The Art of Letting Go ~ The Beacon for March 15, 2011

Science tells us that our bodies are regenerated new every seven years.  The opposite is true as well; every cell in our body dies every seven years.  Life is nothing more than a series of births, deaths and rebirths.   We are in a constant state of change, things are always changing.  The futile effort of trying to have things stay the same is resisting one of the laws of life.  Reassurance comes in knowing that what happens after death is rebirth.  

In my life I am in the process of letting go of a couple of my most favourite material possessions.  My beloved 1992 Volvo, who has been with me for most of my time here in Nanaimo, who hauled the majority of the lumber to our home during our renovations, who has been on many road trips, has witness a number of laughs, tears, and hugs, is on her last leg of her journey.  She is inconsistently starting and when she does coughs huge plumes of smoke.  She is no longer a reliable form of transportation and is merely a sentimental belonging who I love dearly.  I had made an agreement that if my brother, who is a mechanic and visited last weekend, couldn’t fix her that I would be letting her go.  Easier said than done.  Some time letting go is uncomfortable and sometimes it is not what we want to do.

"To everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven - a time to break down, a time to build up. . . a time to weep, and a time to laugh, a time to keep, and a time to cast away."  Ecclesiastes

My favorite pair of jeans are also on their way out.  They are the pair that I reach for each weekend- all tattered, torn and stained, and man do they feel comfortable.  Kind of like an old habit that you know just doesn’t serve you any longer, but is so familiar and comfortable you keep going back to it anyways.   Yes the old and familiar certainly can become very comfortable.  Even when it is unhealthy it provides a false sense of comfort. 

“When one door closes another door opens; but we so often look so long and so regretfully upon the closed door, that we do not see the ones which open for us.” – Alexander Graham Bell

This week I challenge you to look at your life and notice that which you are holding on to.  Notice any old relationships, material possessions, habits or thought forms that simply no longer serve you.  Throughout the week I encourage you to write them down.   Make a list.   This Saturday is the Full Moon which energetically is an ideal time to let go and this Sunday is the Spring Equinox which energetically is an ideal time for rebirth.   I encourage you to take some personal time this weekend to bless that which no longer serves you, thank it for all that it has offered you and then release it making room for the new.  If you need extra motivation you can also write out the costs of holding on are and the benefits of releasing it will be.  Remember that life is nothing more than a series of births, deaths and rebirths.  I wish you well on your journeys.

 “We must be willing to let go of the life we have planned, so as to accept the life that is waiting for us.” – Joseph Campbell

Godspeed,

Dr. Norm

* Heather's additional note - Especially if you are resistant to put this exercise into practice, give it a try.  Remember it's there in the uncomfortable, real places where there is the most opportunity for growth.