We all know what it is like to hold onto something. It may be a relationship, a friendship, or even anger. Whatever it may be, it is time to let go. Often, as humans, we tend to hold onto things that are in the past -- be it mistakes, emotions, actions, things, or whatever else.
This is a natural part of our life but we have to realize it is time to let go. What is in the past is in the past; you can’t change what happened, and you can’t take back your words or your actions. It's in the past! You realize that you have grown as a person and values and ideas you had previously may not fit with the person you are now.
That, too, is OK. We need to realize that as humans we grow constantly and the only way we prevent ourselves from bettering ourselves is the struggle we face of letting go:
- You realize that the people you are around take actions that do not match their words.
- You catch yourself constantly living in the past.
- Remind yourself that past issues and anger hurt you more than the situation that is happening now.
- Create a space that reflects your present reality.
- An old grudge is still hurting you.
- Accept the truth and be thankful.
- Own your life; you only have one life and you may as well claim it.
- Make a decision to let it go.
- Forgive them -- and yourself.
Be careful of people who only tell you what you want to hear or what you expect to hear. It’s so easy to get caught up in pretty words, especially when those words are the words you want to hear. Just be aware of that person’s actions too -- after all, actions speak louder than words.
Living in the past only holds us back from growing as people. Some of us spend days thinking about a bad relationship and what you or your partner could have done to fix it. Or some of us live in the past by holding onto the most hurtful things to us because we try to understand what it is like to not hurt. By holding onto these emotions and thoughts or even events, we are living in the past. The past is the past, and it is nothing more than that. Whatever you are facing right now or whatever you are holding onto, keep in mind that it too shall pass.
No matter what is happening right now, reminding yourself what the past had to offer and what it did will not make the situation pass. You need to remind yourself that the past is a place that happened but is not happening anymore. Let go of those past places and find current ones.
Create your space that reflects you right now. This could be really simple. You could just delete an old email, old phone number, or anything that may remind you of your past. “Just keep swimming,” a very wise fish once said that.
Holding onto an old grudge feels like you have this anger weighing you down. Resentment and hatred only hold you back and keep you from seeing your present opportunities and good things that are happening now. You just have to drop this weighted anger off you and move forward. Old grudges are like old shoes that do not fit you anymore: You have to throw them out.
Although letting go or moving on is hard, facing the truth and being thankful for what you overcame is a strength. It’s important to accept the past and what honestly happened, but it is also important to understand that the things you experienced and people you met but are no longer there for you are a few things to be thankful for. Because everything you went through is the reason you are the person you are.
No one is responsible for you anymore; you are an adult. You are the one who is in control of your life to the fullest potential. Although, we tend to find people to blame someone for our mistakes or events that occurred to us. We have all these excuses to blame others, but we never face ourselves. You may not want to admit that, but you are the only person who can cause change that you want to see in your life. After all, it is your life.
Things never go away on their own; you need to commit to the “let it go.” If you don’t make this decision, then you may not be able to let it go. Making the decision of letting go is accepting the fact that you have a choice to let it go. It’s time you think about what is best for you.
We are humans; we are not responsible for other people's behaviors or actions. But we are responsible for our own. It is OK to make mistakes, but it is also OK to forgive yourself because, at the end of the day, you are the most important you there is. Forgive yourself for your mistakes, and forgive others for theirs.
