Commonly, people caution, “Be careful what you ask for, you may get it.” While I do not advocate fear, it is true that the universe responds to our inquiries. The practice of mindfulness—creating through conscious intention—is powerful, and powerfully illustrated in the following story.

As an outdoors enthusiast, my client’s connection to nature provides her with vital rejuvenation. She resides in a small cabin adjacent to a bubbling creek in Eldorado Canyon, just south of Boulder. She lives a physically active, spiritually contemplative lifestyle in which she values personal growth and insight.

When I ask her how she would like to set the intention in her home, she replies that she wants to invite the vibration of nature into her living space, allowing the natural qualities of abundance and healing to fill her cabin. She is opening to grace and divinity in all of its expressions. She hopes to create the same solace within her home that she knows during times of communion with the natural world.

Within a week of her house healing, her cabin floods, and becomes home to several snakes. In this way, her place receives the cleansing healing of the water combined with an abundance of reptilian roommates. She succeeds in her quest to fill her home with the vibration of nature, even if this particular expression of her intention does not match her picture of having grace and divinity in her life.

While this event creates a mess, my client recalls her experience fondly. When her cabin flooded, her next-door neighbors offered to rent her the stand-alone apartment on their property. She moved into a larger, newer place on higher ground in which she forged a lasting friendship with the couple who rented her the apartment. She remains surrounded by the glory of the natural environment, but has a clearer boundary regarding which elements of nature are best enjoyed outside of her front door.

This tale offers us at least three insights. Firstly, our wishes are accommodated. Secondly, through that accommodation, we learn to refine our wishes to better suit us. Most importantly, though, this story illustrates that we are supported both in attaining our wishes, and in our journey to refine them. We need not hold our desires against ourselves, and we need not feel guilty as we shift our relationship to them. The flooding of my client’s home provides validation of the power with which she creates. Her discomfort in the situation signals the need for her to refine her intention. And, the ease of her move into a better living situation is the manifestation of further support to direct her toward her own fulfillment.

The events of our lives demonstrate our movement through various creations. As we proceed, we can choose to validate the process in gratitude for the support that we receive, or we can resist the twists and turns as we fight our growth at every corner. Either way, I recommend a healthy dose of amusement.

Intend, experience, reflect, and intend again…

Written by Heidi Szycher, a staff member at the Boulder Psychic Institute. Check out her personal site at healings.biz.