Just Let Go
I’ve just wiped my desk down for the third time today.
The ash from all the wildfires here in the west just coats everything in sight and while I would LOVE to close all the windows in the house, we have no a/c and the temperatures are still hitting the eighties in the afternoons. So it’s deal with the ash or roast alive.
That feels like a very “2020” kind of choice, doesn’t it?
Here’s the thing— I stand by everything I said back in March and April as this whole pandemic was just getting under way.
I stand by the idea that we owe it to ourselves to look for the good. I stand by the idea that we have agency unless we choose to relinquish it.
I continue to believe these things wholeheartedly.
AND ALSO…
Every single person I talk to right now seems to be struggling.
It would seem that this newest phase of 2020 includes a collective low point.
When I talk to clients and friends and acquaintances, it feels like everyone shares a similar rawness, as though our nerves are a little closer to the surface than usual.
Sometimes this is offering clarity— it’s amazing what peels off when we’re too tired to keep pretending or performing.
Sometimes this is offering a moment of deep connection— I have been moved to tears by kindness or beauty or vulnerability so, so much lately.
And sometimes this is just plain exhausting.
A few weeks ago, I implored you to go gently out there.
And I’m asking you to keep doing that.
I’m also going to invite you to let go of every let thing you possibly can right now.
Let go, my friend.
Let go of the to-do list for 2020 you made back in January before we knew what was coming for us.
Let go of whatever standard of perfection you are still clinging to.
Let go of should and meant to and by now.
Let go of social media or managing your inbox or keeping the dust from your bookshelves if they feel burdensome.
Let go of timelines that are crushing you.
Let go of relationships that are draining you.
Let go.
You know the old drill about deciding which of your belongings you’d risk your life for if your house was on fire?
Well, it would seem our collective “house” is on fire (literally and figuratively) and if we try to carry everything, we will burn.
Some things must be let go of.
Maybe not forever.
But for now.
Let go.
It will be okay.
Maybe not fun or pleasant or easy.
But again, on a long enough timeline, eventually everything’s okay, one way or another.
I know that’s not what you might want to hear. I wish I could tell you that everything will be amazing.
But it might not be right away. Someday it will, but maybe not now.
It might continue to be hard for while longer.
It might even get harder before it gets easier.
What I can tell you is that you will survive letting go of anything that’s too heavy right now.
What I can tell you is that you have the resilience within you to keep going, even if that means simply clinging to a buoy in the midst of this storm.
What I can tell you is that you aren’t alone.
What I can tell you is that you matter. YOU matter (aka, not your achievements or your to-do list or your whatever else…YOU).
If you are someone who isn’t struggling right now, then know that I am happy for you— truly.
Do not feel shame or guilt because you’re doing well. We need you out there thriving!
But do feel empathy and compassion for those who aren’t and offer whatever you can wherever you can, no matter how small the gesture.
Sometimes the only way past is through, and I’m offering you my hand right now— we’ll all get through this time, and we’ll do it better if we do it together.
I'm with you.
Stay curious out there, my friends.