Brrrr it´s cold outside….what a wonderful time to sit comfortably by the window in a warm cheerful café and write an article to YOU. Sharing my lessons, insights and experiences is my passion and if it helps someone, it makes me happy.
Right now my theme is "letting go". Well…to be honest it has been my theme for a long time, but I did not pay attention to it until I was 50. Until then, I wanted everything my way and letting things go was not an option. Growing up, I learned to control and manipulate things, not to let go. Sounds familiar?
But that was a while ago…now at 61, I can accept that at times, I need to let something, or someone go. Yes even people…Sometimes I know that certain people who irritate me, are teachers for me, meaning that there must be a lesson in what´s causing the irritation.
These days, I try to accept the lesson, but limit contact with the “teachers,” well maybe that´s not totally true. I chose to keep in contact with some close family members, but that´s a different story, maybe a different article 🙂
What letting go means to me
A friend asked me, how I could move from a beautiful place like San Francisco to Aachen, Germany. My answer was: I listen to my gut feeling, my intuition and when I feel the urge to make a change, I do it.
I could be sad and depressed, that I live in a less glamorous place, can´t walk on the beach looking at the Pacific anymore, not marvel at the beauty of the incredible nature in California and so on. I do miss it, but I understand that life changes are neccessary. Same with the houses we owned, the life we had, the family that´s gone. I always have a choice to accept reality, or to suffer.
Letting go means not to suffer
Suffering is no fun, believe me I suffered most of my life, I know what it feels like….Letting go is not a passive state, like putting up with something and feeling like a victim. No, it´s active and it´s hard to explain, it´s something that does not come from the mind, but from a deeper place inside, it comes from the heart.
Below are some quotes about Letting Go
“The truth is, unless you let go, unless you forgive yourself, unless you forgive the situation, unless you realize that the situation is over, you cannot move forward.”
Steve Maraboli
“If you want to forget something or someone, never hate it, or never hate him/her. Everything and everyone that you hate is engraved upon your heart; if you want to let go of something, if you want to forget, you cannot hate.”
C. Joy Bell
How you can get help with letting go
My experience with letting go was kind of miraculous, I did not make it happen, something inside of me let go and that was it. The more I learned to trust the universe, god or a higher power, the more I could let go of stuff. Yes sometimes I miss things, but it´s not suffering, it´s like having a sentimental moment.
- Self-reflection, Meditation and anonymous programs are great to learn to accept and let go.
- Therapy and personal Development is helpful
- Reflecting to people who understand can help and coaching can help.
- But first start with a wish to do something different and watch the miracle happen.
I hope this was helpful and if you would like to share your experience with letting go, please leave a comment. We always love to read them.