I follow Overheard in New York on Instagram. It’s a blog where anyone can submit funny things they overhear anywhere in NYC. This is my latest favorite post, overheard at a place called Amy’s Bread:
Woman: “Wow, what are those, dessert bagels?”
Cashier: “They’re donuts.”
This made me laugh. Like, a lot. I just imagined the woman looking at tons of bagels behind glass, then seeing these frosted, sprinkled things next to them and assuming they were…fancy bagels.
It’s probably because I’m still on the perspective kick from last week’s post that I’m slightly obsessing about this bagel/donut situation. Think of the bagel shop like life. We view the world based on what we see and experience around us on the physical plane. If I don’t sleep well, my focus is on how tired I am and, consequently, how annoying the tasks of the day are. If my back hurts, I see everything through the pain. If I have a to-do list a mile long, I create my day around it and hear that voice that says “What if you don’t get it all done?” And, “When will you have time to do what you really want to do?”
So I was talking to a friend the other day who had a great suggestion for an exercise: wear a bracelet and every time you have a negative thought, switch the bracelet to the other wrist and think of an opposite thought to change your perspective. I started doing it on Monday, and I can’t even tell you how many times I moved that bracelet—too many to count. But it totally helped me be aware of how I was seeing things.
On day two of the exercise, as I waited to get on the subway, the doors slid open to reveal a large, tall man in a black t-shirt with huge white lettering that said, “POSITIVE ENERGY”. It was a can’t-miss, bold visual, like a billboard from the universe.
Then I went on to have several random encounters with people about their animals in the span of three hours, including a woman who was pushing her two chihuahuas around the city in a toy Mini Cooper (not kidding), a woman who told me about how her cat tries to bring her back to reality when she’s distracted on her phone (how many times have I written about that happening to me?), and an acquaintance asking me for a reading. In none of these scenarios did I initiate the conversation or start talking about what I do for a living.
So when I actively worked to change my outlook, I started attracting in what I love. And the universe gave me a thumbs-up via a t-shirt in a random subway car. If all you see is bagels, all you’ll get is bagels. If you open up to the magic of the universe, you’ll get frosted donuts with sprinkles. And guess what? It’s time to make the donuts.
It’s all about the magic. 🙌
PS - Next week I’ll be returning to Costa Rica for a second round of soul work with horses, and I’m super excited! I won’t be blogging for the next two weeks, but to keep up with my adventures, follow me on Facebook or Instagram.