Coincidence, happenstance, serendipity, fate, or the hand of god: Case studies in synchronicity - Article

Sarah's case is an example of the second form of a synchronistic event: the coincidence of a subjective state and a dream or vision (i.e., Sarah's acceptance of her own competency and the recurrent dream and vision that she experienced after praying), which then turned out to be a more or less faithful reflection of a "synchronistic," objective event that took place more or less simultaneously but in a different place (i.e., the renovation of an old church due to an endowment overseen by her former parish priest). Sarah's dream and the church renovation project occurred during the same period of time. In Sarah's case, she believed that God had answered her prayers through the coaching of the career counselor.

Form 3: Billie's Case

Billie, a 29-year-old 'White woman, came to the placement center of a small state college in the South for assistance. She worked full-time as a teller in the college's credit union and was a waitress part-time while she pursued a master's degree in student affairs. A single mother of a 13-year-old son, she was tentative and unsure that she could find a position in the field for which she was preparing and questioned why she had chosen this field at all. She had envisioned herself in a college residence life position, but as a result of her internship experience, she realized that she did not like the work. She had also come to believe that she would not be able to take a position if it required her to live in a residence hall because she needed to provide a home for her son. She believed that she had made a mistake in choosing this field.

The oldest of four children, Billie was reared in a rural area. She had been an outstanding student throughout school but, at age 15, dropped out to take care of her 10-year-old twin brothers after her parents and other brother died in a car accident. She married a farmer 19 years older than she when she was 16 years old because he could provide a stable home for them. She soon had her own child to care for as well. She went to work as a bank teller when she turned 18 years old. She earned a general equivalency diploma and began community college at age 23, after her brothers had left home to join the military. Soon thereafter, her husband contracted cancer and died within a year. She stated that money had always been tight and that there was never enough money to go around. She sold the farm and had little left over after debts were paid. She and her son settled into an apartment near the college where she transferred her credits and got a job in the credit union, hoping to secure a better future for them. S he attained a bachelor's degree in sociology and continued into graduate work.

Through career counseling, Billie gained insight that the area of student affairs appealed to her because it put her in close contact with "college kids." She stated that she was cheated out of her teen and college years and believed that a residence life position could allow her to live the experience vicariously. However, she also realized that a residence life job would replicate many of her previous caretaking responsibilities, something she did not wish to repeat. In addition, she was determined that her son would have a normal high school experience, and she wanted to remain in the area. She also wanted to be able to send her son to college. However, with a lack of resources of her own and a low-paying job, she could not see how this could be possible. She had considerable student loan debt, felt stuck, and was despondent over her choices.