“Intention is one of the most powerful forces there is. What you mean when you do a thing will always determine the outcome.” ~Brenna Yobvanoff

Dear Universe,  

When planning our trip to Italy, my friend and I knew that Rome would be a must-see stop.  A city filled with history, beauty, religion, culture and food, I couldn’t wait to arrive.

After checking into our hotel, we ventured out.  Our first mission: get to the Trevi Fountain.

Part One:

We were both familiar with the Trevi Fountain from the few films we’ve seen it in.  Usually the scene involved something romantic and something magical.  Wishes were made, wishes came true and dreams were realized.

Of course we had to go.

We read a little about it before setting off.  The Trevi Fountain is the largest in the city and dates back to the 1700s.  Its majestic structure is carved with stone gods that represent abundance on the left, health on the right.

Love that!

Once we arrived we planned on doing the traditional Trevi coin toss.  Taking a coin and throwing it over your left shoulder enhances your chances of a return visit to Rome.  Naturally, we had to do it!

And we’d make a wish while we were at it.  Why not?

Part Two:

We walked for twenty minutes in the steaming heat, all the way thinking of what our wish would be.  Would we toss with our right hand?  Our left?  Did it matter?  As we neared we pulled out coins and got ready—one coin toss was good, but three was better!

We turned the corner, held out breath and saw…

Construction.  The Trevi Fountain was closed for maintenance.

We stood at the temporary metal fence surrounding this beautiful structure, wrapped our fingers around the grates, gave it a little shake and practically cried.

We deflated our breath. Instead of a sigh of happiness it was one steeped in disappointed.

How could the fountain be closed?  How could or dreams be realized now?  Where was the magic in this?

That’s when we noticed that a makeshift bridge had also been constructed.  People were allowed to walk over the fountain and take a closer look.

We got in line.  This would have to do.

At the center of the bridge, we stopped, briefly holding up the crowd.  Though there was no water in the fountain, we would complete our coin tosses, make our wishes and go.

And that’s what we did.

Though we were sad that we didn’t get to experience the fountain the way we hoped, we were still glad we went and carried through with our plan.

Sometimes it’s not about the perfect setting, the perfect moment or things going exactly the way you planned.  Sometimes it’s about following through with your intention.

Sure, it wasn’t a scene from a movie or the stuff dreams are made of, but maybe that’s better.  We left with a unique memory we won’t forget.  And we worked a little harder to carry out our plan.

I’d like to think that the wishes we made were that much stronger because of it.

A return trip to Rome?  I think it will happen.  And when it does, I’ll make my way to the Trevi Fountain to give it a heartfelt thanks.

With Gratitude,

A