Monday Mantra: Holding on and Letting Go

A mantra is a sound, syllable, word, or group of words that is considered capable of "creating transformation".

Every Monday I will post a new thought, idea, or focus for the week. When you need a breather from life, when you need a little inspiration, or when you're about to jump over the conference table and strangle your co-worker, remember the mantra.

Monday Mantra: Holding on and letting go: a delicate balance that releases the soul

Photo by LukeSharratt on PicsaStock

I'm a big believer in the idea that everything that has happened up to this very moment in your life has created who you are today, exactly as you should be, wonderful and flawed and perfect in your imperfect ways. I also know there is a time and place to let go of the past and reach out to the future. 

I'm trying very hard to be delicate with this. To be fair to all the moments of my life. I'm carefully examining each tiny piece, deciding where they belong. Which ones I need to keep and what pieces I can let go of - gently, gratefully - knowing they built me into the person I am today. 

For example, when my first marriage ended I tried to get rid of all of my old wedding photos. Pieces of me captured in time. It was a daunting task and I didn't make it very far and, eventually, I forgot all about them. Now that my new (AND LAST - ha! No, but really...) marriage is approaching, I've had to go back and tackle this. It has been tremendously easier, however, I still struggled with deleting some of these captured moments because my people are in them. My friends, my family, my grandmother, who will never be in any picture ever again. I made the decision to keep some of these pieces of me because they have value, regardless of the where and how. These are the pieces of me that matter the most.

All of this - this holding on and letting go - makes me realize we all do this, in one way or another. Often, without even realizing it, we have flipped this process on ourselves. Instead of holding on to the good and letting go of the bad, we hold on to the bad and let go of the good.

 We hold on to fractions of old memories that have no place. Moments that haunt us or frighten us or claim our happiness. We trap them inside ourselves because we don't think we deserve better. As a result, we let go of good things. Our hopes and our dreams and the goals we wrongly decided we couldn't reach. We've held on, backwards, because holding on to the wrong things seemed easier at the time. We let go because letting go also seemed easier than the daunting task of working towards what we wanted.

It's time to re-evaluate ourselves, friends. Each piece of us, the good and the bad and the beautiful and the ugly. It's time to decide what you will hold on to, what you will let go of, and why. Do not be afraid to hold on to a variety of pieces of who you are: the bright, dark, murky, or confusing moments of your life. If there is value in them, they should stay. The things you should let go of are the false identities, the mis-beliefs, the lies you've told yourself. Any and all negativity that will surely, without a doubt, hold you down. Holding on and letting go: Find the balance that releases your soul.