You already know, or have heard, that a near-death experience is often life changing.

I experienced five of them.

During my hitch in Vietnam, there were five times that if I had been where I should have been or wanted to have been, I would have been killed. Sometimes the difference was a matter of inches.

And so, at 22, I became an observant Fatalist. It had become obvious to me that there was a master plan beyond my control or understanding. All I could do was to try to make the best possible life decisions and accept where fate took me.

I flipped a coin to decide where to live after I returned from the war. (That led me to NY where, among other things, I met Shanti’s Mom.)

Accepting fate removed a huge burden from me. I no longer regretted past mistakes because they were meant to be and were important learning experiences. I no longer feared the future because it’s already in place and 90+% of the things I might have worried about never happened. I live in the present being grateful for life itself and everything large and small that brings me joy.

Good news. You don’t have to dodge a bullet to be grateful for what fate has granted you. Of course, there are unquestionably daily challenges and annoyances. Trusting the master plan will help you find the gift in them.

All of this is life changing…and simple. Just practice. I know it works.