Have you ever found yourself looking for a sign?
Sometimes we look for signs anywhere– horoscopes, the weather, dreams. When I was younger I remember consulting the Magic 8 ball when it came to matters of boys great import.
Did you know that Google is also on that list? I realized that last week when I looked at the list of search engine words that led internet surfers to my site.
High on that list was one of the great philosophical questions, Where’s Waldo? (because of this post), but a very close second was Liam Payne, member of the crazy popular British boy band One Direction. Thanks to my YA reader friend Lydia, fans have been stopping by after Google searching for All Things Liam.
But by far the most interesting search phrase that landed one of those fans on my blog (and got me seeing Google as this generation’s Magic 8 ball), was this:
A sign that Liam Payne loves me.
Now I don’t believe I have any sort of psychic powers, BUT I do believe in the power of hope.
Hope got me through many crushes in high school.
Oh and believe me, I looked for signs that me and my crush were meant to be EVERYWHERE.
Like seeing his initials.
Or looking at the clock just when it showed his birthday.
Or turning on the car to hear his song on the radio.
My BF and I even hung out outside of Chrysler Hall simply because our boy band crush sang there once upon a time. I think we thought we could still breathe some of his air there.
Hope had us open for any sort of sign.
So I get the massive internet searches. And who knows? Maybe landing here on my blog is all kinds of meant to be–and I don’t want to disappoint.
In fact I love to make people smile, so I went on a search of all the things Google listed that people were looking for here (but couldn’t find).
Is that Liam’s mole/freckle?
Are these the lovely teeth you were looking for?
And the shoes only Liam could fill?
Oh and is this the hat you were looking for???
Nowadays I might see signs of love a little differently (like bringing me a cup of tea or washing the dishes), but my favorite part of looking for a sign?
Being open to hope.
Love recognizes no barriers. It jumps hurdles, leaps fences, penetrates walls to arrive at it destination full of hope.
~Maya Angelou
When it comes to love, have you ever looked for signs?
Coleen Patrick 
It’s always funny to see the paths (search words) people take to find a blog. I looked for signs once. I almost wrote about it for my V post, but couldn’t do it this week. I’ve written about it in my manuscript. We’ll see if it sees the light of day.
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I think it will Stacy! Even the small bits I’ve read on your blog are lovely–and most importantly they speak to hope too.
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Ahhh…I remember considering signing up for a fan club for one of my crushes, thinking maybe I could get something in the mail possibly (*gasp*) signed by him! I never did it though. (pre-internet days…showing my age here..)
I had a thing for the Coreys. (Feldman and Haim of course!)
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Let’s see that makes you um, like 22 right?
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I look for signs every day. If I ask for them, they come in bucket loads!
Great post!
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It’s so true! When you look for them, there they are! 🙂
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Great post, Coleen. And I LOVE that Maya Angelou quote. 🙂 I’ve always searched for signs to some extent. It seems to me that resistance rears its head when I get close to big steps. Taking such things as “good signs” seems helpful—if even at making me feel better. LOL And when my dog, who dislikes many guys, leaped up on my future-hubby with glee, I knew he was a keeper.
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I love that quote too! I have to say it felt a tiny bit irreverent mixing it with a celebrity crush, but hope is hope. 🙂
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Oh and August, I love the sign from your dog! Perfect!
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That’s a great Maya Angelou quote at the end and yes, I most decidedly have looked for signs.
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Oh, my, yes! I’d be surprised if there was a girl out there who HASN’T looked for signs of love, although I’m guessing looking for signs is less common among the menfolk 🙂 There’s the sign – like looking at the clock when it’s on his birthday – and then there’s the detailed dissection of every word, gesture, expression etc. that must be analyzed for meaning. “Well, when he said “Hi” was it like, “Hey” or was it like “My day just got better because you walked into it”? 🙂
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Oh the breakdown of the hello! So funny, and so true!
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Cute post, Coleen! Not sure who Liam Payne is though. Do I look for signs? For as far back as I can remember…yes. Especially as far as dating goes. But in most other things, too. Sometimes I’d like to see signs…as in, well, I caught this train so that must mean I’m NOT supposed to keep my dental appointment (wishful thinking due to fear of dentists on my part). 🙂
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I did not know who LP was until I interviewed a teen for the blog, but believe me Google knows him!!
I’m with you on the subject of dentists–I will take any sign to avoid that 🙂
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Search paths are fascinating. Obviously you’ve found a winner. :)…thanks for sharing. Now I’m going to go take a deeper look at my stats.
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It’s very fascinating. Very Big Brother–I had no idea “they” were keeping track of what everyone types in!
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Oh that is so sweet. I am sure she will find some lovely posts that mean something to her here. Fun post!
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Thanks Catherine 🙂
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Oh yeah, I used to look for signs. It was only after I stopped looking that I met my husband, and even then, I was just looking for someone to fix my car LOL!
The search term that keeps popping up in my analytics is Ermal Fraze, the inventor of the pop can pull tab. I did a blog post on him way back last summer. You’re attracting people looking for a teen heartthrob – not bad for a YA writer! I’m not sure what Ermal Fraze says about me. LOL.
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It’s got the history vibe–perfect for time travel right?
I also get toilet cake quite a bit from when I showed a photo of one! 🙂
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oh GAWD yes. I do it everyday.
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Don’t you just love the search engines? I find the most interesting things there. This was a fun post – speaking directly to your target audience. Smart. 😉 Beautiful quote at the end. Nice touch.
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The search engine phrases are like writing prompts!
Thanks Debra!
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My first thought was for my brain to start singing “The Sign” by Ace of Base. And now it is stuck in my head. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FwatjHcV1ZM
Oh the hope that a boy will like you. My celebrity was Jordan Knight of the New Kids on the Block and then later country singer Bryan White.
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I did not even have to click on the link–the song is now in my head! 🙂 It’s funny that I didn’t think of that song when I was writing the post. Oh I remember the New Kids on the Block craze! Now I’m singing “oh, oh oh..the right stuff!”
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Oh yeah. I used to be real bad about following signs until I realized, it got me in a lotta trouble.
I think we see what it is we want to find. If we want him to be the one, we’ll see those “signs.” And vice versa. I used to follow those signs down deadend roads. Now I trust more in what Maya Angelo says and I trust that when I meet the One, he’ll stop at nothing to be with me 😉 That realization took a load off. Lemme tell ya!
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I so agree with you about seeing what we want to see. That is so true!
Thanks for stopping by Ingrid. 🙂
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This is the coolest post, Coleen, something that we can all relate to, I think! Yes, I used to always look for signs that my crush and I were meant to be. Or for signs of who would be my boyfriend, like twisting the stem of an apple and saying a letter for each turn, and whatever letter it broke off while saying, then it would be a guy who’s name started with that letter! Crazy fun, huh? And then how our perspective changes when we mature and how the little things like you mentioned, bringing a cup of tea, are signs of love! Nice job on this, Coleen!
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Thanks Lynn! I like the apple thing–it reminds me of those paper folding fortune teller games we used to do back in middle school! Forgot about those!
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This was such a fun post! I loved the old magic 8 ball too! It might have taken a few tries, but that thing always told me what I wanted to hear! 😉
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Thanks Kimberly! Funny how that magic 8 ball eventually came around with the right answer 🙂
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Your last line is so true! Hope is limitless, and is the core of so much of what we search for. 🙂
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I was very guilty of this as a kid. Everything was a sign for me or one of my friends 🙂 It’s funny to look back on that now as an adult and just shake my head. But you’re right – it was about trying to find hope, and hope is a very powerful thing. We could all use a little more of it, especially as adults.
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Yup hope is where it’s at–it’s always a lift to know there’s something to look forward to!
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What a sweet, funny post. Thanks for the smile. I love the search terms that lead to blogs! Too funny! Of course, people find my blog by searching things like “fat girl abducted by alien”. I think your search term is much sweeter.
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Stephanie that is hilarious!
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Liam Payne who? LOL! And Google search engines. Do you mean SEO? LOL! Wasn’t there an old song that said, Signs, signs, everywhere are signs? Do I look for signs? Coleen, I’ve been married now for so long, I stopped look for the signs. But I remember those days. Oh were we goofy, eh? 🙂
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Goofy is a good description for me Karen! 🙂
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I’m always looking for signs indicating ‘he’ loves me, of course. It’s very girly thing to do! 🙂
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Yup, very girly thing to do! Thanks for stopping by 🙂
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