The Mystery of Pico Iyer - SOLVED

Six months ago, I was walking down the street, past my neighbor's rose garden, when I heard a voice in my head say two words clearly and distinctly: PICO IYER.

I thought this was a very strange thought to have, because I had no idea what these words meant. I dismissed the thought, only to return home, receive a copy of National Geographic in the mail, open it up, and see on the contributor's page: the name Pico Iyer.

So I googled this author and discovered that he had written a travelogue called "The Lady and the Monk", which is set in Kyoto. By sheer "coincidence", I was headed to Kyoto in a week. Naturally, I read the book.

And I was convinced that this was FATE, that something magical was waiting for me in Kyoto, that a voice inside my head had told me to read this book FOR A REASON. And I ended up going to Kyoto and having a very good time. But nothing particularly magical or auspicious happened there. So I felt like I hadn't quite grasped what the voice was telling me.

Only about a couple days ago, I finally figured it out. And it's huge. And I think I need to go back and reread the book RIGHT NOW.

Unfortunately, it's going to be a while before I can reveal the purpose of the mysterious voice inside my head, its reason for making me read a travelogue by a writer I had never heard of. This is a reminder to everyone not to let me off the hook - the next time you see me, maybe a year from now, be sure to ask, "Hey, what was the deal with Pico Iyer?"