So, you understand, I have always liked the place. But this time it was different. Everything seemed to sparkle with a new feel. For the first time, I was aware of the pleasing colors on the walls – pale adobe and muted yellow. Was this a fresh paint job or had I just never noticed before? Framed paintings by a local artist hung on the walls, and they had a precise beauty and welcoming appeal – not like the wild and a bit-too-bright abstracts that had been displayed there only a few weeks before. Two new comfy couches were arranged upfront by the picture window so that folks could read or sip their coffee and chat. And, when we sat down, I smiled at the small red and white carnations in the little glass vase on our table. All this lovely attention to detail!

I kept remarking to Patricia how great this was. I wondered what had moved the manager or owner to change things. It wasn’t as if the coffee shop hadn’t been pleasant before. And yet, something genuine, friendly, inviting and encouraging seemed to now be shining through. I glanced at the other tables. People were talking, smiling, their eyes bright and cheerful. I could feel the energy of the place rubbing off on me as well, as if speaking to a deeper part of myself, urging me to lighten up and laugh.

The simple change in the coffee shop reminded me of how powerfully our feelings – and the manifestation of our feelings and ideas – can affect others. Someone decided to bring new sparkle to a coffee shop – to invite people to slow down, enjoy food and friends and music and talk even more than before. The creation of that feeling was so real and authentic and genuine, that I knew the person responsible had to hold a similar energy within him or herself. The space was a reflection of that individual’s inner being.

We can all be living expressions of peace. We can all be living expressions of war. We can manifest serenity without ever saying a word. Or we can broadcast the frequency of hate and despair. We can carry small mindedness and intolerance, and persistently goad others to see all that is wrong with the world. Or we can hold the vibration of joy and harmony, and so inspire others to perceive it in the world and in themselves.

There is no denying that our little planet holds an incredibly wide diversity of feelings, and countless expressions of those feelings. We carry our reality with us wherever we go. The energetic vibration of our thoughts and feelings are more powerful than we have ever been led to believe.

Choose wisely. Breathe deep and consider that the world you see is the world you help to create, every day anew. Holding peace, magnificence and compassion is easier than we imagine. Shining the love we have – or even the love we wish to have – is what magnifies love in the world.