There was a short video of a couple of grandpas getting a ride in a driverless car. They were shocked, though not speechless. They had a lot to say about the experience, including fear, surprise and admiration. They stood with their mouths open as it safely drove away. I think they wanted to do it again. 

It turns out that navigating roads is not out of the range of possibilities for computers, even with such wild cards as pedestrians and street lights. There are rules in place, like the distance between bumpers, and speed limits to guide them. Cameras can be responsive to obstacles, and will gauge on coming traffic with accuracy. In brief, they can get you where you want to go. 

The other day a few partnerless people came for tea. Their beloved spouses have preceded them to the spiritual world, yet they are still here on earth trying to find ways to engage with family and friends. Each of them still work part time. They shared stories about their lives, including how they met their future spouse. One woman had signed a contract for a new job in the Virgin Islands, having turned down an equally appealing one in Holland. That night in her dream she saw her father who had recently died. He was in his coffin, surrounded by roses so lush she could almost smell them. Suddenly he sat bolt upright and told her to go to Holland. In the morning she contacted the employers and changed contracts. It was at the job in the Hague that she met her husband.  

A man told about the encounters his family has had with dragonflies. Since they had a backyard pool they spent many hours enjoying the cool water each summer, and dragonflies tended to appear and rest on his son's arms with unusual calm. He was a helicopter pilot and was particularly mesmerized by their abilities. Their translucent wings seemed magical. Sometimes they would talk about his hopes for marriage, and he admitted to not understanding women very well. A week after an especially pleasant hour in the pool with dragonflies, their precious son died.

A friend named Petra Frese who has written about the signs people are sometimes given from departed loved ones asked if they would be open to any messages she might receive. They said that they were. A few days later she mailed a card with a dragonfly on it, as well as a small dragonfly pendant. 

"Does this mean anything to you?"

Months later she contacted them with another simple message.

"I think I am finally starting to understand women."

The suggestion that God, who mostly keeps hidden, can and will navigate us to places we hope to go seems more plausible all the time.