I know; I know.  Either of those words on their own is enough to raise eyebrows; stick ’em together and the polarization quotient goes up by a level of 10.

So for the moment, let’s just take that troublesome ‘miracle’ out of the equation and focus on the concept of manifestation––the inherent power that each of us has to bring precisely what we need into our lives.  (And yes, I acknowledge that this may be an even more troublesome idea for many of you.) But for me, the concept of manifestation has been transcendent; and as a practice, it is something I believe in more strongly than just about anything else.

Well before ‘The Secret’ became the thing of talk shows and bestseller lists, I had been engaging in the practice of manifestation for years.  I’d think about what I wanted and very simply, just ‘put it out to the Universe.’  If it were something really special (and I wanted to get all fancy about it), I’d write the request down on an index card and stick it in a sealed envelope where it sat forgotten, sometimes for years.

There were times I felt a bit presumptuous about the things I was asking the Universe to bring my way.  Things that seemed downright preposterous given my current circumstances;  requests that no Universe in its right mind had any business delivering on.  I mean really.  But lo and behold; years later, when I’d take those cards out and look at them, I began to detect an uncanny pattern. More often than not––preposterous or not––I ended up getting exactly what I wanted sometimes to the letter; and even to the penny.  And over time, I began to see this cosmic generosity as nothing short of miraculous.

But I also began to detect some other patterns.  Manifestation, like any other superpower, has its quirks. Chiefly:

  –The Universe is a pretty literal guy so you have to be really careful what you ask for.  If you say you want out of your current job, well, you may want to specify that ‘being fired’ is not exactly part of your vision.

  –The Universe hates mixed messages so be really clear what you want and stop sending out all those  schizophrenic requests of yours.  Once you do, the Universe will step up to the plate in the most miraculous ways.

  –Finally, the Universe has a way bigger experience and knowledge base than you do.  In short, the Universe knows best.  So when it delivers you a ‘gift’ (and it will) and you think, “Hey I didn’t want that, take it back!”  Just hold tight––because invariably, at some point in the future you’ll look back and see that Mick and the boys had it right–––You  don’t always get what you want; but you damn near always get what you need.

So it’s up to you whether or not you want to stay in the back of the class rolling your eyes and poking elbows.  Up to you whether or not you decide to give this old manifestation thing a whirl on the dance floor.  And hey, if you’re worried about your reputation, it can be our little secret; you don’t have to tell a soul.  Just ask yourself….what do you have to lose?