Learning how to harness the power of intention to manifest my hopes and dreams into reality has been the most expansive and joyful practice I’ve learned. It was only a few years ago that this concept came into my knowledge. Up until then, I felt like I was floating through life without a rudder. I was frustrated and deflated, unable to enjoy the blessings in my life because it was all happening to me. I didn’t feel like a co-creator, I felt like a victim. 

This is when I began my journey of personal development. It started out with reading books and the books that I gravitated to the most were books on intentionally creating a life I desired. There were all sorts of different ideas around how to do this and being someone who likes to take it all in and see things from every angle, I did just that. I researched, experimented and refined down what I was learning. More important than the ideas on how to do this was the concept itself that I had the power to create with my intention. 

What I came to realize was that there was no hocus pocus necessary in order to bring my hopes and dreams into reality. It was all about getting really clear on what I wanted, believing that I was worthy of it, and taking the steps I was led to take towards it. That meant tuning into my intuition and following it with the belief that my intuition was guiding me. 

This past month I’ve manifested events that I’ve been working towards for over 6 months. Things that at first thought seemed like nice but improbable ideas have materialized into reality. In the past, I would have dismissed these far fetched ideas and not have even made an attempt. Now, I know better and I trust that if something comes to me, it’s for a reason and I am meant to explore it as far as it takes me. 

The first event was a week-long couples retreat in Costa Rica that appeared on my radar the last week of April. Within one month, my partner and I found ourselves deep in the Costa Rican jungle practicing Tantra alongside 7 other couples while being facilitated by one of the world’s most renowned practitioners and teachers of Tantra, Shashi Solluna. 

I had written in my journal about a year ago the intention for us to work with a Tantric coach as a means to deepen our intimacy as a couple. My research mid pandemic yielded no results for any in person coaching. But during that time I found a leader in the field that I resonated with and began following her on Instagram. 

As the world began opening up again after a full year of travel bans, I just happened to see a post she had made announcing a live retreat. I mentioned it to my husband, who happened to be out of town at that moment and because this was something we had previously decided we wanted, I registered for the event.

The timing of this event wasn’t ideal given the risks involved. We were heading out of country with a return date that was only days before our family was due in town for the second event that I had been manifesting.

We forged ahead anyway, trusting that the universe was supporting us in creating the experiences that felt aligned. We purchased our required travel insurance to cover us in case we contracted COVID 19 while there and had to be quarantined. We made the necessary arrangements at home and boarded our flight.

This was the most incredible experience. I had no idea what to expect going into it and my hope was that it would bring healing and greater level of intimacy to our relationship. That’s exactly what happened as we were guided through a journey that took us out of our minds and into our bodies where we could re-connect and release. 

There was so much vulnerability that was required of each of us and through this vulnerability a deep level of love and trust was awakened. We were brought into contact with one another’s spirit and given the opportunity to see one another with fresh eyes. I am so grateful that we took this leap of faith to prioritize our relationship and allow this experience.   

The second event was a family reunion to celebrate our daughter’s high school graduation. The planning for this event began over 6 months ago when my Mom asked for the dates of our daughter’s graduation because she planned on being there. At this point, I didn’t even know if the school district was going to hold a graduation ceremony due to school being completely virtual amidst the pandemic. 

Knowing that it would take a lot of patience and coordinating to create a family reunion in Portland, Oregon that brought together my sister from Argentina, a country whose borders were still closed; my brother from Massachusetts; and my parents from Wisconsin, we messaged often with updates on confirmed information. And slowly, as time went on, our hope of it happening increased.

My sister arrived in Portland the day before we returned from Costa Rica and had some time alone with our kids whom she hadn’t seen in years. My parents arrived 5 days later, and my brother the day after that. I could pinch myself, it had really happened. The last time we had all been together was 7 years ago when we were still living in Tucson, Arizona. 

It was so great to be surrounded by family again and catch up on another’s lives. We enjoyed a lot of play and laughter together and it was a blessing to have them share in this momentous occasion for Maiah. 

Going into all of this, I definitely experienced moments of doubt and fear around how all of it would come together. As I put my desires out into the world and followed where I was being led moment by moment I was tested in my capacity to surrender and trust. A big part of this experience was dropping any expectations for how things would happen.

When things looked bleak, like when we arrived at the Costa Rican airport for our return flight home knowing that our family was waiting for us back in Portland and were told we first needed a negative COVID 19 test in order to board our flight that we had no idea was required. Amidst the panic, I felt a quiet reassurance that even this was happening for us. We somehow managed to get a rapid test at the airport’s nearby testing site in time to board our scheduled flight. 

A major breakthrough we had experienced during the retreat was an upgrade in our interpersonal communication as we came to recognize how our personal reactions to circumstances triggered one another and decided to change our response realizing that no matter how we responded, it would not change what was happening. This was an opportunity to exercise our new skills and we ended up being grateful for it. 

All of these experiences were building my trust muscle and asking me to expand in new ways, to step into the unknown. They served as a beautiful validation of the power of intention.