Now as I told you a few days ago I’m still a loooong way from being a proper grown-up on many levels; but the one thing that has changed for me, particularly during the past year, is that I’ve learned to really Let It Go. That means not holding on to grievances, or grudges, or any other gremlins that can overshadow your life if you waste too much time and energy thinking about them.
Partly, I think, this is because of all the travelling I’ve done this year; in particular visiting Cambodia and Vietnam, and Japan. Being blessed by monks, meeting the Cambodian people and seeing the stunning natural beauty of Japan has definitely made me feel more centred; I mean, I’m not going to shave my head and start wearing an orange robe, or chanting, or anything, but I am still wearing my amulet and I do feel much more content.
Like the brilliant lyrics to Let It Go from Disney’s Frozen say:
“It’s funny how some distance
Makes everything seem small
And the fears that once controlled me
Can’t get to me at all!”
The more I travel, the more I see and experience and face my fears, the more time I spend on long-haul flights where I can spend some time switching off, thinking about stuff and then forgetting about it, the greater my sense of perspective.
Of course Elsa in Frozen protects herself (and everyone around her) by isolating herself. I’m definitely not a hermit, I love going out and dancing and singing and eating with my friends, but my family are the thing I care about most in the world. End of. I have reached that stage where I’m not prepared to waste valuable time with people I’m not interested in or don’t care about, and I am seriously editing my address book so that I only spend my spare time with people who matter to me. I *really* don’t care what anyone thinks or says about me any more. *sings*
“I don’t care
What they’re going to say
Let the storm rage on,
The cold never bothered me anyway!”
And the other thing I’m doing is not dwelling in the past. There’s no point in thinking about what might have been. You have to focus on the here and now, baby. Like Elsa 😉
“My power flurries through the air into the ground
My soul is spiraling in frozen fractals all around
And one thought crystallizes like an icy blast
I’m never going back,
The past is in the past!”
Amen to that, homie, amen to that.