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Serendipity, no longer just a cute romantic comedy

I think by telling us to look for serendipity, Schwartz is telling us to take a step back, let events unfold. We need to stop feeling as if we need to control every thing in our lives, sometimes we have to leave it up to fate. I agree with him to a certain degree. Sometimes it is good to relax, sometimes it is necessary to accept that a situation is out of our hands and all we can do is ride along with whatever happens. However, this should not be taken to the extreme. This becomes dangerous when we stop acting and leave most things up to fate. If it's reasonable that we have the ability to have a positive influence on a situation, we should go forth. When something needs to be done, we still should step up to the plate. We cannot just blame all consequences on fate. As with everything in our lives, there is acceptance of serendipity in moderation.
This is also a strange concept, because serendipity, like spontaneity is not something we can make happen. We cannot control when or where it happens. When people say they want to be more spontaneous, by planning out things that would ultimately be spontaneous lose spontaneity in planning. So in conclusion, I understand his advice to the point that we need to at times put down the reins and loosen control on every aspect of our lives. On the other hand, waiting around for serendipity to take over is silly, more often than not, random good things will probably not happen.

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