My cousin Julie lives in Cherry Creek, Colorado. She and her daughter were recently in Orlando for the National Cheerleading Championships where their team placed second in their category.
Since Julie lives in Colorado and I live in Florida, it’s a gift for us to have time together, so I was excited she invited me to watch the competition. Now, I can’t stop hearing “Cheer for the cherries!!” in my head.
After it was over, the teams headed to Disney World. The event had been held at ESPN’s sports complex on Disney property, and teams were given discount tickets to the parks, and we decided to go along for the fun. The park was mobbed by cheerleaders and dance teams everywhere!
Of the grandchildren of my generation, Julie and I are the closest in age, and we always loved spending time together. We had a great day and even caught up to the girls for a quick hello.
Julie left the next morning, and I headed to the gym. That’s when the cherries started showing up.
First there was a guy in a pink T-shirt with two smiling cherries on the chest. I thought, “that’s cute.” A few minutes later another guy walked by. He had on a grey T-shirt with two scowling black cherries on the front.
It was a little weird. I don’t recall ever seeing cherry motifs at the gym or anywhere really. Now here two shirts with similar logos, passing right in front of me. I couldn’t have missed them if I tried. Was something going on?
Growing up, Julie’s mom, Aunt Linda, was one of my favorite people. She was endlessly positive, cheerful, and funny. Her smile could light up the room, and she valiantly fought cancer with that smile for half my life, and there’s rarely a conversation with Julie or her sisters where we don’t reference Linda in some way. Now, was she trying to get my attention?
I made a mental note to call Julie after I finished my client appointments for the day and didn’t think more about it until my last client came in—a young woman in a hoodie and T-shirt. As she unzipped her hoodie I couldn’t help but smile. There on her pale pink tee were two red cherries with Mickey Mouse ears!
We had a great conversation and then she asked me, “How do I know if the signs are real or I’m just making it up?” It’s a common question and I pointed to her shirt. I shared about the other shirts I saw that day and the cheerleaders from Cherry Creek.
It wasn’t a coincidence she chose to wear that specific shirt, that specific day, and she told me she’d been choosing between wearing two shirts that morning. She chose Mickey Cherries and that decision became confirmation for both of us. The signs are there, often we’re just too busy to notice or stop and say, “Thank you, I know that was you.”
For me, it seemed obvious my aunt knew we’d all been together “cheering for the cherries” and enjoying time at Disney World. For my client, by allowing intuition to guide her in simply picking out a shirt, she also allowed the spirits around her to use that moment of trust to show her there’s more going on than meets the eye.
We do not move through the world alone. Spirit, our guides, guardian angels, loved ones, even our pets, can all offer us wisdom and guidance if we’re willing to stop, look, and listen.
My client had been wrestling with common questions:
- Will I get signs when I ask for them?
- Is there more out there to help and guide me?
- How do I know any of this is real or am I making it up?
This was our first meeting. It was not an accident her appointment was on that day—the day after I’d been at Disney with Julie and her daughter. It was not a coincidence she was guided to wear that shirt.
She had no way of knowing about the previous day, about the cheer competition, or the cherries. She had been willing to open herself up to something more and trust the nudge that came.
The desire to believe our loved ones are there, willing to help, is a big first step. Try welcoming them in, instead of defaulting to coincidence.
When I called Julie, she agreed. Of course, her mom would be around, joining in on our fun. When I described the Mickey cherry shirt to Julie, she sent me this picture.
Cheer teams have designated outfits so wherever they go, they’re completely coordinated. That same day, the Cherry Creek team was choosing between the shirt pictured above or mint green. They ended up choosing green.
If they’d opted to wear the shirt with Mickey Mouse cherries, I likely would have seen my client’s shirt as just another Disney T-shirt. But they chose mint green instead. I’ve lived in Orlando for a long time and we regularly go to Disney. I can’t recall ever seeing Mickey cherry imagery.
These shirts are not coincidence, they are signs from our loved ones, letting us know they’re nearby and willing to help. We only need to ask.
