The quality of our lives begins with our intentions. Our intentions form our thoughts, our thoughts shape our actions, and our actions create our lives
Living intentionally means:
- creating a vision for our lives,
- acting deliberately, in alignment with our stated goals, values and priorities,
- taking the time to focus, recharge, breathe, meditate, and feel gratitude,
- pausing to experience life and all its joys, love and wonders.
Without clear intention, our energy is scattered and our actions are less powerful.
(Dr. Laura Belsten)
Quick story:: Carol is a renowned artist living in the mountains of Colorado, and her studio is a charming old cabin which sits behind her home, nestled in the woods. It’s heated with a wood stove.
When she first started using her studio cabin, Carol found the wood stove unable to keep the temperature to a comfortable level. She liked having the woodstove and the ambiance it created in her studio, and they certainly had plenty of wood on their mountain property, so she began researching more efficient wood stoves and found the perfect one. The price tag, however, was a hefty $1,500.
Carol set her intention to find that wood stove for half that price. She posted a picture of the wood stove in her workspace and began checking online auction and advertising sites regularly. She also put her intention out in conversations with neighbors, community members, builders and remodelers. She even checked the want ads in the local paper.
Within three months, Carol found the exact model of wood stove she wanted, still new, in the box, for $750. A couple had purchased it for their basement, but then decided to move. They had never installed it, and wanted to re-coup some of their expense, and Carol was willing to pay $750.
Carol’s studio is now toasty warm and comfortable even on the snowiest Colorado days.
This is a very simple example of the power of intention, of course, and yet it illustrates how intentions can pull us forward, improving the quality of our lives.
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If you have not tried this, it may sound far-fetched. But, I can personally vouch for the fact that this is exactly how things work in my life!
