I don’t think there is such a thing as random, really. Everything in nature is so precise. There is a cause and an effect. Trees don’t grow their branches randomly. It depends on where the sunlight is coming from and a host of other factors. Molecules aren’t formed randomly either. Two hydrogen atoms and an oxygen atom don’t sometimes form water and other times something else.
From an early age, children start asking that follow up question that adults dread. Why? Why is the sky blue? Why do clouds float? Because even early on we know there’s a reason for everything. Everything is structured and harmonious.
So why can our society accept this in the natural world but then reject the same concept for things like emotions and events? Are the things that happen in our lives completely unaffected by anything? The bird poop landed on your shoulder by chance? The fender bender you got into this morning was just an accident? The lovely service you received at that restaurant last night was simply good fortune?
It’s interesting because often when people begin to question if anything is truly random it leads them over to the question of whether everything is preordained. I suppose we find it preferable to believe that events are random rather than preordained because the latter leaves no room for choice.
But these are two extremes which feel equally uncomfortable for me. I think our Universe is right in the middle of these two options. It makes so much sense to me. If you throw a pebble into a pond, you’ll definitely create ripples. But you chose to throw it. If you believe without a doubt that a certain restaurant always has wonderful service, you’ll definitely line yourself up with good service, even from that waiter who your friend says is always grumpy. Because you chose to believe that. And if you are in a poo poo mood and don’t take a few moments to shift to a better feeling place, you may just get a little gift on your shoulder from a passing bird that reflects your inner state.
We are in a Universe of free will. We choose how we wish to be and what we wish to believe, but once we choose, those choices send out ripples just as surely as the pebble striking the surface of the water does.