A reflection on destiny, alignment, and the art of paying attention.

I’ve never believed in destiny as a perfectly drawn line. To me, it’s not some predetermined script we’re supposed to follow. Destiny is more like a pattern, something we participate in, shape, and notice over time. It’s the quiet choreography between who we are, what we choose, and what the world puts in our path.

And yet, many people never feel connected to their own destiny. They conform to expectations, roles, or identities that were assigned to them rather than chosen. They end up living someone else’s version of a life, and the disconnection becomes so common they start thinking it’s normal. They confuse mere survival with purpose. They mistake momentum for true meaning.

Not me.

Recently, I’ve noticed that when we aren’t acting from our own agency, inner truth, instincts, or voice, life begins to feel dull, flat, and oddly disconnected. We stop noticing small synchronicities, patterns, and quiet nudges that guide us toward what’s real.

This is why I’ve always disagreed with the idea that life is simply “random.”

My father-in-law loved that word. He constantly tossed it around. Whenever something unexpected happened, if the timing felt oddly perfect, or if a moment lined up in a way that couldn’t be explained, he’d simply shrug and say, “Random.” He spoke of it matter-of-factly, almost playfully — but that’s what he meant.

He and I argued for years about that word. He believed that randomness kept life from feeling too heavy or mystical. If something didn’t make sense, it must be a fluke. A coincidence. A cosmic shrug. But I never saw it that way.

To me, those uncanny little moments, like the right person calling at the right time, a conversation that echoes a thought you didn’t say aloud, or the sign you needed appearing just when you felt lost, aren’t accidents. They’re invitations. They’re signals. They’re pieces of a larger pattern weaving through everyday life, asking if we’re awake enough to notice.

He passed away three years ago, and now I hear his language echoed by others who loved him: “How random.” “What a fluke.” “Isn’t that funny timing?” They echo it out of affection, out of memory, out of habit. I understand. But every time I hear it, something in me bristles… not at the person saying it, but at how limiting it feels.

Because I believe these moments are completely intentional.

I believe they are the breadcrumbs of destiny…the ones that guide us toward who we are becoming. Call it intuition. Call it alignment. Call it a higher intelligence, a spiritual echo, or simply the deep pattern of a life that’s paying attention. But don’t call it random. Random is what we say when we don’t have the language for mystery. Random is what we call meaning when we’re afraid to claim it.

Destiny, to me, is not simply handed to us. It is co-created through our participation. It requires us to listen, choose, act with purpose, and notice the subtle connections that guide us toward a fuller version of ourselves. When we do, life no longer feels accidental. Instead, it begins to feel illuminated. Which leads me to a book I just finished by Laura Lynne Jackson.

Guided: The Secret Path to an Illuminated Life resonated deeply. It articulates what I have been experiencing for years—the quiet art of staying awake while living, remaining alert long enough for signs to appear, staying open enough to recognize when someone is speaking to you and what it signifies, or noticing the invisible threads weaving all around. I often have these moments. I now compare them to small lanterns placed along my path; they were always there, and I had to honor them. 

We must begin to realize that the moments that matter, the ones that transform us, redirect us, wake us up, are never coincidences. They are alignments. They are messages. They are teachers.

Maybe, in short, some people’s lights have dimmed, and the universe keeps trying to awaken them, nudge their souls towards awareness, remembrance, and most importantly, the brilliance they’ve forgotten to carry.

Ultimately, destiny is less about what’s supposed to happen and more about who you’re meant to become when you start noticing the signs. Nothing is random; everything is a conversation worth exploring. The more you pay attention, the more the world responds.