This is the third post in our three-part series on manifestation:
Part One - Manifestation Is More Than Imagination
Part Two - Manifesting Our Move to Santa Barbara

So what is manifestation, really?

For me, it’s simply co-creating with the Universe.
 
My last two posts described big, life-changing manifestation stories. But just like you wouldn’t expect to bench press 200 pounds the first time you go to the gym, you build your manifestation muscle with small, easy wins.
 
When I first learned about this phenomenon, I didn’t actually believe it would work. Until…
 
It was our first summer in Seattle, and I was despairing over the small, hard peaches in the markets. I longed for the large, juicy ripe peaches I’d known all my life in California. I literally ached for them.
 
Soon after I learned about manifestation, I drove up to our house and noticed a brown paper bag on the front porch. There was no marking on the bag and no note. Curious, I opened it and immediately burst into tears. Inside, were several large, ripe peaches!
 
How did this happen? It seemed like magic and I was a little freaked out to be honest.
 
Finally, a few days later, we learned that our neighbors had visited an orchard in Eastern Washington, and they thought it would be a nice welcome gesture to bring us fresh peaches.
 
They could have brought cherries, blueberries, apples or nectarines.
They could have brought zucchinis, tomatoes, cucumbers, or melons.
They could have brought basil, cilantro, green onions, or chives.
They could have brought anything…
 
Yet, they were inspired to bring Farm-Fresh PEACHES!
 
Do I know exactly how this works? No. Can anyone? I doubt it.
 
Manifestation is some sort of energetic experience that our little humanoid brains can’t quite understand.
 
All these years later, I’m still just as tickled to receive little gifts from the Universe as big ones. Here’s another example from just last week.
 
When we first arrived at our apartment in Sweden, I tried making popcorn stovetop style which immediately set off the fire alarm. I tried again the next day; another fail. I didn’t have my solid, thick-bottomed pan to make stovetop popcorn, so that night I started researching air poppers—I have a bit of a thing with popcorn.
 
No luck. I was beginning to think there were no air poppers here because Swedes are way more into chips and fries than popcorn. The next morning, we took the train from Stockholm to Goteborg to visit Niklas’ brother and family. I asked my sister-in-law, “Do you know if there are popcorn air machine things in Sweden?”
 
“Oooh yeah. They are horrible—so dry! I have one in my garage ready to donate.” 
 
While appreciative of my easily acquired popper, I'm even giddier from the Universe’s sweet wink which I now get to be reminded of every time I make popcorn!
 
Does manifestation work during a pandemic, an economic collapse, a climate emergency? Yes! That, as Oprah would say, “I know for sure!”
 
Peaches and popcorn are easy. Bigger life goals and desires require clearing away distractions and external energies—whether it be from family, friends, society, or our own unconscious thoughts and limiting beliefs.
 
For example, after the mudslide destroyed our cars, my oldest son was without transportation to work since he was too young to drive our rentals. I had been trying to help him find a car to buy that was within his limited means to no avail.
 
When lamenting about the impossibility of the situation to a friend, she exclaimed, “Susan! You do this! Just get clear on what kind of car you want and put it out there!”
 
Doh! Of course! So what did I do?
 
Like I did when I wanted to figure out where to live, I went within. I grounded out my fears around the car situation, my doubts about him finding a safe one he could afford, my worry that I was on the brink of a nervous breakdown from all the stress related to the mudslide recovery, and on and on and on...
 
When my racing thoughts had relaxed and settled, I asked, “What is the best car for Joakim?” Immediately, I saw a car in my mind’s eye and these words came to me: stable, safe, sporty-but-not-too-sporty, Swedish? affordable. I could see the shape of a car, but not a make or model--it had curves, was not “boxy.” It was light in color.
 
I had previously posted about our need to find a car on a Facebook page set up to help survivors of the mudslide with no luck. This time, I posted using the words I’d seen in my meditation.
 
Within hours, I received a notice that a friend of a friend was planning to sell their car, but preferred to help a mudslide survivor and would happily lower the price to fit my son’s budget. They even put on new tires, had it smog certified, and paid the yearly registration! It was a sporty, but safe and reliable Volvo—one of the curvy ones, not boxy. Silver.
 
Yeah. Really. This happened, and I promise you, I am still in as much disbelief as you are right now.
 
Guess what else?! Another friend of a friend contacted us at the same time and literally gave us her old beater that was held together with duct tape. In fits and starts, it bought us a year of transportation. The Universe delightfully overdelivered. 

As much as I do not understand the mystery of manifestation, I do know the first step is to get clear on what you desire. Second is to visualize it your mind’s eye—Spirit works in pictures and symbols. It’s also helpful to feel the emotions in your body you expect to experience when you receive your intention.

You can desire a physical object, a life experience, a relationship, or simply more joy. It really doesn’t matter; there is no hierarchy on the energetic plane. In fact, my goal for the Earth Healing Meditation is for as many of us as possible to be manifesting restoration for our planet in whose health we are are intricately intertwined.

Maybe the circumstances around corona have helped you see a different perspective of your life; helped you prioritize how and where you want to spend your time and energy. Clarification is the momentum you can use to kick start your next manifestation goal.
 
Grounding is the easiest and fastest way to clear away distractions and external energies. I hope to do another live class soon, but if you are anxious to get started right away, you can check into the replay of my last class.
 
In the meantime, I encourage you to play around with manifestation. Yes, it feels like the world is coming apart at the seams, but we still get to be amazed by and enjoy the mystical!
 
Do you have a fun manifestation story you’d like to share? Let me know and I’ll put together a collection to help inspire our community!
 
PS I know I promised to tell the behinds-the-scenes story of my Swedish friends, but I wanted to get you started manifesting if you haven’t been already. I will share their story soon as it helps to differentiate between manifestation and divine intervention. Stay tuned!