A Time For Letting Go February 15, 2016
Posted by nrhatch in Happiness, Life Balance, Mindfulness, People.comments closed
Where’s the dividing line between success and failure?
When a door closes on one experience, be it marriage or career, should we view everything leading up to the closing door as a failure?
Should we view the experience itself as a mistake?
When we hang on to people, places, or things that detract from our happiness (out of fear, complacency, habit, or sheer stubbornness), should we view our continued commitment as a success to be celebrated?
Or as a failure to honor who we’ve become?
Nothing in life is constant.
Sometimes promises and solemn vows made to ourselves and others must be broken because we grew in directions different than expected.
That’s all part of the process, the uncertainty of life.
When we are 20 we don’t know who we will be, or what we will need, when we are 40, 60, or 80.
Socialization that encourages us to believe that we can live happily ever after, merely by holding fast to the past, is a lie.
Asking people to beg our forgiveness because they’ve changed over time is akin to asking a toddler to apologize for outgrowing his clothes ~ we might as well apologize to each other for being alive.
Longevity, standing alone, does not define success.
A happy marriage of whatever length is a success ~ even if it ends in the amicable parting of ways.
An unhappy marriage is not a success, no matter how long or how tightly the couple hangs on to their tattered vows to love, honor, and cherish.
A satisfying career, however brief, is a success. An unsatisfying career is not a success, even if it culminates in receipt of a gold watch after 40 years of faithful service.
When we stick with decisions made 10, 20, or 30 years ago, even if those decisions are no longer working for us, we are NOT making the most of the time we have left.
Taking stock of our lives, evaluating where we are, and deciding where we want to head from here, is a life-affirming practice, a cause for celebration ~ even if it requires closing a door opened decades earlier by a younger, less experienced version of our self.
Growth requires change, not constancy.
Just as day flows to night, life is a continuum of experiences, a daily journey to celebrate and savor ~ no matter how many doors have to be opened or closed along the way.
Growth requires that we expand our boundaries, step out of our comfort zone, and explore new vistas ~ we are not intended to hang on to the shoreline for the duration of our visit.
There’s a time for letting go.
Aah . . . that’s better!
Do not delay; the golden moments fly! ~ Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Spirit Lights The Way 