Feng Shui Transformations

Empower Yourself!

A Story About Using Feng Shui and Intention
to Create the Life You Desire

by Adrian Looye
(with a little help from Juliette Looye)

In 2007, at the age of 50, I left my job with the electric company after 27 years of service. Though my work had been fulfilling in many ways, I’d always had it in the back of my mind that someday I would pursue work in renewable energy—especially in the area of wind farming—and that day was drawing nearer. So after leaving my job, I started looking for ways to make my dream come true.

Nearly two years later, a phone call came. There was work on a wind farm in Texas, the granddaddy of all wind farming states. I didn’t ask any questions beyond “When and where should I show up?”

I caught a plane and arrived at the job site on a balmy Monday morning in August. I was excited at the prospect of working on my very first wind turbine. Just before I began to don my climbing gear, the project manager casually said, “I’ll just need to see your climbing certificate.”

Climbing certificate? . . . My project manager back in Illinois hadn’t mentioned a climbing certificate.

“Enjoy your vacation in Corpus Christi,” said the Texas project manager. “I can’t allow you to climb uncertified.”

Crestfallen, I returned home. During my flight I tried to occupy my mind with other things. I fell asleep thinking about TheosoFEST, the outdoor festival I’d be attending in early September to help Julie sell her feng shui merchandise and services.

TheosoFEST turned out to be just what I needed—in more ways than I realized. During a lull in the afternoon crowd, I decided to peruse the other vendors’ booths to see what they had to offer. I soon came upon the booth for Reflect, a sibling-owned company selling clothing. Big deal, I thought, T-shirts with writing on them. But something caught my eye and drew me in . . . the writing on the shirts was backwards. I inched up and tried to decipher the shirt that had originally caught my attention . . . ytilaer ym etaerc I . . . Whaaat? I tried to read it backwards. I . . . create . . . my . . . reality . . . Oh! I create my reality! I bought the shirt on the spot. Too excited to continue browsing, I walked back and showed the shirt to Julie and some friends who were standing nearby. “That’s perfect feng shui,” Julie said.

“How so?” asked one of our friends. “I thought feng shui was about moving your furniture.”

Julie picked up a copy of her book and opened it to some diagrams of the yin-yang symbol. She used the diagrams* to explain what she believes is the underlying premise of feng shui. In a nutshell . . .

The theory of yin and yang is the model for the creation of everything in the universe. So in accordance with this model, ENERGY (the thing that creates) and MATTER (what is created) are one and the same because they constantly change into one another, just as yin and yang do. This being the case, you can use the energy of your THOUGHTS to create your physical environment, and you can use the energy of your PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENT to create your thoughts . . . So as you focus your thoughts on a specific thing or situation, the energy of your thoughts draws it to you‚ and it becomes a part of your reality—the matter with which you surround yourself. This can be expressed by the saying “As ye think‚ so shall ye be.” Or to put it another way‚ “Thoughts become things.” So you see‚ it’s all about MIND OVER MATTER. It’s about using the energy of your THOUGHTS to create what “MATTERS” to you most!

*For the diagrams and a full explanation of this idea‚ see pages 9–11 in Feng Shui Essentials: A How-to Guide for Creating the Life You Desire.

“OK‚” I said. “So if I want to work on that wind farm‚ I’ve got to think of a way to make it my reality.” I went home that evening‚ put on my new T-shirt‚ and searched the Web for schools offering climbing certification . . . And by the following weekend‚ I was in Reno‚ earning my certificate. And you know what I was wearing—my ytilaer ym etaerc I T-shirt!

When I returned from Reno‚ I called my boss and asked if he’d found anyone to do the Texas job. When he said no‚ I told him I had earned my climbing certificate and could return to Corpus Christi if needed. He said yes! I was going! My dream was on its way to becoming my reality.

One week later‚ I was standing at the base of a wind turbine‚ tricked out in my climbing gear. As my climbing partner double-checked my harnesses‚ he squinted at the backward writing on my T-shirt. “I . . . create . . . my . . . reality‚” he read aloud. “I like that! That’s really great.”

“Thanks‚” I smiled. “I do create my reality.” And I turned around and began the 300- foot ascent that started as a seed of an idea in my mind all those years ago.

P.S. After successfully completing my work in Texas‚ I was called back there three weeks later for more work. About a month after that‚ with my climbing certificate and T-shirt in tow‚ I flew to Oregon to work on a wind farm there. The thrill has not abated . . . nor has my desire to create new realities for myself. You see‚ our booth at TheosoFEST was next to the booth occupied by Essential Healing and Massage. As I watched the massage therapists work all day‚ I kept envisioning myself in my own space‚ performing massages on my happy clients. And then a few months later‚ in my hotel lobby in Vail‚ I received an après-ski chair massage that felt so amazingly good. As I daydreamed by the fireplace afterwards‚ I thought‚ I’d like to be a massage therapist. I think I’ll create that reality! When I got home‚ I enrolled in massage school. I’ll bet you can guess which T-shirt I wore when I showed up for my first day of class!

P.P.S. Adrian finished massage school and will soon be a certified massage therapist—right after he summits Mt. Shasta. (No kidding!)