The road that was “made for you”

On salience, finding my tribe, and other meaningless meaningful things

Why do we resonate with some people, but not others? Why does hearing a song or poem sometimes feel like those words were written specifically for us to like, and how do we navigate a world of profound likes and dislikes?

We say there’s no accounting for taste, often dismissively, yet I’ve been wondering lately how we might try to. Hold ourselves and each other accountable. You go through life and find someone you resonate with on a profound level, someone with whom you just spark. Vibrate. Like it’s something more than just happenstance. Synchronicity, lessons of fate? The Universe speaking to you, or is that just New Age nonsense?

Moreover, why do certain things, particular objects of art stand out to us, while they leave others cold? My question formulated there, in art — why does this resonate so strongly for me? What does this bring about in me that keeps me tethered and in awe all these years later, when I’m sure it leaves so many others unimpressed and maybe even a little put off? — but it didn’t start there. It started, as everything, with people.

The first time I felt a strong connection with someone, I wholeheartedly believed him when he told me we’d been meant to meet, had maybe even…