Ramblings on the Power of Positive Focused Intention (Inspired by @jaynie)

Whereas there are usually very good reasons why our exes are exes, it bears remembering that there were also good reasons we got together with them in the first place.

Exes or not, I happen to believe believe that virtually everyone we encounter along our path through life is a teaching and learning experience in one way or another.

It is perhaps slightly ironic that I learned a lot about self-development, consciousness and finding inner peace from someone who was extremely narcissistic and had an anger management problem... but that's how it happened. But then again, I am definitely aware that the Universe has a sense of humor!

Regardless, she encouraged me and inspired me to study much in the way of Eastern philosophy, alternative thought and what you might call New Age thought, as a way to finding a little more peace and balance in my life. And for that, I will always be grateful!

And so, I started reading Carlos Castaneda, Alan Watts, Terence McKenna, Carlos Naranjo, Joseph Campbell and many others... some of whom were quite "esoteric" but nonetheless offered valuable pieces of the puzzle.

In her most recent post about inspiration, @jaynie mentioned Dr. Wayne Dyer who was also on my essential reading list, particularly after having read pieces of the 3,000-year-old Upanishads, and particularly recalling these rather famous verses:

Wayne Dyer was one of my favorites, in part because he was able to take something relatively complex and make it far more accessible to people, including myself.

Thoughts become things.

And we tend to move towards those things we give attention to, and that includes the kind of attention we give to things.

And so, out of my childhood wondering why "we can't all just get along" I chose to get along and to choose to make a lot of things possible.

I remember a very object lesson in this, relating to a woman who lived up the street from where I lived in Texas. We often went to the same Mexican restaurant, which — granted — was in a part of the city that was seen by many as a little bit sketchy, but the food was good, as was the authenticity and atmosphere. I should add here that we didn't necessarily go at the same time, together...

But here's the interesting thing: Pen was a perpetual worrier who — figuratively speaking — "saw a scorpion under every rock. So, during the several dozen times she went to that restaurant for dinner, of course she always worried that she would be attacked or mugged in the parking lot. And guess what? She was actually was mugged, twice. And this happened even though she was with her husband both time, not alone.

I probably went to that restaurant 50 or more times over a period of 10 years, and I often went alone, but I was never once mugged or even mildly molested, even though there were often groups of youths hanging about outside. The main difference was that I never focused on the possibility that I would be mugged or molested.

I suppose you could write that off as "pure coincidence," and make an argument that maybe my number would have been up on the 51st time I went, but I don't believe that coincidences are necessarily meaningless and random.

I have always "thought too much," or so I have been told! I suppose endlessly thinking about things and events is both the bane of my existence as well as my joy and my path forward. While my peers were reading mass market fiction, I was reading non-fiction, mostly psychology and philosophy.

Regardless, I'm a firm believer in the power of positive focused intention, but the important thing to remember about intention setting is it amounts to more than just sitting on your couch and wishing a Rolls-Royce will magically appear in your driveway. You have to take steps in support of your intentions.

If you set the intention to have a beautiful garden, remember that you have to plant the seeds, water them, tend to the plants, clear out the weeds. But if you hold that intention of a beautiful garden in your mind's eye your garden will become beautiful and not just remain a field of weeds where nothing grows.

Which brings me to the power of synchronicity and dreams. Pay attention! If you experience something extraordinary and magical, pay attention, and look at it. Don't just let it pass with an aside that "it was probably nothing..." If you have a dream that seems more real than dreamy, take a moment to really look at it.

Final thought: Words are spells. So speak with mindfulness and purpose... and intention. It might confuse and confound some people, but that's OK.

I think I'm going to pause here, before this becomes a book.

Thanks for visiting, and have a beautiful Easter weekend!

How about you? Do you believe that our thoughts become our reality? Do you pay attention to synchronicity and signs? Leave a comment if you feel so inclined — share your experiences — be part of the conversation!

(All text and images by the author, unless otherwise credited. This is ORIGINAL CONTENT, created expressly for this platform — Not posted elsewhere!)

Created at 2024.03.30 00:55 PDT
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