‘Let it Go’ is Lousy Advice
When we’re sad, angry or anxious, Paul McCartney offers the better approach to dealing with negative emotions.
When we find ourselves in times of trouble, when we’re in our hour of darkness, it’s not uncommon to think we should just let it go. As in forget about it. Friends and loved ones are often quick to suggest as much. Feel free to tell them to bug off.
It doesn’t work. It can’t work. It’s lousy advice.
There are real and legitimate reasons why we get sad, anxious, disillusioned, angry or otherwise emotionally discombobulated. The notion of letting go of our feelings suggests we should ignore the reasons behind them and dismiss our emotions as invalid. Let it go presumes we have inhuman control over our feelings and can simply will them away. Yeah, good luck with that.
Paul McCartney must’ve pondered all this when he wrote Let it Be. Whether he was talking to himself or directly to us, Let it Be is an invitation to accept things as they are — which happens to be a common refrain in meditation. Indeed, I listen to the song and suddenly all my troubles seem so far away, if only for 4 minutes and 3 seconds. The sensation is strikingly similar to how I feel when I meditate.
