Letting Grow

Wow 2 posts in one sitting.

I was having a conversation with someone recently and of course we ended up talking about a situation where someone needed to “Let Go”. I know I write a lot about this topic and I have to say that is because it comes up a lot. Yes in my life as well….

Well as we were discussing the topic at hand I said something along the lines of what could grow in this situation if the person could actually let go.

I love this perspective. What could grow in our lives if we let go of what we are hanging onto so tightly?

So Letting Go is actually Letting Grow……

This ties into “Possibilities” as well. By letting grow we are open to many more possibilities.

Possibilities

It’s been a while since my last post. I sat down to write and the word “Possibilities” came up so I will write about that.

Well the first thing that comes to mind, is that my creative mind creates all sorts of stories in regards to my life. Creative is the key word. Most of the time these stories and scenarios don’t ever come to fruition yet I entertain them and play them out. I have to say though that I don’t spend as much time in this space as I used to which is great.

The second thing is in regards to planning. When there is something I need to do or get done. Or even a conversation I need to have with someone. My mind again goes through all the possible scenarios and creates possible challenges that can make the outcome difficult or keep me from even beginning the task that needs to be accomplished. Again the situation rarely occurs in the way i thought it would. Most of what needs to happen usually happens in the moment and you adjust to what is actually happening. Most of the time things go much smoother and easier than anticipated. Don’t get me wrong I am not saying that you shouldn’t plan. I am just saying that you need to be open to the possibilities and focus on the positive results that you want. For example if you need to have a tough conversation with someone. Focus on the tone and feeling of the conversation rather than focusing on all the ways in which the conversation will be difficult. The less we plan the more open we are to the possibilities in the moment.

Lastly I am thinking about how we sometimes get caught up in the drama of our lives. We get stuck in what is happening lose focus and perspective. There is a Tarot card called possibilities it is a picture of an eagle flying over a beautiful landscape seeing all that is available. When we rise above all that is happening in our lives like the eagle we are able to see a brand new perspective and all the possibilities that exist.

How many times have you said to yourself. “Wow that was a lot easier than I thought it would be” or “That didn’t turn out the way I thought it was going to”. There are always many possibilities that exist we just need to allow them.

Letting Go

Today I had the pleasure of going for a horse back ride at Sea to Sky Stables. I love being around the horses and out in the peaceful forest. I also enjoy learning about the horses. Today I got to help getting all the horses ready for a ride, which included putting on the saddles and bridles. All of this is a nice change of pace from every day life.

Well today I got to learn yet another lesson. My job today was to ride at the back of the group, which was a total of 11 horses. During the ride, one of the kids dropped her shoe along the trail and I had to turn around and get it. No problem. I turn my horse (Casper) around and reluctantly he heads down the trail and we find the shoe. As I am climbing back up onto Casper, he bolts off, I manage to hang on even though my leg wasn’t properly in the stirrup. When I get back to the group I realize that i had dropped the shoe on the way. So I go back again to get the shoe. Only this time, Casper is not cooperating. He is totally wanting to go back and won’t stand still for me to get back up. I do my best to calm him down but I become frustrated and he becomes frustrated. There is nothing I can do to settle him down. I call the leader on my cellphone and she says to just walk back. So I agree that this is the best idea and begin to walk back. Casper however is still pulling like crazy and even walking becomes a challenge. So we are walking along and I trip on a rock. Fall face forward and get dragged for a little bit and I finally just let go of the rope. Casper goes running back to the group. What I didn’t know, is that trail horses, Casper in particular, don’t like to be away from the pack of horses. He was set on getting back and there was nothing I could have done to make it better.

The experience was quite unsettling and in the end it all worked out except for a scraped knee, scraped forearm and yes a bruised ego….

As I reflected upon this experience I couldn’t help but see it as a metaphor for “Letting Go”. In the end the solution was simple….let go of the rope….he’s happy, I’m safe, all is good. Instead of struggling to be in control of the outcome.

I can think of many situations in my life, where I struggled trying to get what I wanted and in the end the solution was simply to let go. Sometimes it is the only solution that will work, and yes, it is usually the simplest way to go. I had met someone once who said it well, ”always take the path of least resistance”. Not in the sense of giving up necessarily, but more the idea of going with the flow.

I also want to emphasize that “letting go” does not necessarily mean forever. Today, when I got back to the group I got right back up on Casper and we finished the ride.

I think it is in the book “Conversations with God” where he says…”Let go and Let God”

I am also reminded of the Serenity Prayer.

God grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change;
courage to change the things I can;
and wisdom to know the difference.