To Be Free Yourself, You Have to Release Everyone Else
As I look at my wall of affirmations, the one in the title stands out to me right now. I am currently parting ways with a good friend who was not only a companion to me but a huge help to me in so many ways. One thing I really miss is help with technology, which I am terrible at and dislike intensely. I’m afraid this loss is going to take me backward, which is not the direction I should be going. Trying to get her back, I know, is not right for us, so I must let her go.
Life is full of letting go, isn’t it? We must let go of attachments that give us joy and many that give us suffering. Like the loss of loved ones who have died and lifestyle habits that have resulted in negativity and harm to us. I hate to have to let go of cookies; they are my main source of solace after a bad day. When we have to let go of things we are dependent upon, what’s left?
Answer – the present moment – with all its emptiness, fullness, and possibilities. If we can let go of the past and not project into the future, we do have what is right now. Add to that “sharpened awareness”, which is a practice we learn in yoga.
In my yoga classes, our first pose is neck work lying on the floor. We shift away from thought to awareness. Awareness of how the mat feels under our skin, of the smell of the floor, of the pull of gravity under our ear. We must let go into the pull of gravity in order to receive the stretch in our neck. We experience and feel “letting go energy”. We learn that when you “let go”, you receive.
This is a practice we can take into our lives when we face the loss of something we are attached to that we will miss. But attachment causes suffering. How do we avoid suffering? “Be in the moment, accept what is, and don’t think.” Be filled up in what the moment brings you – whatever it is.
Ah…there we go – I just talked myself into letting go of my friend. I have to. What’s left for me: maybe freedom in areas where I need to expand and grow. So, bring on technology, and give me a cookie.
Maryann Parker teaches yoga in Edina, MN
She can be reached at 952-927-9380
parkeryoga@yahoo.com