LET IT BE
Making a little space for what is.
Sometimes life is not how we want it to be.
Someone makes a decision we don't like. A plan changes. We don't get the outcome we wanted. We make a mistake. Or we find ourselves somewhere we didn't expect to be.
And sometimes it's much smaller than that.
It's hot outside and you don't love hot days.
You can spend the day thinking:
It's so hot. I hate this. I can't stand this weather.
Now you're hot, and you're stressed about being hot!
Or you can say:
It's hot today. Hot days aren't my favorite. I'll wear a hat and get through it.
Nothing about the weather has changed.
You've just stopped resisting what is.
There is an idea in psychology called radical acceptance. At its simplest, it means acknowledging reality as it is right now, especially when it's something we cannot currently change.
When we resist what is, we can create more suffering for ourselves.
That doesn't mean you shouldn't feel disappointed, angry, embarrassed, sad or frustrated.
Feel how you feel.
And it doesn't mean that what happened was okay, that you approve of it, or that you wouldn't change it if you could.
It means recognizing:
Okay. This is where I am.
And beginning there.
You don't have to fix everything in the moment.
Sometimes you can just notice:
I don't have to like this. But right now, this is where I am.
And ask yourself:
Can I let this be here for now?
You can wish things were different.
And with a little kindness towards yourself, you can stop resisting.
Begin there.