A Blossoming Spirit

The start of this year was filled with many beautiful moments.

I usually do not give much importance to the change of the year. I do not focus much on the celebrations that come with it. Nevertheless, this year particularly stood out because of the difference it made for me.

On New Year’s Day, we played “Le loto”, also known as Bingo, with the family. A traditional French loto usually has several stages:

1. Quine – one full horizontal line
2. Double quine – two full lines
3. Carton plein – when the entire card is filled, which qualifies for the biggest prize.

I decided to play just for fun. From my past experiences playing games, I was quite confident that I was not going to win anything at all.

The numbers started to be called out, one by one. I began striking them off my card. Finally, I completed my first line.

“Quine!” I shouted.

I saw the happiness in everyone’s eyes. I was handed my gift. When I opened it, I found three angel figurines, similar but slightly different in color. I was told they had belonged to the grandmother. Holding something that looked so old made me unexpectedly happy.

After celebrating my win, we continued the game. Once again, I began striking off the numbers that were called out.

“Deuxième quine!” I shouted.

It was my second one. I couldn’t believe this was happening. Even though it was not a big professional game, just having the chance to win something made me happy. My second gift was a box filled with small packets of jams and honey.

“Why not?” I thought. My breakfasts were sorted.

That feeling of winning stayed with me for the first few weeks of the year.

Then came another big tradition in France: La Galette des Rois.

The Festival of Kings, called Épiphanie, is often celebrated on the first Sunday of January. It commemorates the visit of the three wise men to the baby Jesus. During Épiphanie, families and friends share a special cake called Galette des Rois (King’s Cake).

The cake is cut into slices, and inside it there is a small hidden charm called a fève. Whoever finds the fève in their slice becomes the king or queen of the day. They get to wear the paper crown that comes with the cake.

During January, I had my first Galette des Rois at a friend’s place where we gathered to celebrate this tradition. As we enjoyed the homemade treats, I appreciated the slice of cake I had taken. Its taste was so delightful that I wanted another piece.

And in that second slice, my eyes fell on the fève hiding inside.

My happiness had no bounds. It was a small thing, but once again I had won something.

From that moment on, every time we gathered for the tradition, I seemed to find another fève. Slowly, I started building a small collection of them.

I talked about this repeated streak of luck to one of my colleagues. She introduced me to something called “Lucky Girl Syndrome.”

It was the first time I had heard about it, so naturally I became curious.

Apparently, it is another way of expressing the law of attraction. It is a mindset, the idea that if you assume things will work out for you, they often do. Our beliefs influence our actions, our confidence, and even the opportunities we notice.

If you have read my blogs before, you have often seen me write about the act of surrendering. I trust that everything will eventually fall into place. This is true no matter how difficult the path seems.

A way of reminding myself that I am lucky.

Every time I tell myself that I am lucky, I feel like I am sending a message to the universe. It feels as if I am communicating quietly with it. This small act seems to invite more moments of grace to find their way to me.

I am so thankful to my colleague for introducing me to this lovely concept. You never really know where your next little dose of positivity will come from.