The Law of Attraction and manifesting your destiny
Hello, MAY! And May of 2019 none the less. The DiMaggio's made it! For those of you who have followed along on Mike and I's journey, you know the story well. For those of you who haven't, or who may be new Loving Lately readers (welcome!) here is the briefest of recaps. I was born missing the left side of my heart and wasn't supposed to live past birth. Mike and I have been together for almost 10 years, married for nearly 6, and he has been my biggest caretaker and supporter. When Mike turned 18 he decided to dive headfirst into working and elected not to pursue his higher education. 4 years ago, after having been out of school for almost a decade, Mike made the decision to return to school to pursue his college education and the Registered Diagnostic Cardiac Sonographer designation. He stepped down from working full time and eventually had to stop working all together. We became a one income household. The journey was bumpy to say the very least. My mental health plummeted. I hit the lowest of lows, both mentally and physically. Our marriage was put to the test. Our finances suffered. Mike unexpectedly found out that he too had a congenital heart defect and had two holes in his heart repaired a mere 10 days before starting his hardest semester. Stress, tears, anxiety, panic, anger, frustration...you name it, we felt it. Please don't get me wrong, we are absolutely not complaining. We know what a privilege it is to pursue education, to afford education and healthcare and for that we couldn’t be more grateful. We also couldn't be more grateful for our wonderful support system and for each other. Throughout the past few years we kept our focus on two main principles: the power of manifestation and the law of attraction.
The law of attraction states that we are able to attract into our lives what we are focusing on. We have the power through our minds to turn our thoughts into our realities. As humans we are constantly putting our thoughts and emotions out into the universe and attracting back similar energy. By harnessing this power, coupled with implementing a plan of action, we can achieve our fullest potential.
I have to admit, a few years ago I was really skeptical of all of this. It sounded like a load of BS to me. Mike was really into it and I was actually pretty argumentative with him about it. But then I figured what the heck? I wasn't in a great place and decided to throw myself into self-care and the bettering of my mindset. I began following positive social media accounts, reading tons of different blogs, listening to a variety of podcasts and returning to Allison and I's GO TO – Yoga Girl by Rachel Brathen. Rachel's words taught me to trust the universe more than anything else. Below are a few of my all-time favorite quotes from her.
“Everything I’ve ever been though has brought me here because this is where I need to be. Every bump in the road, every chance relationship, every confusing moment. It’s been so purposeful. So perfect. All of it. I have no regrets. No complaints. Thank you, life. For absolutely everything.”
“Trust that life will always, always take you where you’re supposed to be.”
“You will always be okay! Money and material things come to you when you dare to trust in life’s ability to take you exactly where you need to go. When we live in fear we create tense vibrations that keep the things we long for at a distance. Worrying is praying for what we don’t want to happen. Focus on what you want, not what you fear!”
Looking back (and forward) I realized that we have manifested everything we wanted and needed. Mike manifested acceptance into his competitive Diagnostic Medical Sonography program. I manifested growth in responsibilities in my career, speaking opportunities, and connections within the health and wellness community (see my last post about my new affiliation with the amazing company Mind Body Aligned!) I also wanted to gain a greater understanding of the non-profit world and was asked to serve on the planning committee for the Adult Congenital Heart Association's Walk for 1 in 100. When Mike decided to go back to school he dreamt of being able to work part-time in a coffee shop. The reasoning was simple: he loves coffee, he likes being busy, and he loves moving around and being on his feet. The first job that popped up when he began to search for student aide jobs was a newly posted role for managing the local student coffee shop. He flourished in that role. As a much older student, he gave a lot of knowledge and wisdom to the younger kids, but also learned just as much from them. He began to really cultivate his academic community. As school got more demanding and his schedule got less flexible, he had to make the decision to leave the coffee shop. At that point, he needed a more flexible position where he could study from time to time if circumstances allowed. Again, the first job postings he saw were as a student aide in the English department and also in the student testing center. It worked out perfectly.
We manifested abundance in our finances. I'm not talking about winning the lottery or being gifted large sums of money, but rather smaller things that add up. Being very tight on bills one month and having a check arrive in the mail for an overpayment of our mortgage insurance (we had no idea this was coming!) Finding a lost $20 bill in a coat pocket, getting the news that our car insurance rates unexpectedly went down, being able to downsize to a one car family, being asked to attend incredible events as honored guests…the lists goes on. Before we even put our Germantown condo on the market, we envisioned moving closer to Bethesda and eliminating my commute. We knew we wanted a nice apartment building with a pool and a gym. Our condo sold in a week and it was crunch time for us to find a place to live. We spent a very minimal amount of time searching online and went to see ONE apartment complex. They had an apartment becoming available EXACTLY when we needed it (so we didn't have to rush to move out in less than a month while being on vacation for half of that time) with every single amenity we desired, in the perfect location, and at insanely discounted price. We made the decision to take it on the spot.
Throughout it all, even during the most difficult of times, we kept our vibrations strong. What do I mean by this? We never gave up. We never quit. We never stopped believing. And looking back, the universe gave us exactly what we needed. As the saying goes, you get what you give. And here we are. Mike is finished with school. He absolutely slayed it! He has job opportunities, in line with exactly what he’s always envisioned, brewing. In exactly two weeks we are going on a dream vacation to Hawaii that we also manifested, staying in a complimentary timeshare.
So how can you harness the power of the law of attraction and manifest the life you want? I certainly don't have all of the answers, but would encourage you to start by watching The Secret which is available on Netflix. It is also a book, written by Rhonda Byrne. Another super simple way to start is to merely google manifestation or law of attraction. A ton of different links will pop up which will eventually lead you to blog posts, articles, YouTube videos, etc. From there you can really start to sort through and find the materials and mediums that resonate most with you. I would also recommend reading the post Manifesting 101 by the Balanced Blonde, one of my favorite bloggers who has inspired me so much. Here are some good tips to get you started:
Take the time to truly figure out exactly what it is that you want
Be very SPECIFIC
Write it down
As silly as it may sound – ask the universe for what you want and need. This can be done by meditating, praying, journaling, making a vision board, etc.
TRUST, TRUST, TRUST in the power of the universe and the process
Stay positive. Ditch the doubts, fears, frustrations, procrastination, etc.
Acknowledge what you get. Share the news. Allison and I always text each other abundance/manifestation news and simultaneously thank the universe. Another little trick Mike and I do: any sort of money, checks or gift cards that we receive we store inside a book we received that is simply called Thank You until it is time to use them/deposit them. Putting out gratitude allows us to attract even more abundance.
What is it that you want to manifest? What have you already manifested? Please share, I’d love to hear!
Sending you love and abundance, always!
XO,
k
