Sometimes You Just Have To Let Go
Do you hold on to more than you should?
Don’t feel bad if you do, sometimes it’s hard not to. You may be thinking of some of them right now — don’t be afraid to admit it because this will help you get some idea of what you’re actually holding on to. But also, you should consider how long you have been holding on to your worries. Do they serve you any good or do you wish to escape them but don’t know how?
I can say, for the ones that torture you at least, putting them off will do you no good
Worries about the people, the past, or the future, linger around and may never leave if you expect them to do this on their own. You must look at them individually and try to find their roots, look for the seed that started it all. When you do find their beginnings, ask yourself whether this worry is something that is within your control. Is this worry up to you alone?
From here, ask yourself next, what can you control?
Think about everything you can do to satisfy this worry. You may need to do some research or ask some questions — the list can grow quite large. But of these things, think of what can you do right now. Before you answer, be still and try to really understand what’s going on inside you. Make sense of the chaos within and a better way forward will reveal itself to you.
Through this process, you may notice that your greatest obstacle in life will always be you
Your sources of worry may have caused you pain, but you chose to suffer more than you should. Yes, suffering brings growth, but only if you choose to overcome it. If you don’t, you stagnate. Your worries are for you to learn and be serious about what you find meaningful. Listen to them and let them help you better focus your attention, even if it means letting go of some of your lesser worries.
Epictetus knew this all the way back then when he said,
There is only one way to happiness and that is to cease worrying about things which are beyond the power of our will.
Here is what I wish for you to keep from this:
Sometimes You Have To Let Go And Move On
As a human being, it is quite natural to want to fix things that feel broken, even more so when these things seem to have a great influence over your life. You may have been doing this all your life and become quite skillful with this. But you must accept that there are boundaries to this skill and if you decide to cross them, you must face the consequences that follow.
Look, at times you will have to — but don’t force yourself when these things bring you no value
If you cross this boundary for a worthy cause, something that will create immense value for you, the people around you and those who will come after you, be sure that you are doing well by yourself. But if you try to fix things that devalue you and leave you in a destructive state, you must reconsider your choice. Be strong enough to choose a path and when necessary, a better one.
“Look well into thyself; there is a source of strength which will always spring up if thou wilt always look.” ― Marcus Aurelius
Control What You Can
A great many pieces of good and bad will find you throughout your life. The latter is not as welcomed as the former because of how inconveniencing it seems, but it will do you a great deal of good to teach yourself to face them better. You cannot control where or when the bad will find you, nor can you control how strong it will be, but you can always control yourself.
Everything starts within — you are the beginnings of your greatest obstacle and your greatest opportunity
If you leave yourself helpless against life’s Chaos, it won’t be long before you succumb to it. Don’t do yourself a disservice, change your perspective of the bad as something that serves you, as something that will help you be better in some way. You may not be able to control the bad pieces of life finding you, but you can control what it does to you. This power lives in you, use it well.
“If you conquer yourself, then you conquer the world” ― Paulo Coelho
This Helps You Focus Your Life On Value
Your life is your own and what you do with it is your responsibility. You could focus your life on anything, this is the beautiful power you have, but to focus your attention on the things that bring you value is a better use of this power. If you ignore this and constantly give attention to the things that hold you back from living, you devalue yourself.
And this is not a once-off effort — your value must be maintained every day
As you wake each day, you have a choice. You could give in to the distractions trying to pull you down a mundane path, or you could focus your attention on the valuable path, the path that will deepen your roots. You will have worries that you must face, and there is nothing wrong with this — just be sure you choose to face them after understanding their significance to you and your life.
“The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now.” — Chinese Proverb
Life is quite interesting, don’t you think? There’s so much of it and so little of it is given to you to make of it what you will. As you experience life, it brings you many moments that seem to be good or bad, but it is so much more on a deeper level, which is seldom explored because the initial impression of the moment is enough to trap even the strongest.
Sometimes you can’t help being trapped, but you choose to stay trapped
You have little control over how overwhelming life can get, but you have control over whether you succumb. Look intensely at the moment, whether it be good or bad, and try to see what it can be for you, try to see what value it can bring you. When you find this value, take it and use it to better your life and the lives of those around you.
“In the end, it’s not the years in your life that count. It’s the life in your years.” — Abraham Lincoln
Invest In Your Existence, Kind Reader.
