Signs from Beyond: Reflections on Season One and What I've Learned About Listening

As we close out the first season of "Surrendering to the Signs," I want to share what this journey has taught me about recognizing guidance, letting go of relationships that no longer serve us, and trusting that our rational minds don't hold all the answers.

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The Shop Sign That Stopped Me in My Tracks

I was recently on a retreat in Glastonbury in the UK. One morning I walked past a little alleyway and felt really drawn to go down it, but I was late for breakfast and had to get to the retreat.

That pull stayed with me all week. Finally, on the very last day, I had a few minutes over lunch and decided to check it out. I went down the alleyway, took a quick snapshot, and as I was turning to go, I looked at my phone.

The photo on my phone showed a shop sign that said "Janice Made This."

My sister's name is Janice. She passed away three years ago. Suddenly, tragically, from one day to the next, this person I spoke to every day, who I traveled the globe with on adventures, laughing until we cried, was gone. And once the grip of grief loosened a little bit, once I could breathe again, things got very clear. Our time here is short.

The fact that I was pulled down this alley, that I went back on the last day at the last minute, and that there was this sign - I have chills right now thinking about how these magical, mysterious moments occur when we surrender to the signs and follow our intuition.

Two License Plates in One Week

This morning, my father and I were walking out of the gym when I looked over and saw a license plate with my sister's initials - JG, Janice Gates. And then the car next to mine in the parking lot also had a license plate with her initials.

What's the probability of two license plates in this small parking lot having my sister's initials? For me, these are messages that my sister is still here in some form, connected to me and our family.

I've been getting so many messages from people saying they saw something that reminded them of her, heard a message coming from her, had a dream about her. The three year anniversary just passed, and it feels like she's making her presence known.

What This Podcast Is Really About

Recently at a networking event, someone asked what my podcast was about. I stumbled over my words: "Oh, it's kind of spirituality, consciousness, conscious leadership..."

I noticed it was uncomfortable for me to talk about these topics out in the world. It made me wonder - what are we really talking about here?

When I go back to what grounds me, it's constantly seeking: Why am I here? What am I here for? Who am I to serve? How am I to serve?

The interviews we've had all point back to someone who's a seeker, an explorer - whether by choice or because something happened in their life that made them pause and rethink their path and purpose.

When Relationships Need to Change

One thing that's come up repeatedly in Season One is that sometimes what needs to change is our relationships with other people. We often feel like we should be loyal, we should care, we should keep giving. But sometimes people aren't good for us. Sometimes people don't reciprocate.

What has helped me is to look at relationships from a different perspective: What is my soul's agreement with this person? What is the opportunity I have here? When I ask myself these questions, sometimes the answer is that the opportunity is to not stay in the relationship.

This is challenging because we want to believe in people. But part of being kind to ourselves is recognizing when relationships aren't healthy.

The Gift I Didn't Expect

My husband and I don't have children. We went through fertility challenges and various treatments. One day I was reading a book by a woman who'd been to the same practitioners, and when she wrote about deciding to let go, something clicked: "I don't want to do this anymore. This is stressful."

When we were going through all this, my niece was around two years old. I would tell her, "We have to go to the doctors to try to have a baby," and she would say, "I'm the baby." We would all laugh.

Well, when my sister passed away, my niece became my baby. You just never know how you're going to have children or in what form.

What felt like a failure at the time has become a gift. When other parents didn't have what they needed to take care of their kids, I was there. There have been numerous young people who've come into my life that I've felt called to support. If I had had my own children, I would not have been able to give as much of my time and energy to others as I have.

Our Rational Minds Don't Hold All the Answers

If there's one thing I want to impart that I'm constantly learning, it's this: our rational minds do not hold all the answers.

There's wisdom all around us - whether that wisdom is coming from our ancestors, nature, our animals, or a sign in an alleyway. This wisdom is available to us when we're willing to suspend our disbelief and be open to the possibilities.

The logical mind says, "Oh, I don't have time. I've got to catch a train." But when we surrender to the signs, when we follow our intuition, when we listen to those little niggles, it's astounding where it leads us.

Thank You

I want to thank my husband Laurence and our Great Pyrenees Luna for their patience. Thank you to Daniel De Souza, who re-entered my life after 30 years and became a huge catalyst for this podcast. Thank you to Kayleigh Johnstone and her team at COZ & Co for helping us launch.

And thank you to all our Season One guests: my dad Bob Gates, Sarah Nicotra, Geri Esposito, Sherold Barr, Tesse Akpeki, Allison Sagraves, and Ruud Hopstaken.

Most of all, thank you to everyone who has reached out and shared your stories of signs and synchronicities. People have sent me notes about birds showing up when they asked for a sign, or nature giving them answers. One person told me they were questioning whether to continue a relationship and asked for a sign right away - and right that minute, the person called them.

This works. And I love hearing about your experiences.

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My hope: This podcast is for seekers, learners, and explorers - those of us who want confirmation that being here is worthwhile. Whether we're overcoming despair, grief, loss, anger, or frustration, in the end it's worth it. This journey takes us somewhere meaningful where we can look back and say, "Yeah, I did the hard things. I did the scary things, and in the end it was worth it."

Listen to the full Season One finale episode for more reflections on what I've learned about following signs, letting go, and trusting the journey.

Visit us at SurrenderingToTheSigns.com and connect with our community on Facebook and Instagram. See you in Season Two!