Stage 11: Coincidences
Stage 11: Coincidence
The Episode
“What are the chances?” is how it always starts. We bump into a middle school friend in Prague, book the same hotel as a high school friend in Argentina, or end up sitting next to someone from home on a bus in Ireland.
When we travel, we sometimes find ourselves running into people we already know but didn’t expect to see.
Your brain is shocked because it is breaking your expectations. For a moment, in a time where you have volunteered to be uncomfortable and out of your element, you have a moment of familiarity.
Or maybe the same thing keeps happening to you, you see the same person over and over again, hear the same topic come up in conversations, or keep being in the wrong place at the wrong time.
But what do these coincidences really mean?
Are they just a sign from the universe or us just flipping the least unlikely coin?
We Discuss
What is a coincidence ?
Why do coincidences happen?
What do coincidences mean?
Carl Jung and synchronicity
What is collective consciousness?
What is synchronicity in psychology?
What are the odds of bumping into someone abroad?
Do coincidences have a larger meaning?
The probability of running into someone.
Chance coincidences.
Featured Guests
Yann Ilugan
Yann didn’t believe in coincidences. He thought they were a fluke, a misinterpretation, a happy accident. Until he was walking down a residential street in San Francisco, thousands of miles away from his home in Finland, and bumped into the last person he expected he would see.
Yann is a podcast strategist.
Sandi Marx
Sandi Marx was too busy to pay attention to coincidences. She had twins to raise, a full time job, and somehow had to keep her marriage together. Although her relationship with her husband was rocky, she thought they could persevere. But for some reason, every time she left her home to try to gain some relaxation and clarity, the universe would try to shake some sense into her.
Sandi Marx is a New York City storyteller, a Moth Grand Slam winner, and has performed a solo show in Joe’s Pub and all over the city.
Sam Dingman
Sam Dingman was looking for a sign. After a rough break up, Sam was interpreting everything as a clue from the universe. A hint that the universe had a larger plan for him that he couldn’t see yet. So he did what we all do when we are fresh out of a breakup: he drove 7 hours to a baseball game on a whim. No backup plan, no place to stay, he didn’t even know anyone in the city he was driving to.
And when he thought he was close to getting that message he was desperate for, the universe pivoted and gave him the sign he needed.
Sam Dingman is the host of the Family Ghosts podcast, a Moth Grand Slam winner, and a New York City storyteller.
References
The Meaning of Coincidences : The Atlantic
The Five Most Common Coincidences: Psychology Today
The Science Behind Coincidences: Discover Magazine
Strangers Abroad is a travel podcast hosted by solo female traveler and storyteller, Adrien Behn. Strangers Abroad is ‘ This American Life’ for travel. Each show we bring you a theme and multiple perspectives on that theme. Each theme is a stage we experience when we travel and dissect it from every angle to make our listeners travel richer.
