As many of you know, life can offer you many surprising challenges. My early twenties were full of dating and various jobs in the sprawling city of Los Angeles. I wasn’t thinking about settling down, and the furthest thing from my mind was to find a soulmate. I had never even heard of that word.
And then, out of the blue, my car was rammed from behind on the freeway when all the traffic suddenly stopped. I had whiplash in my neck, and my back was painful. It took several months to feel somewhat normal again.
What Was the Gift from the Accident
One of my favorite teachers is Carolyn Myss. I remember her saying, “Look for the gift in whatever is happening to you.” The gift of my accident was to receive a settlement of $2500, which was a lot of money in 1968. ($2,500 in 1968 is equivalent in purchasing power to about $21,286.71 today.) My inner guidance indicated that this was the time to fulfill my dream of going to Europe. It was possible to travel for $5 per day, including travel, hotel, and food!
A Long and Worthy Bus Ride
The countryside was beautiful as I traveled cross country by Greyhound bus. I stopped for a few days in LeClaire, Iowa, to visit family and friends. Then jumped on the bus onward to New York, where I stayed for a week with friends of friends in Connecticut. During the heat of July, I booked a cheap flight to Belgium with a stopover in Iceland, which was quite chilly. I took the train to Holland, where I was greeted by a friend’s family and stayed in their condo overlooking the very cold beach at Zandvoort on the North Sea. I must admit I met a young man named Jan in Amsterdam who was an author, romantic, intelligent, and delightful. He had all the markings of a soul mate, and then, I found out he was married.
The trip continued as I boarded a train heading to Florence. Then onto Rome, which was incredible. I threw my coins in the Trevi Fountain and wished for someone wonderful to love and who would love me who was not in a relationship. Unknowingly, I was asking for a soulmate.
After exploring Roma, I rode a train to Brindisi on the east coast of Italy and took a ferry to Athens, Greece, and stayed with my English teacher and his family. He was on sabbatical in Athens. I enjoyed a magical, full-moon evening at the Acropolis. That visit was a fulfillment of my fascination with Ancient Greece.
While in Athens, I had to go to the hospital to remove a cyst. The American Consulate was very helpful. While I was recovering, met a Greek girl and her family. (Her Mom was in the room next to mine and had just learned she was cancer-free.) They invited me to stay at their home for a week, and I was a guest at her marvelous birthday party with her friends in a restaurant at the foot of the Acropolis!
The Island of Crete in the Meditteranean Is Heavenly
When I was well, I took a ship to the island of Crete, the birthplace of Western Civilization. I felt truly international as I sat around the fire pit at the hotel with people from all over the world.
There were so many fascinating experiences throughout the trip that I will cover in another post. Most importantly, it was an answer to my dream, a true adventure for a twenty-four-year-old who loved to travel.
I arrived back in the U.S. to observe on TV the rioting at Kent State and an abundance of negative news. My ever-positive personality quickly took a hike. I realized that even though I loved Europe, I would live in the U.S., and I needed to restructure my life. It was time to become quiet, meditate, and listen to my intuition.
What Would be Next in This Journey Called Life…
Once again, I was contemplating what I wanted and needed. The answer seemed to be “balance” and “true love.” I was tired of each day feeling like I was riding on a roller coaster. Especially, I was fed up with the many men who had lied to me in my young life.
Therefore, I requested from the Universe (prayed to God) to meet an honest man! I longed to be with a man who would be my friend, confidant, and partner. I wanted to share my deepest thoughts and emotions with him. I didn’t know the concept of a soul mate then, but I was describing someone with whom I could share my soul.
A few days after reaching this conclusion, my intuition or inner guidance kicked in. I heard a voice in my head. (Yes, a voice. Didn’t Jesus say to listen for the small, still voice?) You could call the voice inner guidance or Angelic intervention, but it sounded like a voice saying, “Go to the Passport Agency.”
I shook my head and responded out loud. “Why? I already have a passport.”
“Go to the Passport Agency,” the voice repeated.
I tried to block the voice by humming a little tune and reading a magazine. I went to a movie, but the same message kept coming through.
A Trip to the Passport Agency in Pouring Rain
I had not replaced my car after returning from Europe, so I called my Mom on Sunday morning, and said, “I would appreciate your taking me downtown L.A. to the Passport Agency tomorrow.”
“Why are you going there?” she asked.
Suddenly I knew why. “I am going to get a job there.”
“Okay,” she replied.
It was the month of March, and on Monday morning, it was pouring rain. Mom called me and said, “You should probably wait until tomorrow to go. Maybe the weather will clear.”
I heard myself answer, “No, I need to go today. I am ready to go, and I have to show up today!”
Mom was surprised but said she would be right over to pick me up. She was somewhat used to my knowing what needed to happen. She understood intuition, although she did think I was strange at times.
I arrived at the information desk at the Passport Agency and asked the woman about jobs. She said, “Oh, you must mean the office where they are hiring summer employees for the busy travel season. They are interviewing right now.”
I hurried to the HR office, filled out the paperwork, and took a test. The woman who interviewed me told me that I passed the application and test, and they’d like me to start working at the agency in two weeks. I was thrilled. As I was heading out the door, the woman said, “Oh, yes, and there is a nice young man I think you will enjoy meeting.” (Obviously, that was a very unusual comment for her.)
Getting Ready for a New Chapter in My Life
During those two weeks, I bought a used car and found an apartment. It was upstairs in an old house in Santa Monica, a sleepy little beach town in those days. I was beginning the next chapter of my life.
When I reported for duty at the Passport Agency, the manager gave me forms to fill out. I sat at a table near the window and stood up to take the paperwork to the manager. Suddenly, I stood perfectly still. I felt heat on the back of my head and turned around to look directly into the eyes of a tall, dark, and handsome young man. The look in his eyes was so piercing. I felt as if he was looking into my soul. It was an incredible feeling, both emotional and spiritual.
I said, “Hello,” and he responded with, “Hi.” The manager showed me around the agency, and I began to work. After the second day of seeing the young man sitting alone in the cafeteria, I decided to join him at his table. He looked up and greeted me, and went back to reading the newspaper.
The Beginning of an Endless Conversation
I introduced myself, and he laid the paper on the table. Soon we were talking non-stop. I told him I had recently returned from Europe, and he said he had also driven around Europe for three months in 1966. We began what would become a never-ending conversation about our travels and eventually traveled to Europe many times together.
Another interesting point I did not know for several years is that John had asked God/the Universe to bring him, someone, with whom he could converse. He wanted to be able to share his thoughts and feelings.
At one point, when we had been together for ten years, many of our friends were getting divorced. Someone asked what had kept us together so long. John replied, “We started a conversation and haven’t finished it.”
We Have Created Many Adventures and Projects Together
There have been so many adventures that have taken place in over fifty years of knowing and loving each other. We have done marketing and PR consulting for large and small companies. We remodeled houses, created oil paintings, and wrote books There were even fifteen years of being separated by time and circumstances, only to be reunited in 2002 when we re-started our conversation.
It has been a magical, mystery ride that is always entertaining, sometimes challenging, but always loving. He is the most honest person I have ever known, and he has helped form the structure that gave me a platform from which to grow. He has encouraged me to reach heights with no reservations, doubts, or fear. And I have done the same for him as he reached for the stars.
A Story Comes to Life
Over the years, John would take the time to write pieces of a story and send them to me by email. John started to write it as a children’s story to help heal me when I came close to death after being stabbed in a parking garage in 1971.
In 2018, I began putting the pieces of the story in the emails together. He began rewriting and adding to what he had written. The result is an amazing, eleven awards-winning, best-selling, fantasy novel called Portals in Time, The Quest for Un-Old-Age.
Portals in Time is a testament to a relationship that has filled my heart and soul. And it all happened because I followed my guidance and intuition and showed up at the right place at the perfect time.
It is your turn now. Make a list of what type of person you would love to have in your life.
♥ I would put at the top of the list that you want an honest man or woman to be your partner and friend.
♥ I suggest you list a great sense of humor and a positive, charming, and kind way of being.
♥ It’s nice to have them pleasant to look at, someone with a big smile and sparkling eyes who always is happy to see you.
♥ And, certainly, a person with whom you can share your ideas, concepts, feelings, and dreams with intelligent advice, constructive support, and lots of encouragement!
♥ A soul mate who is on the same page, non-argumentative, fun to be around, and ambitious.
♥ A person who loves you, and you love him or her unconditionally.
When your list is prepared, follow your intuition impeccably. And live joyfully until it happens. In the meantime, keep loving yourself, your family, your friends, and the caring people you meet.
Contact me for a Free 15-Minute Chat on Zoom to see if you’re ready to begin your Journey to Wholeness…
Perhaps it is time for you to transform your life. It is never too early or too late to understand how you create your reality with your beliefs, generating your thoughts, which activate your emotions that lead to actions that become your life.
I would love to help you release the past and create a future that is truly made up of the Desires of Your Heart! To set up a fifteen-minute chat, email VerlaineC@CreativeLifeAdventures.com
Verlaine Crawford is an Author, Transformational Coach, and Inspirational Speaker. She was invited to teach personal growth and spiritual awareness worldwide. She is the author of four best-selling books and publisher of two by John Teressi: See Books to Enhance Your Life. Verlaine’s bio click here and at www.VerlaineCrawford.com.
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