The Psychic & Passing Souls
It was a normal New York City morning. The streets were lined with people, scurrying to work. Street vendors were whacking their grills while big plumes of grey smoke poured from the mounds of frying chicken. I sat at a table in the open seating area outside my office, sipping on my coffee and watching the world chaotically happening around me. One of the security guards from my building would occasionally wander over and we’d chat about life. He was a big guy with bright, welcoming eyes and a hearty laugh to match. On this particular morning, he said something to me that I will never forget.
“All people come into you life with a message. Either you have a message for them or they have a message for you.”
This line is inarguably true. Every person we meet serves a purpose. They are a lesson or a blessing or simple a passing messenger. Either way you put it, everybody who crosses your path is important. ‘Lessons From Passing Souls’ as a concept, was originally inspired by a conversation with my good friend, Nick, the psychic.
The Psychic
Let’s go back in time to June 2019. Ah, summer in New York City. Hot garbage smell filled the air. The sun was blazing overhead. The streets were packed with sweaty people and blocked off for the weekly fair. I decided to wander through, occasionally stopping at the stands to browse the selection of random artisan items. Suddenly, a women was behind me.
“Let me read your cards.” She flashed a dazzling smile.
At the time, I was extremely naturally spiritual. I didn’t work with divination tools or have much knowledge of them. Most of my spiritual practice included meditation and channeled information, the study of various religions, and a heightened intuition. I worked toward my own personal connection with God and myself. After leaving the Catholic church, I dove deep into the world of spiritualism, but my Catholic foundation steered me away from most forms of divination.
I don’t know why I said yes.
She started rattling off a lot of information–some it was generally true and it made me squirm in my seat. She proceeded to tell me that I was cursed and that I needed to have the demons removed from my aura immediately or I would be eternally doomed. ETERNALLY DOOMED? ETERNALLY….DOOMED??? I sat there, white as a ghost, fiddling with the cross around my neck. Terrified. Until she stuck out her hand and demanded $400.
$400?????!?!? Lady–-–what the f––
I didn’t answer. I sprung up like a gopher and sprinted as fast as I could.
I don’t think I’ve ever run faster in my life.
I ran down 6th ave, turned onto 53rd and ran all the way, cross-town, to 53rd and 2nd. When I felt like I was a safe enough distance away, I leaned against a building to catch my breath. There as an odd incense smell wafting in my direction. I followed the scent until I saw “Theosophical Society of NYC” in big, bold letters on the sign above a spiritual looking bookshop. What are the odds of that?
THANK GOD! MAYBE THEY CAN HELP! My thoughts were screaming, or maybe it was all those “demons.” We’ll never know.
I ran into the book shop below the building, shouting and flailing my arms. “Please!! someone help!! the card lady cursed me!! I’m cursed!! I’m dying!! My aura is crumbling!! I’m doomed!!!!!” It was dramatic. I was frantic. I’m surprised they even let me stay long enough inside to calm down.
A gentle old woman came over and grabbed my shoulders, “You’re fine.” She smiled. “Go home and shower with pink salt. Then, come back and get a reading with me.”
I did as I was told.
When I went back, the woman wasn’t there. It was an older gentleman, with white hair, dark eyebrows, and a jolly smile. His energy was welcoming and calm. He called me over to the room and I walked in without questioning where I was or what I was doing. Yes, Natalie, enter a room with a strange man, sounds like a safe idea. But, it just felt right. I sat down.
“Hi! I’m Nick.”
“Hi. I’m Natalie!”
“And…you wrote a book?” He smiled.
“No…”
“You will.” He chuckled.
How does he know….I thought. I was in the early stages of deciding to write Out Of Chaos.
“You like Barnes and Nobles?” He raised his eyebrows.
“Yes! It’s so fun to go up and down the aisles.” I mused.
“We’ll end up there someday.”
This guy is nuts. I thought.
“Don’t believe everything you hear.” He waved his hand in the air. “People are crazy and they love to pretend they know what they’re talking about.”
Good point. I thought, nodding my head in agreement.
“Listen. You’re not cursed.” He continued. “Those gypsies are frauds. They prey on weak energy and then try to get money. But you should start learning more about spirit. I’ll teach you some stuff.”
“I just spent the last 24 hours thinking I had demons latched to my aura.” I started laughing. “At this point, I’m willing to learn anything.”
Well, this is an odd, random chance encounter. I thought.
Lessons from Passing Souls
As the months passed, I would visit Nick from time to time, but eventually I stopped, once I got busy writing my book. On one Saturday morning in Spring, we decided to meet just after I’d published it. He called and told me to get off at the 79th street subway stop, off of the one train on the upper west side. He met me at the subway station and we started walking up-town, eventually stopping at a bench outside of Barnes and Nobles. At the time, I was only twenty-four. I don’t know how old Nick actually is, but I can tell you he’s got a number of years on me. (Not that age matters much. But, in the grand scheme of life, let’s just say he’d done A LOT more living.) At one point in our conversation, I asked him, “How do you stay so alive?”
He chuckled, “Never ever lose your inner child.”
That line stuck with me.
The quote from the security guard started ringing in my head. As we talked more about lessons from souls, it made perfect sense….yes! ‘Lessons from Passing Souls.’ It was perfect. The line pretty much explains the entire concept and I absolutely loved it. It was even in the running to becoming the title of my next book. Instead, it became a chapter in The Aftermath of Unrest.
Here’s to the beautiful passing souls that make life the world’s most epic classroom:
Excerpt from The Aftermath of Unrest
Chapter: “Lessons From Passing Souls”
The world is full of people and they’re all living, breathing stories. Each person has experienced life differently and every person has a different perspective on life. Everyone has something to say and if you’re open to listening you never know what might come of it.
As I said in Out of Chaos, “I believe that there is no such thing as coincidental interactions. Everyone we meet serves a purpose and everyone comes and goes for a reason.” Dear Reader, there is a lesson in everyone we meet. Daily human connections are vital to our growth. Conversations with strangers can change your entire life but you have to be open to them.
The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows defines the word sonder as, “n. The realization that each random passerby is living a life as vivid and complex as your own—populated with their own ambitions, friends, routines, worries and inherited craziness—an epic story that continues invisibly around you like an anthill sprawling deep underground, with elaborate passageways to thousands of other lives that you’ll never know existed, in which you might appear only once, as an extra sipping coffee in the background, as a blur of traffic passing on the highway, as a lighted window at dusk.”
This word makes you think about the role you play in the life of a passing stranger. However, sometimes, we break the wall of being a simple “extra.”
Sometimes, we become a random chance encounter–one that comes with a lesson or gives a lesson. Whichever one it may be, it is always a blessing in disguise. Out of Chaos was the love child of many chance encounters and fleeting interactions––some lasting longer than others. It’s very important to be open to random and unexpected encounters. You’ll be pleasantly surprised at what people can teach you in a matter of moments. Sometimes, we don’t even notice the relevance of what someone says until a while later. Sometimes, it’s exactly what we need to hear in the moment. It’s important to listen and to perceive every conversation as a message. Don’t over think. You’ll know when it happens. It can be as simple as daily morning chat with a coffee barista or a five minute conversation with a man on a bench in Central Park.
Passing strangers are the teachers in the world that go the most overlooked.
Someone recently said to me, “Natalie, God works through people.” It’s the truest thing I’ve heard in a very long time. You never know how much a person can end up impacting your life.
Trust me, you’ll be surprised at what you can learn from a simple hello.
Hopefully, there was a message for you somewhere in this story, one that you needed to hear. Maybe, you found the secret I hid in the words. Whatever the case may be, I hope you remain open to the beautiful phenomena of random chance encounters. I hope you treat everyone you meet with kindness. I hope you keep your ears and mind open to what the world can teach you. And if you’re looking for a story full of serenditipity, “The Aftermath of Unrest” is available on all platforms :)
Love,
Natalie