Random Coincidence or Meant to Be?

Unexpected life lessons from my Netflix watchlist.

Last week, I noticed a strange pattern, and once I connected the dots, I couldn’t unsee it anymore. The pattern? All the shows that I had been watching had fragments of familiar life lessons in them.

Unknown to me, when I consciously picked out the book Reinventing Your Life by Jeffrey E. Young from my bookshelf, it would make an impact on my watchlist. I read up about the common schemas or lifetraps that people had, made notes in my notebook and made a mental note to be more aware of my thoughts and actions in the future.

What I didn’t realise was that my lessons and reflections didn’t end after I finished the book.

It was only just the beginning.

Sometimes, the universe has an interesting way of giving us life lessons.

For me, it started when I picked the new release, The Newsroom, to watch on Netflix. The limited Australian drama series centred on the lives and challenges of two newsreaders, as they chased their own media ambitions. I watched intensely as the protagonists went through tough situations and how they handled them.

I moved on to the Japanese series The Full-Time Wife Escapist before the delightful Korean show Can This Love Be Translated? – both shows dealt with childhood trauma that affects the lives of the main characters.

Watching the storylines of characters with similarities to my own life got my attention. What more when they got to pondering about how I would respond if I were in their shoes.

That’s when I had a lightbulb moment. There was a clear pattern in the shows that I was watching. They were all reminders of my own notes and reflections on the book.

Then came the ultimate reminder.

Speaking of shoes, the one that I didn’t expect to get any lessons from was Sex & the City. After all, I had already watched the entire series before. No surprises there.

And yet, when I “randomly” decided to watch an episode from Season 2 on Netflix, Carrie’s own issues in expressing her views to Mr Big suddenly came knocking on my door and confronted me.

Suddenly, my seemingly random watchlist spoke loudly to me.

Sometimes it’s the character who asks the question I should be asking. Other times, it’s a situation I’ve been through that needs reflection. Going beyond plot twists and main-character energy, my watchlist is about resonance with life.

Whether it was moments of boredom or browsing the home page, it felt like I was being guided to choose shows that were in sync with my offline lessons.

“What must be seen, will be seen, so the lessons stay.” — The Universe

For all the reminders, I just have to say – Thank you, Universe!

Now, I look at movies, shows, books, or online articles with a different perspective. Stories are now less about popularity or trends, but more like possible messengers, reflecting questions I’m learning to ask and lessons that I hold on to my heart. Once the dots have been connected, you stop calling it coincidences and realise that the timing is right on top, no matter on the page, on screen, or in life.

After all the unexpected lessons I gained from my watchlist, I picked Bridgerton Season 4, a totally conscious decision on my part.

Yet, I can’t help but wonder if some surprise lessons are waiting for me. Time and the Universe will certainly tell, or maybe, Mr. Benedict Bridgerton will.