This past week we were told that our 1994 “baby truck” needed to go to truck heaven. The frame is too rusted out to continue to drive it safely so we have to let it go.

It’s just a truck, yet Carey and I both loved it and thoroughly enjoyed it during the few short years that it was running well. It feels like a big loss letting it go for parts. We both felt a bit surprised about how sad we are!

Many of us know that everything is temporary and the more attached we are to anything, the more painful it is when we lose it or have to let it go.

Despite this, we still tend to resist this fact and cling to what we want, which causes us suffering.

We don’t really need a truck, but we really enjoyed having one. We’ll actually be perfectly fine living with one car given our work situation.

This is the rational mind speaking to the emotional self, which can be an important part of the process of letting go. However, an equally important part is honoring the feelings that you have as you go through your process.

Our feelings may not be rational or make sense to anyone else, but they are very real and important, regardless of what we’re going through.

You might be angry about something that happened, sad about a loss, disappointed in someone’s behavior, or have any other number of feelings. When others don’t really understand our feelings, our tendency may be to simply bury them by ignoring them or pretending they aren’t important.

You can’t actually let go of them though unless you allow them be whatever they are - fully acknowledge them without judgment - and trust that you will move on when you are ready.

Eckhart Tolle often talks about thoroughly enjoying everything and everyone around you while you can, but you must do so with the full understanding that it will not last.

This knowledge that nothing and no one will last forever is actually a helpful thing to consider.

• It gives us each an opportunity to really appreciate other people every single day.

• It’s a reminder to enjoy each wonderful moment as it occurs, and understand that unpleasant moments are inevitable but will also pass.

• It’s a chance to practice letting go before we really have to.

  Life can be amazing and easy and it can also be super challenging and hard.

  Many times, it is nothing more than our attitude towards what is happening that makes the difference!

Action Steps:

1. Consider something that you’ve had a hard time letting go of recently.

   It can be an idea, a feeling, a physical object or anything at all.

2. Now think about how your life would be different if you were able to “let go”.

   Be kind to yourself during this process. It’s not easy, but it does get easier once we recognize what we’re doing or thinking that may be contributing to our suffering and then decide what we’d like to do or think differently.