let go or be dragged.

“let go or be dragged.”

this is a zen proverb that i came across sometime, somewhere last week. i have had it on my mind ever since. i think letting go of things is my biggest problem. actually not things. while i started to go through my flat, preparing for the move, i found it really easy to put things into the to give away pile. things were always easy. experiences, thoughts, people, ideas – letting go of those is a whole other story. letting go always seems to indicate loss to me. i never could see the benefit of non-attachment, well, maybe in theory but not in actual praxis.

that was till i read let go or be dragged. how simple. how clear. with an immediate benefit of letting go right there, no waiting for what was at the end of the letting go rainbow. being dragged sucks. being dragged reeks of a bad guy tied to a lasso who is dragged behind a good cowboy on his horse. who would want that? it looks like it may hurt as hell and you get your clothes torn and your face dirty, not even to mention that one probably feels quite embarrassed too.

mind you i am not sure how much i am actually achieving of the letting go quite yet, but it has become my little mantra for now. so here i am, trying to let go of…

… my anxiety.

… 5kgs of body weight…and the need to even lose those 5kgs at all.

… my worries about my dad.

… my anger at my friend and the desire to walk up to him, shake him, and demand an answer as to why he is ignoring me.

… my love for wheat.

… my laziness and procrastination.

… my demand for perfection of myself and others.

… my monday grumpiness that sometimes gets me at any given day of the week.

i’m sure there is more. but i am starting with no 7 because my own demand for perfection seems to be the basis for quite a few other things i need to let go of, so why not start there and see how the list changes and hopefully shrinks.

what do you need to let go of? what is dragging you down?