck in a dead-end job in a heartless industry that was robbing me of my humanity. Instead, I was able to return to a field I had reluctantly left because of some economic necessities and practice one of the noblest trades as a member of the Fourth Estate, which introduced me to people and issues that have touched me deeply and inspired me.

Without fate, there would be a book, a play, a screenplay, and a couple other books germinating on my keyboard at this moment that would have gone unwritten. Without fate intervening, there would have been no exploration of a greater world, both inward and outward. Most importantly, without fate, there wouldn’t be the love that fills me. You see, that woman I mentioned became my wife four years ago on the first day of spring in what was for me a total rebirth and reawakening to a world that I felt had passed me by a long time ago.

I don’t think that means that we should just throw our hands up in the air and let the chips fall where they may. We still need reason and thought to make the decisions that guide us. We still need to ponder life and our place in it. We still must consider the upside and the downside and not just float through life untouched by reality.

But, I think it is also very important for us to listen carefully when that little voice within speaks to us.

I’m grateful that I did because I know my life would have not have been fulfilled, as it is today, if I hadn’t.

So, happy anniversary, honey.

And, thank you, fate, for the advice.

You were right.

No bad days!

 

Ed Kociela is an opinion columnist. The opinions stated in this article are his and not representative of St. George News.

Email: [email protected]

Twitter: @STGnews, @EdKociela

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