The Spiritual Practice of Letting Go

“When letting go is called for, if we have not learned to do so, we suffer greatly, and when we get to the end of our lives, we may have a crash course.” ~ Jack Kornfield

Last week with a heavy heart, I said goodbye to my next door neighbors, dear friends, and soul family, Dan, Ada, and my surrogate dogs, Stormy and Misty.

For six years, we shared yards, puppies, meals, and lives together always being there for each other. Through the gate we made in the fence to connect our yards, we connected our hearts and families. Instead of creating division between our properties, we created cohesion. We created sacred community!

Too often we brace ourselves for change instead of letting go and embracing change as an opportunity to spiritually grow. When we release anyone or anything, we unleash a flow of divine energy to support new creative space and our transformation. Whether we experience it as a tsunami or a gentle wave, each of us is up for life-altering shift at these times.

As much as I will miss them, saying goodbye is actually saying hello. With this ending comes a new beginning for all of us. I wish them well and all the blessings as they begin their new chapter in Gainesville, Florida.

Letting go is one of the most important, yet most difficult spiritual principles that we are awakening to at this time. Like any art, it takes an open loving heart, expanded awareness, and sustained practice to become masterful. It also requires surrounding ourselves with the people and environments that support us releasing what is necessary in a healthy and positive way. Most of all, letting go requires trust in ourselves and our connection to source for it to become an essential element in our lives such as the air we breathe.

Many people have asked me, “How do I let go? My answer is simple-we have to let go into trust. Letting go and trust go hand in hand as one doesn’t exist without the other. It’s easy to move on when we have the road map right in front of us; yet, many of us struggle to let go of a relationship, a job or our life as we’ve known it when we have to trust the compass within us. Our inner GPS system of trust is our safety net, however, this safety net isn’t a white fluffy pillow that we fall back on in familiar comfort. Rather it is a deep sense of connection to a higher power whatever that happens to be for us and then accessing this source through our heart.

We begin by letting go of our negative thoughts, fears and expectations moment to moment which brings us into a state of expanded awareness or presence. It takes more than deep breaths to let go; it requires strength of trust and courage of the heart. Ultimately, we must trust that letting go is about the completion of life cycles and thus, signals a beginning more than an end.

We have a choice in every moment to let go into trust.