Thoughts while pedalling: Fate and the Art of Bicycle Maintenance

Today, I had an interesting encounter in a coffeshop on the way in to Parit Buntar. I had been making good time but decided to stop for my usual Teh O rather than hit Parit Buntar and David's place too early.

The shop was a modest but very clean Malay place. I created the usual stir when I rolled up and the the owner, a young, earnest chap came over to chat when he'd prepared my drink and my roti chanai with sambal ikan bilis.

Some minutes later, an older Chinese man, shirtless in that casual manner many Chinese business owners have, came over and sat right down. He ran the medicine shop next door and he started speaking to me in a familiar but friendly manner.

We spoke for the most part in Cantonese, but he had to revert to Malay when my poor Cantonese prevented me from understanding a particularly keen concept or idea.

We spoke about a variety of things, but he seemed quite intense in some way and for a total stranger, he kept bringing up the idea that my ride was 'fated' and 'predestined' and that we were even meant to meet.

When he discovered I was open to the ideas of all religions, he even gave me a small book on Buddhism. And an old geography book whose weight was less welcome, although I accepted it with a smile. I couldn't quite fathom him and at times, he seemed to look right into or through me like he was expecting something from me.

He eventually asked for my name and number in case he got to Singapore so I wrote 'John Cheong' and my Singapore number. For some reason I had no wish to lie in that respect.

He popped back to his shop and returned a few minutes later with a small piece of card upon which he'd written his name and number. I looked at it and did a double take for written there was my own name. In Chinese. This old man and I had the same name.

When I told him, he grabbed my arm, hauled me out to the street and pointed out his signboard and there was my Chinese name staring back at me. 'I told you', he said 'you were meant to be here'.

Later, he asked me for four numbers and I gave him a set of numbers I have a liking for. I hope they bring him some reward.

I have often thought about fate and destiny and especially since I finished Terzani's book (which I mentioned earlier). The concept of a predestined life is not one I have resolved completely - and likely never will - but I have, either through circumstance or simple contemplation, been spending a great deal of time on it.

I do believe that we are led to things and people and situations. And that those things, people or situations are there for a purpose. If we fulfil the purpose, we grow. If we do not, we simply don't grow as we are meant to, and we likely get the chance to do it all over again. Note that I have avoided the use of the word 'problems' as I view these situations as 'opportunities' for growth.

I have often told Mei that we were meant to meet. And at precisely the time that we finally did too. I am sure of the fact that we had passed each other in the street before - we lived in the same area, shopped at the same supermarket and even have friends or contacts from the same circle after all - but we simply never met until the time was right. She even admits that if we had met earlier, we may never have hit it off at all.

At least twice already on this ride, I have met people I would never have if not for some 'situation' that came up. Were we meant to meet? And did any significant change to those people come out of our encounter? Who knows?

When we talk of chains of events, we often point to a starting event - something that triggered off the whole chain. And we also often talk of where it'll all end. But we forget that a bicycle too, has a chain. Only, this one has no end. It goes around and around in a loop. And as it goes around, things are happening. All the time. We merely help push them along.

Things are indeed happening all the time. We're playing out our fate and living out our destiny every single moment of our lives. Perhaps there really is no end - one link leads to the next and to the one after that and so on. Ad infinitum.

Now isn't that an interesting thought?