The art of letting go
Dear you, you know what to do
Soon as I stop worrying Worrying how my story ends That's when things start happening When I stopped looking at back then When I let go and I let God
Oh dear, here we go again - another vulnerable read. Since you’re here already, you might as well strap in for the ride - seatbelts on, thoughts cleared, lets hear what this interesting 21 year old has to say.
I truly believe that letting go is one of, if not the most difficult decision an individual can ever make. It is a decision that incorporates aspects of the past, present and future. When a decision affects all three scopes of ones lifespan, you know it’s serious. How you ask? Well you think about and make the decision to let go in the present. In the future, you will still continue to think about the decision you made. As if that wasn’t enough, the past continues to haunt you with the two words “what if.” It’s funny when you think about it - if you don’t laugh then you’ll cry, so you really have to laugh it off when making such decisions. The greater the decision, the greater the laughter.
Dear you, learn to draw
My father was an artist. He knew how to draw and it’s a talent I wish I had picked up. I remember for one of my birthdays as a child, he bought me an electronic painting device, nothing high tech, but at the time I was amazed by such a present. Unfortunately, I didn’t practice enough - I didn't put in enough time to learn such an art, to learn to draw. As a child, I must have thought if I practiced for a week I could be like my dad, but I soon came to realise this was most certainly not the case.
An art takes practice, an art is never perfect, but you cannot be complacent in your aim to improve in that same art. Think of letting go as an art. Letting go takes practice, letting go is never perfect, but you cannot be complacent in your aim to improve in your ability to let go.
My close friends and family know I am a hoarder. I cannot let go of things - I just hold on to stuff, and when they can’t fit in my room, I put them in a box and store them away. Similarly to relationships - I just can’t seem to let them go - it rips away at me to let these things go. Through introspection, I realise that its literally due to my fear of not finding something better. You could say my inability to see the future is my greatest downfall. My humanity is my greatest downfall. What I would do to see the future, the literal cure to most, if not all of my anxiety - but unfortunately that just isn’t a possibility in natural cases.
Dear you, remove every barrier
So what is the management plan. If you’ve reached this point, you’ve understood that letting go is an art that takes practice. You’ve also understood that we fail to do so because we are fearful that nothing better will ever happen again in the future. So practically, how can we let go.
I was conversing with a friend last week about my struggle to let go from a particular situation - and oh do I love my blunt friends - but he essentially broke down to me that with the 7.8 billion people on this earth, what are the chances of me not meeting someone better than the one I am “hoarding.” What stood out to me was he further went to explain that I am keeping barriers preventing me from letting go in my life. I am holding on to these barriers for dear life and they are preventing me from letting go - from friendships, ideas, education, my spiritual/physical/psychological life, all of the above.
What are you trying to say Ayo? I am saying rid yourself from all barriers preventing you from letting go. Every minute you keep those barriers in your life you set yourself back 10 times more. It’s an easy concept to understand, but difficult to put into action - I get that - but we must. It has to be put into action. For our dreams, ambitions, sanity, health, it has to be put into action. So make a promise with yourself, or better yet make a promise to God. A promise that you will let go, but more so, you will remove every barrier preventing you from letting go. It won’t be easy - but learning an art is never easy. After all, to draw takes practice. And although practice doesn’t make perfect, it sure does make improvement.