Releasing Resistance

“Abundance is a process of letting go; that which is empty, can receive.” – Bryant H. McGill

In this world there are two types of people. Those who like to purge things, and those who like to store and collect things. For my whole life I have been a purger. I get great satisfaction out of going through my closet and donating or giving away things that no longer fit or that I no longer wear. If my husband was not a lover of all things music, I would gladly get rid of all of my cds as I no longer use them in this digital world. I love to go through my fridge and get rid of things that have expired or that we do not eat. I find immense joy in finding a clean slate to start over with whether it be a newly washed fridge or a whittled down closet space. I do not feel the need to hold on to things. I identify my taste and lifestyle as somewhat of a minimalist.

However there is one area of my life where things tend to linger on even though I no longer want them in my life. That area is stored energy that I hold on to in my body. It frustrates me that I spend so much time trying to release energies that no longer serve me. I am a practitioner of Reiki and this tendency makes me feel like a bit of an imposter in my spiritual practice. Reiki is a Japanese technique for stress reduction and relaxation that also promotes healing. I know all about how to unblock energy centers in my body, but it is still something I struggle with. It is hard for me to release feelings of anger and frustration, even though I know the feelings fester inside of me. I notice it by the fact that I think back on things that happened before and think about how they could have been different. The reality of it is, that these relationships are in the past. Nothing I do can change that. What is needed is to just let it go and appreciate it for what it taught me. I remember arguments I had in the past with people and even bring them up again in current conversations to prove a point. But that situation has passed and bringing it up again will not change the outcome. It is such a pointless waste of energy to allow it to hold space in our bodies. Imagine all the time you are spending going over things from the past when that time could be spent building new relationships and coming up with a solution to current problems.

I believe many people get stuck in the rut of holding on to energy of the past and we find it hard to let it move through us. I believe that these “stuck” energies can cause sickness and overall unhappiness. I have spent a lot of time reading about this topic as of late and have come to some conclusions. Please allow me to be a bit esoteric in this entry.

Resistance. I guess that is what I am really talking about. I have a need to resist letting go of certain emotions and connections. When relationships change or end, I struggle to let go of them.. I know in my head that the relationship has run its course and has served its purpose, but I still exert energy on thinking about how it could have been different. I do not spend the same energy on a sweater that I donate, even if I really loved that sweater before. It doesn’t fit anymore so I can easily let it go. Why is it not as easy for us to do that with situations and relationships? I believe the root of this problem is that humans do not like when life doesn’t follow our plan. Even though it may lead to a better and smoother life for us, we are unwilling to just let go and see what happens. It would be so much easier to let energies pass through us so they were not lurking in dark recesses inside of us to pop back out when something has triggered a thought of it. Life would be so much more peaceful if we just let go of energies that do not assist us anymore. Really let them go. Not just say “I’m over that” and then bring it up next week or next month again. We have not really let it go. We resist. How refreshing would it be to release feelings and situations so that the next time there was a problem, we would only have to deal with that one issue and not the 5 or 6 that have been sitting in wait to be brought to the surface again.

Hopefully if we begin to notice when we are paying attention to something that has already passed us on our life journey, we can stop wasting time and energy on those areas. I know with my illness, I have often blamed myself for relapses because if I just hadn’t pushed myself so hard or had got more rest or taken the right medicine, maybe I would have been ok. The reality of it is that I was in a relapse. It doesn’t matter why. I couldn’t change what had happened previously so why bother ruminating on it. Spending my time on how to heal in the now is a much more effective way to deal with the situation. Stay present. Deal with what is in front of you rather than what is behind you. I hope all of us can move a step closer to releasing what is in the past and what is not longer serving us. I am going to try to let go of arguments like I can let go of the expired salad dressings in my fridge. I am going to aim to be a minimalist in what energy I allow to reside in my body. Especially if it has passed its time of usefulness. I will only allow energy that pushes me forward and does not hold me back.

Much love,

Christine

P.S The picture featured in this blog is one I did in a class in Book of Days taught by Effy Wild. Effy Wild