The struggle that is public parking on 13th Street was enough to for me to pull out every trick I had to find a spot. Last Monday at 11 pm on the dim streets of Gainesville, I was surrounded by lines upon lines of cars. Thirty minutes of trying to battle parallel parking into a spot that could fit only a golf cart, not a Ford Focus, was enough for me try something I’d only heard about online and from friends: manifestation.
I am not a spiritual person. Crystals and candles are more decorations than spiritual objects to me. However, I do have friends who have tried to explain to me what it means to manifest. How I always understood it was that if you put out good energy into the universe, you will receive good energy back. It was simple enough, but I didn’t necessarily believe it.
Backtrack to Monday night, when I was roaming around trying to find parking. Out of nowhere, from my tired and frustrated mind, I thought of something that came out as more of a joke than anything serious.
“Let’s just manifest a spot,” I said to my friend sitting in the passenger seat. She laughed, but that didn’t stop us from picturing that sweet barrenness that was an empty parking spot. The very next street we turned on to, we saw not just one, but two empty parking spots. To say we were a little shocked was an understatement. We parallel parked in one of the spots and sat in the car in amazement. Maybe it had been a fluke, or maybe the universe was giving us break. Either way, I decided to look a little bit more into manifestation.
Googling “manifestation” brought to life 236,000,000 results of overwhelming, sketchy-looking websites on spiritual revelations. The websites don’t necessarily instill a lot of faith. However, I did find a few Huffington Post articles written by experts on manifestation and spiritual faith. The first article referenced a book called A Course in Miracles. The book is about connecting to the universe and manifesting what one wants.
According to the article, a vital mistake that many people have been making in their quest to manifest is that they focus too much on getting exactly they want. When you are really focused on being happy, things that make you happy will return to you. The author, Gabrielle Bernstein, details a five-step system that allows one to manifest their ideas into existence.
1. Clear out all negative energy around yourself.
2. Be clear on what exactly you want. The author suggests writing down a list of everything that you want from the universe.
3. Make time in the day to believe in the universe and what you want. Taking time to relax and think about what makes you happy is a way you can literally think your own joy into existence.
4. Have faith that the universe will come through for you and what you want.
5. Allow yourself to become aware of your own healing and power in manifestation. This is achieved by following steps 1-4.
Manifestation is a state of mind. It’s a way to feel more in control of your life, which is important when starting college. Each semester often leaves people feeling out of control or stressed. This way of thinking can be one way to deal with your stress.
Manifesting a successful semester can be done in all aspects of life. In theory you can manifest good grades, a strong relationship or even a healthy lifestyle. You must actively be thinking about what you want and ways you can reach those goals. Manifestation is a spiritual belief, but it leaves you with positive feelings. If nothing else, thinking about staying optimistic during the school semester is a good way to check your own mental health and determine how you’re feeling.
According to Bernstein, starting out the semester with a clean slate and a clear mind is ideal. You must release all your negative energy before you can begin to let good things into your life. You can make a list of what you want to achieve during this semester. Writing your thoughts into existence allows you to revisit these goals and continue to work for them.
Manifestation is about faith. It’s taking a chance on the universe and trusting that things will work out in your favor. For me, having this faith is the most difficult aspect of manifesting. It’s not as easy as picturing a parking spot; it takes time and effort. Taking time out of each day to think about what it is that you are working towards is taking away from the rest of your day. I’ve come to realize that taking time may not be a bad thing. Even if the universe isn’t on your side every day, I like the idea of mentally checking on your goals. It can be difficult to make a conscious effort to be happy every day, but it’s a nice reminder to appreciate your surroundings.
This way of thinking and visualizing your success may not actually be a sure-fire way to ace the rest of your semester, but whether you’re interested in making positive changes in your life (or just crossing your fingers for a spot in Norman parking garage), manifestation may be something to consider.