City Lights:

The other week, a friend lent me a DVD of “The Secret,” a documentary about the law of attraction that’s been championed by Oprah and others. For those unfamiliar with the law of attraction, it’s not a set of guidelines for dating, but a theory about the power of positive thinking. The basic premise is that by visualizing the things we want, we can bring them closer to us, while if we dwell on our bad luck, we’ll continue to invite misery.

The film features interviews with a number of subjects who say the law of attraction changed their lives, including a businessman who added zeros to his bank statements to convince himself he would become a millionaire, then became one, and others who overcame breast cancer and even paralysis. The technique, according to the movie, is to tell yourself it’s a given that your dreams are going to come true, and sooner or later, they will.

Now, I think there are about 2 billion people in the Third World, and more than a few in Huntington Beach, who would disagree with that notion. But though I can’t believe that the universe works like a genie eager to grant our wishes (yes, that’s a metaphor from the film), I believe there is a case to be made for dogged optimism.

And apparently, so does Joanne Rasmussen, a local resident who is spearheading a campaign to bring a community garden to town.

I met Rasmussen, who lives in southeast Huntington, at her home Friday and listened as she gave me a whirlwind tour of her project. The movement started in February and has expanded to a massive grass-roots effort backed by more than 100 people, including Mayor Keith Bohr and other city officials who have applied their names to Rasmussen’s petition.

In short, Rasmussen and her comrades hope to establish a garden on a city plot of land where residents can buy a small parcel and plant their own fruits and vegetables. The group is in talks with the city about finding an appropriate spot, while the garden team is seeking nonprofit status and planning a fundraising campaign to pay for tilling, soil testing and plumbing on the land.

Since I had watched “The Secret” a few days before meeting Rasmussen, I asked if she had heard of the film. She hadn’t, but then, I don’t think she needs a genie in the sky to succeed — she has her own skills.

In the past, she told me, she’s sold everything from real estate to motor homes to paintings, and she’s applying the same go-getter approach to selling Huntington Beach a produce garden. She’s also pitching it from more than one angle: Not only will the garden give residents fresh produce for cheap, but it will also provide the retired and unemployed with an outlet for their energy.

As fun as self-help movies can be, I think that’s the true law of attraction: If you want to realize your dreams, work hard, keep your message positive and seek like-minded souls. It may not be a foolproof solution, but it pays off surprisingly often.

So if Huntington Beach gets a community garden, I have a feeling it will be due to the gumption of Rasmussen and her friends rather than some metaphysical power. But in case there is a law of attraction, I’m going to join them in thinking positive thoughts. After all, when it’s a slow week in the newsroom, I’ll do anything to will a good story into existence.

City Editor MICHAEL MILLER can be reached at (714) 966-4617 or at [email protected] .