The Ultimate Personal Secret
This is one of those posts I never thought I’d write. The kind that makes you wonder if you’re about to sound completely unhinged to people who don’t know you. But at nearly 60, I’m too old and too molded to care much about appearing “normal” anymore.
I’m talking about those unexplained moments we all have but rarely discuss. The synchronicities. The “coincidences” that feel like more than coincidence. The experiences that hover somewhere between spiritual, open-minded, or just plain crazy.
I’ve never had voices in my head, but I’ve had an unexplained nearby voice maybe three times in my life. I’ve never witnessed walking on water or the parting of any seas, but I’ve witnessed things that challenge my understanding of how reality works.
And honestly? I think I’m not alone in this. I think many of us have stories we keep locked away because they don’t fit into normal conversation.
So here’s mine.
The Number That Won’t Leave Me Alone
When I was a kid, I’d look at my clock radio beside my bed and check the time. For some personal reason I can’t even remember now, I decided I liked a particular minute past the hour. That specific time stuck with me—not just in memory, but in something much stranger.
For at least thirty years, maybe more, I’ve had this inexplicable instinct to check the time. Not anxiety about being late or anything practical like that. Just a sudden, gentle urge to glance at a clock. To finally go to the bathroom. To close the computer. To do something that naturally makes me check the time.
And very, very often—sometimes multiple times a day—it’s exactly that same minute past the hour.
This happens anywhere. Any country, in my home, out on the street, no place appears to be off-limits. It’s not something I try to make happen. There’s no pressure, no stress, just an instinct. Maybe a divine suggestion, if you believe in such things.
Have you ever felt like the universe was trying to get your attention through repeated signs?
When Faith Meets Physics
The Bible says “Seek and ye will find.” The Law of Attraction suggests that if we visualize, we manifest. Maybe some of this life is an illusion, or maybe parts of it are optimistically perceived consequences of explainable phenomena.
I don’t know. What I do know is that this timing thing also happens when I’m questioning whether I’m on the right path, doubting some job or schedule choice I’ve made. Soon, some “coincidence” settles me back down to focus on my journey. Sometimes it’s car number plates—but first something has to make me look at the car. A unique engine sound, or the car happens to be my dream car.
It’s as if something is saying, “You’re okay. Keep going.”
What reassurance do you get when you’re doubting your direction in life?
The Day Money Literally Materialized
About six or seven years ago, I used to teach a friend English. They’d been a student who became a friend and continued paying me for conversation practice anywhere, not just in school.
One day they canceled, and I was unsure how, without their 3,000 yen, I might pay for groceries that day. But I had faith and detached from caring about the outcome. I knew I had options—other bosses who could pay me early. It was no big deal.
I decided to cycle to the laundromat to wash my clothes. The route was just a few minutes from my home, down a quiet street just off the main road. While cycling, I heard a cool car approaching from behind. I felt the need to “check it”—and yes, it had just my number on the license plate.
As I admired the cool-looking car slowly driving around the corner ahead, focusing on the number, I noticed something appear from underneath the car. Like something materialized—not blown leaves, but something emerging from under the vehicle itself.
When I got closer, I saw three pieces of paper grouped together. Three 1,000 yen bills. Exactly the amount I would have been paid. Exactly what I’d questioned how I might obtain.
I looked around and could not fathom how or why this money was positioned exactly like that, hadn’t blown around or away. As usual, I was grateful for the event and felt I was being shown another level of possibility.
This wasn’t walking on water, but given the encounters I’ve had, this felt like someone or something was showing off.
What’s the most unexplained “coincidence” you’ve experienced involving something you needed?
When Someone Was Listening
I was sleeping in a hot apartment in Florida and woke up to get a drink. In the kitchen, I drank some water—probably swallowed too much or my throat closed, because it became very painful. So painful that I instinctively “commanded” any witness to my life: “It’s too painful!”
The next thing I remember, I’m waking up on the floor with a black eye. I have no idea how long I was out, and could only assume the black eye came from hitting the arm of the couch on my way down.
But here’s the strange part: I’d never had an instinct to “command” anything before. It was as if there was a knowing and understanding, like an actor being able to talk to someone behind the curtain.
Although falling—or fainting, or whatever your perception of this—took the pain away instantly, I did have to suffer the black eye comments at flight school. Seriously, who believes such a story from someone with a black eye?
The Spiritual Seeking Phase
Just after my helicopter training period in the US, I got sick for about five weeks. I’d joined Gold’s Gym and a training diet program for six or so weeks, but my body seemed to reject the regime of five meals a day. During this time, I felt an unusual need to buy a musical keyboard and started exploring spirituality more seriously.
I joined a spiritual circle and started meditating after reading “Talking to Heaven” by James Van Praagh. Having ticked my only childhood goal off the list with the helicopter stuff, you could say I was readily searching for something deeper.
One night, coming back from an elevator job with a coworker around midnight, we stopped at a diner for food. There were a few policemen eating there too. A couple of young women walked in, one looking quite anemic and pale.
As they got closer to our table, the skinny one suddenly spoke in an unusual voice for her appearance and said, “I can’t touch you but I can see you.” She immediately fainted. Her friend panicked, screamed, and started crying and shaking uncontrollably. The police called paramedics.
I wasn’t sure who she was talking to, but I told the standing girl, “I think your friend just channeled someone.”
Have you ever witnessed something that challenged your understanding of reality?
Living with the Mystery
Now, at this age and stage of life, nothing surprises me anymore. And some of these things you can’t normally talk to people about. As with life for most of us, the faith part is between you and God, or you and the universe, or you and your thoughts—depending on how you prefer to see it.
I’m at peace with these experiences, but I’m not in control of them. The number synchronicity continues—it even happened while I was writing this post – the exact minute past the exact hour! I don’t feel special or particularly weird. It’s no crazier than how most of us live robotic lives of repeated experiences.
As someone who teaches English and values comfortable conversation and self-expression, I’ve learned that if you seek these kinds of things—whether through reading about NDEs and OBEs, old books like “Talking to Heaven,” or even the Bible—there’s no reason life shouldn’t show things to you.
I hope there’s a library in some spiritual place where all of our lifetimes can be played back for all of us to experience. If such a reality exists, then this authentic and honest story is just another piece of truth for this particular soul’s lifetime.
The Permission to Share
You might call someone crazy, open-minded, or overly optimistic for sharing stories like these. But if you haven’t had your own special little “events,” I hope one day you get some. They don’t have to be dramatic—just those moments that make you wonder if there’s more going on than meets the eye.
I’m too old and too molded to change now, so I’m content putting it all out there for the world to see. More importantly, I hope this gives others permission to share their own unexplained experiences.
We all have them. We just rarely talk about them.
What’s your story that you usually keep to yourself?
Whether you call it spiritual, coincidental, or something else entirely, I’d love to hear about your unexplained experiences. What moments have made you wonder if there’s more to reality than we typically acknowledge?
Share your stories below—the synchronicities, the impossible timing, the experiences that make you question what’s “normal.” This is a safe space for the things we usually keep to ourselves.
