In 2008, I did a drug called Salvia Divinorum, also known as “Seers Sage”. This drug produces very vivid hallucinations, which last about 10 minutes. For me, I mentally left my bedroom, where I smoked the drug, and I landed in a different state, New York, to be precise. I became a building. That’s right, I was no longer a human being who needed to breathe. I towered over other buildings which all seemed to be covered in a light fog. Then I came back to reality.
Now, jump ahead to 2013, to me with a sober mind, listening to the newest album by Vampire Weekend, Modern Vampires of the City. I felt a strong connection to the lyrics, more than any other piece of music I’d ever heard. So I finally looked at the album cover, and it was the same image I had seen during my drug trip. Buildings covered by a thin mist.
Freaked out by that coincidence, I decided to walk to Boston to clear my head. I didn’t have a destination in that city at all, so I did what was expected when lost, I accidentally walked in a circle. I knew I had walked in a circle when I noticed the same street name. Waverly Street. This street stood out to me, because it features as one of the lyrics on the Vampire Weekend album. The lyrics go: “And we glided on through Waverly and Lincoln.”
What I did next was walk down Waverly, and sure enough it came out onto another street called Lincoln. Another small coincidence. No big deal, but I noticed it for sure.
But here’s the real kicker. I kept walking deeper into the city, until I reached the subway system. On a whim, still with no destination in mind, I got on the train. I picked the front of the train and the first seat available near the driver. When I looked at who I was sitting next to, it was the entire group, Vampire Weekend!
At the time, they had the number one album in the country so I don’t know why they were on public transit, but there they were. I was made speechless by their presence and the pure coincidence of it all.
What do you make of this true story of mine?
What do you make of coincidence in general?
Are there any stories of coincidence in your life that just make your life so much more mysterious?