After reading an internet article on the law of attraction I thought it would be fun to read more about the topic.

I never heard the term law of attraction before this week so I was surprised to read that it’s nothing new. It’s been taught and acknowledged by various cultures for millennia.

I was also surprised to find there are dozens of these so-called laws of attraction.

Many believe the law of attraction is a universal principal that states you will attract into your life what you focus on.

Basically the law of attraction can be boiled down to three words: Like attracts like.

That’s certainly true in relationships. But it’s also true that sometimes opposites attract.

Does one cancel the other?

Or, is it simply a fact that many of us search for people like us?

We want to hang out with friends like us. We prefer to be with friends that share our values and our interests.

And we most often date and marry someone we think is “just like us.”

As one extreme example I recall a friend who spent much of his time on dating sites. I thought it was more than a bit overboard when he said he often goes on two dates each day, taking one date to lunch and one to dinner.

He kept saying “I know what I’m looking for and I’m going to find it.”

When he finally met and married one woman I asked him what made her “the one” for him.

He said they had the same high regard for the nice things in life. They both were financially well off and both insisted on having the best of everything.

But in my opinion the strangest reason he picked her was because she had quite a bit of plastic surgery.

“That showed me she was deeply concerned with looks and deeply committed to staying as attractive as possible,” he said.

Then he told me something I didn’t know. He also had quite a bit of plastic surgery.

Indeed, in that case like did attract like.

OK, I’ll confess something. When I listened to him I thought of the phrase “superficial values.”

I’ll confess to one more thing.

I also am drawn to those who share my values. I most value good people with a good heart, especially those who do good things for others.

Advocates claim the most powerful influence on your future may be the law of attraction if you learn to direct your thoughts to getting what you want. There are several books that go into great detail about how you can do that.

The internet also offers a complete guide to using the law of attraction. The guide was written by Jack Canfield who founded the ever-popular Chicken Soup for the Soul series.

While l am always leery of buying into someone’s viewpoint it’s apparent that the laws of attraction offer some simple truths worth thinking about.

For instance, the law of right action says how you behave and treat others will determine how others treat you.

I don’t know if that’s always true but it should be.

I also like the law that says when you focus on the good things in life you attract more good things.

But if you center yourself on negative thoughts and only focus on what you lack in life, then you will ultimately attract negativity into your life and what you want most will continue to elude you.

At the very least, the rules for the laws of attraction make interesting reading and might possibly provide worthwhile food for thought

Some years ago the “Laws of Attraction” movie made a big splash, drawing many to try some of the laws.

If you were one who tried to follow some or all of the laws of attraction, I would love to hear your experiences.

One of the concepts that I’m trying to follow is the belief that if you believe good things will happen, it will.

It already has had one benefit for me. I’m more light hearted when I stop thinking I’ll never get my insurance company to pay for hurricane damage.

Positive thinking may have its benefits.

My friend Priscilla and I sometimes talk about what draws us to others.

Often it’s mutual interests but sometimes it’s like a bolt out of the blue for no reason.

When Priscilla first saw Frank working as a lifeguard they had never exchanged a word.

Yet, at 16 she looked at him and told her mother she was going to marry him.

They were married a year later and had an incredible marriage for more than 50 years.

How did she know without ever talking to him?

The same kind of mysterious instant chemistry happened when I first met her at a sales meeting. When some of the women there were offensively boisterous Priscilla and I had never exchanged a word. But we looked at each other and communicated so much with our eyes. We went for coffee afterward and became instant close friends.

Fifty years later, we are still best friends.

Call it mysterious instant chemistry or call it the law of attraction at work.

Sometimes we don’t know why the instant chemistry is there. We just know it’s a true thing and we’re grateful for it.

I would love to hear your law of attraction stories.

Contact Pattie Mihalik at newsgirl@comcast.net