This past Saturday, I had something simply extraordinary happen to me.
On a beautiful, crisp September morning, I was walking in New York city on my way to speak at the Hay House Writer’s Workshop. Reid Tracy, a dear friend and the President of Hay House was to my right, and his friend Charlie to my left.
About two blocks away from the Javits center, Reid made a mistake, telling us to take a right…
And that simple mistake…made something really astounding happen.
Now, before I tell you what happened, a little context to this story. The walk from our hotel to the Javits center is a straight shot down 11th Avenue. Not a single turn, about 10 blocks south and you hit the Javits Center, a huge building that you just can’t miss.
On top of that, I’ve probably walked this same route a good ten times over the past couple of years, staying at the same hotel and speaking in the same place. Reid, who said we needed to turn right, has likely done it 20 to 30 times.
So what he did, and the fact that I followed him, made NO sense. We walked halfway down the block, and I could see the water on the Hudson and said, “Reid, this isn’t the right way. Don’t we just keep going straight?” He quickly agreed and was surprised with himself that he had turned right, but we got back on the main avenue and quickly forgot about it.
It wasn’t more than 20 seconds of walking when a lady ran up to us, “Are you Reid Tracy?” she said. “Yes,” he quickly answered. “Are you Nick Ortner?” she said as she looked at me. “Sure am,” I replied. She introduced herself, “My name is Hannah and I was just watching the tribute to Wayne Dyer last night and saw both of you on there! Oh my god…I can’t believe you’re here right now…” she continued.
Now, at this point, I thought it was someone going to the workshop, because we were just one block away from the Javits center. Being recognized at a workshop you’re running isn’t that surprising! Haha!
But what she said next floored me, “I live down that street,” she said as she pointed down the street we had mistakenly gone down, “and I saw you turn down the street, thought I recognized you, and then have been chasing you for half a block to see if it was really you!”
And then it got even crazier…
“Nick,” she said as she stared into my eyes. “You literally saved my life. Five years ago, I was online reading about how to drink anti-freeze in order to kill myself. I had heard it was an easy way to go, and I was done with life. Somehow, I stumbled on to one of your tapping videos, started tapping right there, in that moment, and felt a tremendous sense of relief. I tapped ALL night long and for the next couple of days. It transformed my life, gave me hope again and in the past five years, everything has changed.”
She went on to tell us about the amazing work she’s doing now, helping others heal, using sound healing, tapping and more. We chatted for a few more minutes, gave each other a big hug, and we parted ways.
Charlie, Reid’s friend who was joining us on the walk down said shortly after, “Wow…is this a regular thing that happens to you guys???”
We laughed and began talking about how bizarre it was that we took that right turn, because if we hadn’t made that “mistake” none of that would have happened. I’m still processing the beauty and magic of that experience, and all of its implications.
But here are my quick take-aways from it for you:
1. There are no accidents. Why did we take a right? Why did we make that simple, silly mistake? Why that block and not the block before or after? Clearly, something beyond us was happening here, to set up this magical occasion.
2. You never know who you’re helping with your good work. What I get to do on a daily basis is a blessing 1,000 times over. I am so grateful for the opportunity to share this life-changing technique with the world, to help others heal. The fact that somehow, something I did made such a profound difference in Hannah’s life, literally saving it, is beyond me. And truly, it is beyond me, because it wasn’t ME that did this, it was HER. She found her way to healing her deepest wounds, I was just there offering a helping hand. Remember, every good deed you do in the world has a profound ripple effect, one that we don’t always get to experience the way I didon Saturday.
3. Our lives can be magical, if we allow them to be so. Reason and logic can certainly serve us, they’re important and shouldn’t be simply discarded. But boy, do I love magical living and thinking! Life is fun when we allow, notice and embrace the synchronicity, thechance encounters, the small signs and guideposts along the way. Allow the magic into your life!
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