Serendipity

According to the Oxford English Dictionary, serendipity is “a word coined by Horace Walpole, who says (Let. to Mann, 28 Jan. 1754) that he had formed it upon the title of the fairy-tale ‘The Three Princes of Serendip’, the heroes of which ‘were always making discoveries, by accidents and sagacity, of things they were not in quest of.’”

Well, if you remove the “sagacity” part, that pretty much describes what many a Thursday night ride has historically involved, and it’s a pleasure to note that it’s still possible, by accident mostly, to discover things you didn’t know you were looking for, but are delighted to find along the way.

Like, for instance, who knew that what appeared to be a walkway down to the water would turn out to be an outdoor terrace filled with diners who remained, all things considered, sanguine about the arrival and quick departure of a score of bicycles in their midst?  

And haven’t you always been seeking a car-free East Marginal Way to enjoy on a sun-drenched early evening?  Isn’t that the definition of serendipity that it was there, the object of your questless quest all along?

Sometimes a stated destination is just a way to get things rolling in the right direction and it turns out that where you were really headed was where you meant to get to anyway, especially even before the sun set—with an unexpected little bike path to be found, as well!

And nobody really knew that you’d end up with a fire after all, although the quest for that was surely portended in some way by the bringing of accelerant, both literally and figuratively.

I suppose it’s not really a surprise if you expect to be surprised, but it’s nonetheless a serendipitous state of affairs to be granted that which you didn’t know you were looking for but probably had in mind right from the start.

Thanks, Universe, for another swell gift, undeserved and unsought.