What if that wonderful thing we want already exists?

The best reason to increase our capacity

Let’s just say The Universe¹ wants to deliver our goals and dreams.

Perhaps the Almighty shows up for us in ways we can’t even imagine, I mean how are we to know? And yet all kinds of trickiness can unfold in the manifestation of our desires (please know that I am laughing my head off over here at the phrase ‘manifestation of our desires’ and I am using it tongue-in-cheek because I think it’s a bunch of hooey — not the goals and dreams part, not The Universe part, it’s the manifestation part that that makes me chuckle and shudder).

This is the path I frequently walk to figure out my hopes and dreams. I think it’s my fav place in the world.

Picture, if you will, that we’ve asked for Divine intervention to bring about our deepest desire. We show up for it as if we walked into a store to pick up our order and, to our surprise, out comes something like a mattress and box spring still in the plastic wrap. This was not what we were expecting. Our capacity to carry this thing is pretty limited because we showed up with our little compact hatchback that seats two people and didn’t bring a knife to get the gnarly plastic off. But, being the resourceful folks we are, we wrangle that unwieldy mattress & box spring onto the top of the car and attempt to strap it down — this is our dream after all so we are determined!

The load feels like a lot for us to bear and leaves us feeling very vulnerable. As soon as we start moving forward it begins to wobble and, at the first bump in the road, this huge thing we’ve been given careens sideways and collapses in a heap. So much for the mattress/box spring/hopes & dreams package we thought we wanted.

In my inexpert opinion The Universe always has our back but often before something big, tender, or life changing can land in our lives we need to expand our inner capacity to carry the thing without collapsing under its weight — we need to show up with a different transport mechanism.

We must increase our capacity to hold what we’re asking for while, at the same time, not lose sight of the direction we are going.

To pull this off we may want to:

• Check the size of our container. Sometimes we simply have no room in our lives for this thing to happen. Perhaps something needs to go to create space for something different. What needs to change to increase our capacity to hold this thing? Let’s examine our habits, physical environment, to-do list, etc.

• We can hold our vision lightly but steadily by practicing the fun mind game where we pretend our dream is already happening. (Full disclosure that I am not very good at this). This is a great primer for our brain to create the neural networks necessary for us to recognize new things that will lead us to our goal so when The Universe drops clues they don’t go unnoticed.

• We can work on little things that will lead us to the big thing. If we want more love, we can practice receiving compliments without brushing them off. Financial abundance? Treat the $10 bill with as much care as the $10,000 you’re asking for. That thing that you want…start small, very small.

• Maybe we need to work on the big thing that will lead us to the big thing. Need some education to get that job? A huge relationship fix? Gotta deal with some health issues? We can’t increase our capacity to hold our goal if we don’t lay down the groundwork for it. That thing you want…plan big and execute, even if you can’t see the end in sight.

• Perhaps we need to change our identity to accept this thing. When I was getting ready to quit drinking alcohol I knew I needed to become a non-drinker in my head and heart rather than a drinker who was no longer drinking. It’s fascinating the change that can be created from the inside out when we tell ourselves “I AM _____” over and over. We can write it down and weave our new identity through the tapestry of our life before it ever comes to fruition.

When we are building our capacity to hold this thing we must ask ourselves if we are willing to commit, do the work, and put up with the inconvenient lessons The Universe is sure to deliver as we pursue this dream. For example, if we want love it’s likely we will meet the parts of us that push love away. If we ask for abundance, we will face our beliefs that say we are not enough, if we want to get sober the cravings are going to be temporarily intense. Lessons abound and we must be willing to lean into them or the dream will collapse.

The Universe is more likely to show up for us if we elevate how much energy we have every day.

I’m talking about stabilizing our nervous system more than increasing our energy with a naked, woo-woo-dance around a fire in the woods, although that would be fun too!

I can’t believe I was able to find a public image of naked folks dancing around a fire in the woods! 📸Getty Images for Unsplash

Sweetie, if you had a precious, irreplaceable object would you be willing to drop it off with a depleted, frazzled person who lives in chaos because they don’t prioritize sleep but they do focus on the current events around the globe at all times, so they are glued to their phone and feel lousy because of it? Our deepest desire will not land in that kind of infertile nervous system.

You know the drill – sleep, silence, nature, surround yourself with good people, change your self-talk, don’t constantly be eating or drinking crap that will kill you and don’t be in denial about what that is, watch what you say, and move your body. You might be surprised how many dreams comes true when a person raises their energy by consistently getting enough sleep and movement.

The thing we want already exists, it’s right there waiting for us to become the person who can hold it.

Please remember that you’re awesome and you can do this. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for being here with me, it means the world.

xoxo Donna

P.S. When I hear from you in the comments it is a big deal to me. Haha, no pressure! I love it when you write to say hi or give me your thoughts while at the same time I also understand that it’s not for everyone. It would be amazing if you would smash the lovely heart ❤️ button to ensure The Universe keeps sending readers to my Substack because, sadly, that’s how the algorithm works. Thanks Honeybun!

So, I’d love to hear your comment on the word M-A-N-I-F-E-S-T-A-T-I-O-N. Can you sway me to embrace it or, like me, do you think it’s highly overdone and misunderstood?

1. This essay is leaning toward the metaphysical. If you’ve been with me awhile you know I am a huge advocate of science while at the same time I recognize there is so much we don’t yet understand. I believe in God and use many different names for the Higher Power of my heart. Please insert whatever word works best for your belief system here.