LETTING GO

Throughout our lives we all eventually have to let go of something that we care about.  Death, marriages, jobs, homes and relationships are just some of the many things we let go of throughout the course of our lives.  If you are anything like me, I find it very hard to let go of things that mean anything to me.  I have said goodbye to people in my life as they were taken too soon, and while we can do nothing but let go, we hold on with our hearts and thoughts. 
It took me a good year to completely slowly let go of my dad after he died.  I had things that belonged to him that I kept in a rubbermaid container.  If someone even went near the box I freaked out.  I opened the box once in a while to smell his clothes so I wouldn't forget him.  I listened repeatedly to the CD we made for his memorial service.  I didn't and couldn't let go, not for a while.  Fast forward to now, five years later.  I kept a few articles of his clothing and I donated the rest.  Little by little I was able to let go of the things that were keeping me there.  Now I have trinkets of him to make me smile and memories that will never let me forget him.  Those things were just things and I learned how to let go of them.
I have been laid off from jobs and after getting over the what-am-I going-to-do-now feeling, I did what I had to do...move on.  No matter what happens in life we need to remind ourselves that no matter how bad a day can possibly get, the sun will still come up the next day and life will still go on.
Sometimes relationships come to an end for whatever reasons they do.  Perhaps we have been in a marriage that while we tried forever to fix and hold on to, we have finally come to the realization that it just wasn't meant to be and we have to let go and remember the good times and move on to get past the bad.  Maybe we have a friend or a relative with whom we have such a toxic relationhip with we decide we have to cut our ties.  While it may hurt us, we will eventually come to terms with the fact that it's the best thing for us. 
There is no amount of money that peace of mind can buy and lately I have taken this to heart in my life.
The word toxic is a contant word in my life when it comes to relationships.  I have had toxic friendships and family relationships and I have to remind myself that sometimes I have to let go even when some voice inside me reminds me that I care for these people despite our differences.
At church Pastor Jonathan has spoken of letting go and letting God.  So many times we try and control things and do things our way and we wonder and sometimes even question God why things are not going our way.  There are times in my life and I can even say lately for some of them that I think I am letting go of something and then the situation never changes because I do the same thing.  I can never decipher how I am supposed to let go. 
I guess I just have to throw caution to the wind anddo it... let go.  I am only human afterall and nobody telling me I didn't try will change the person I know I am.  Yes, I make mistakes like all of us do, but in the end, I can only do so much.  I am not going to please everyone that steps into my life and they are not going to please me.  Finally I know that letting go is just another part of life and nobody ever said it would be easy.  But I know that the choices I make are mine and will take me to where I need to be because I finally let go.