We create by giving attention to something. The quality of what we create depends on how we think. I’ll share the story behind the moment captured in the photo as an example of how what we think about comes about.

Setting My Intention

I play a game with myself once in awhile. It’s a game designed to demonstrate how things manifest. It involves making a short list of things I want to see or find and then paying attention to what unfolds in the hours or days that follow.

In the morning of the day I took this photo, I decided I wanted to see the sun. Simple enough you might think. Just look at the sun. But I didn’t mean THAT sun. I wanted to see the sun show up in unexpected places, such as, on license plates (I live in Minnesota) or printed on something (t-shirts, cards, junk mail, etc.).

I went about my day and a couple times I thought about the intention of seeing the sun, but I didn’t actively search for anything. I wanted it to appear in front of me. The caveat is, of course, that I have to pay attention.

In the late afternoon, about an hour before sunset, I decided to go on a walk. And I decided to walk around a lake that’s not far from where I live. I was paying more attention now, because the day was coming to a close and I hadn’t seen the sun appear anywhere. I glanced at license plates on cars that passed by me and on cars in the parking lot at the lake. Nothing.

The sun was low in the sky and behind me as I headed home. I glanced back and wondered if I should have stayed at the lake where I KNEW I’d be able to watch the sun setting. And when I looked ahead again, I saw the brilliant orange glow of the sun shining on the shrubby trees next to the lake. The brilliance was there less than 30 seconds. Then it was gone.

I created the opportunity to be in the right place at the right time to see a beautiful demonstration of the sun in our world. I did it by having an intention and then paying attention to and following my thoughts throughout the day. I didn’t see what I expected (a license plate or printed sun). I saw something that surprised and delighted me.

I’m a landscape painter. I LOVE looking at the landscape, so what I manifested was perfect for me. If you set the same expectation for yourself, you’d see the sun demonstration in a way that surprised and delighted you. That’s how it works.

Power Play

Think of something you wanted. Something you gave your attention to. Some thought that you nurtured along and kept in focus. Something you didn’t doubt or resist. Did you get or experience what you wanted? Was it even better than what you had imagined?

This is how we (you, me, everyone) create our personal world and experiences.

If you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.

Dr. Wayne Dyer