"Something good is going to happen to you today!"

These were the words my mother-in-law Diane told me on the day when 3 hours later I would succumb to the pain in my chest and my heart would stop. Crazy, what had prompted her to say such a thing?

We made plans to meet at my house around 11AM that Monday to head down to the Open Door Mission. Diane hates driving in city traffic and asked me to take her down there to drop off a bunch of stuff she wanted to donate. When we got downtown the gentleman behind the counter asked me to sign in. I did a double take at the sign-in sheet. I motioned to Diane, "mom, take a look at this".

My daughter was here? We both looked at the list 'Clare Teall - 11AM'. Huh? I asked, "what appointment is she here for? that is my daughter's name, just spelled differently." Well it wasn't Claire. She was at RIT. Very weird though.

As we were driving back, just passed the Mount Read exit on 490 , I was getting into the right lane to get on 390 North and she said it. "Something good is going to happen to you today!" "Why?" I asked. "Because when something really strange like that happens (Clare Teall) it means something good is going to happen" I had never heard anything like that before and my response was nothing less than expected "Mom, we better pull over right here because lightning might strike this car immediately. We are talking about me". We had a good laugh but part of me wasn't joking. Pessimism and cynicism were at its height with me then, so it made sense at the time. The big joke was always to pick or bet the opposite of me and you would be a winner!

Diane would tell my wife later that evening that she felt terrible for it seemed that she was wrong. What was good that happened to me? The first hours in the hospital I would have agreed with the latter part of her concern. I had just died and the moment was fresh in my mind. Of course, I was thankful to be alive given the circumstances. Physically I was sore from the chest compressions and the shocks. Mentally, I was a hot mess as I thought I was far from out of the woods. Feeling "good" about what happened to me is not how I would have described it.

As I started to quickly realize the incredible gift I had been given, Diane's statement rang true. Something good did happen to me that day. The transformation it led to was, and still is, incredible. My psyche changed. My perspective changed. My heart changed. My reaction to the world now is different. I am able to be still with my thoughts. Things that used to keep me awake at night now seem trivial. Life no longer feels like the proverbial rat race to me. "Life is short" no longer is just a phrase I hear. "Don't Sweat the Small Stuff" isn't just some best selling book I read years ago. Thanks Mom #2. You were totally right! Mom's usually are.

There are no coincidences then. My wife is right when she says"everything happens for a reason". Darn it. She always is. But let's just keep that between us. Thanks as always for reading. #wifeisalwaysright #changeperspective #renew11 #coincedence?