DanaAtkin

Over the last week, we have been cleaning out our spare room.  As I was trudging through all the old sentimental stuff and all the not so sentimental stuff, I wondered – why do we hold on to so much stuff?

We keep things because we get used to having it around – It makes us feel comfortable.

We keep things because they remind us of someone – it makes us feel reminiscent or young.

We keep things because someone we love gave it to us – it makes us feel loved, appreciated, beautiful.

We keep things because it might come in handy one day – it makes us feel hopeful or inspired or safe.

We keep things because they might fit us again, some day – they make us feel excited about the future.

But these things, while they sit in a cupboard or under the stairs in the dark, only ever come out to the light when we go through a spring clean. They hold us back and they weigh us down, sometimes without us even knowing it. And often, that stuff is only hiding more stuff underneath it!

When we need space, we go through a spring clean. We bring out all those old things and throw out a few here and there. Then we hide all that stuff again until we need more space and so the process of bringing those objects out to the light for sorting begins yet again.

The same goes for our emotional wellbeing. We often hide our “stuff” at the back of the mind (sometimes so far back that it’s actually in the subconscious) and it’s only when we find ourselves overwhelmed, in pain or in crisis that we seek out those things in order to spring clean our thoughts and emotions for clarity of mind and when we do, we feel lighter, happier, more relaxed and sometimes more free. Life runs a little more smoothly. This is because our body is no longer holding onto it, it no longer needs to carry the weight of the past.

We can, however, forget that we have a choice in letting things go. It’s human nature to hold on to events, people or situations that no longer do us any good to hold on to for fear of being alone, out of work or unloved, just to name a few. That’s not to say that these fears or concerns aren’t legitimate and in fact, there are many instances when you need to ensure that items like an income for instance are catered for – they do require some thought.

Letting go of old clothes is one thing, but letting go of bigger things will likely take a few rounds of bringing them out of storage for sifting through, so please be patient with yourself. It took me three years to finally get up the courage to leave my secure, long-term employment to chase my dream of becoming a Kinesiologist. It was a classic case of Lather, Rinse, Repeat: I can choose to let go.

What can you start letting go of today?

Outworn clothes
Past Hurts
Old Flames
Fears
Limiting Beliefs

Lather, Rinse, Repeat: I can choose to let go.

As always, download and save the mantra to your phone home screen, your desktop or print it and pin it up somewhere. When you see it, say it and if you think someone you know might benefit from this mantra, share it.