What Is Letting Go?

SO, HOW ARE YOU?

How are you coping with what you’re seeing on TV, Facebook, Twitter, Whatever?

Ya, me too.  Just sorta/kinda holding my breath.  All the time. 

Which made the Breathwork weekend especially timely.  Trevor Yelich holds a very safe space, which made taking a really BIG breath a really good thing!

We used Dyads to start this Breathwork – in a dyad, two people sit across from each other and take turns contemplating/communicating, asking/listening.  

The Listener provokes the Contemplator into communication through direct questions, replying ONLY with “Thank you”  to acknowledge the thoughts ~ and then the roles are switched.  

So you can imagine that the questions are most important.  And behaviours.  All temptation to rescue anyone from silence or to lead them where you think they should go, resisted.  Listen only; no “teaching”, no “talking” ~ and no reacting!  No nodding.  No smiling.  No nuthin’. Just listen.  NO emotional content.  That, in itself, is an event.  Another is KEEPING your attention on the other.  Completely.  This is “live inquiry“… 

Our theme this weekend was LETTING GO. 

HERE ARE THE SERIES OF QUESTIONS WE USED:

1)  Tell me what’s up…  Contemplator communicates any feelings that are present…
2)  Tell me what “letting go” is… Contemplator communicates what occurs to them…
3)  I invite you to let go…  Contemplator sits in/with this offer…
4)  Tell me how that feels…  Contemplator explores what this offer provoked…
5)  What is going on for you… Contemplator expresses direct exploration of the moment…

It made for a juicy weekend.  LOVED the Friday night session.  Had a less impactful Saturday morning session, and just could NOT participate on Saturday afternoon.  Why not?  Well, I had been triggered by something in my life into some anger which created some fear and then  I didn’t like the music.  That’s right.  Ridiculous, right?  Its interesting to see what we do when triggered, isn’t it?  I couldn’t deny I was triggered, but I still wanted it ALL to be about something outside of me.  I contemplated not returning Sunday.  Yup.

And what I came to during my contemplation of my REACTION was that I was really triggered by the Dyads.  And what I believe “letting go” IS.  

And the thought that I have NEVER let go of ANYTHING in my life didn’t seem like an exaggeration at all.  

And as I checked in with the group Sunday morning, what came through was that what Letting Go is NOT, is pushing AWAY.  

I realized that many of the aspects of self that I WANT to let go of are parts of my self that were created to protect during childhood.  And that these pieces of my self were not necessarily READY, not PREPARED, to go and they were in fact horrified that I keep insisting they go – and are heartbroken I don’t even have the courtesy to say “Thank you” – as suffering CREATED and these inner BEINGS have been abandoned, despised, rejected or USED in a PANIC when the particular fear that created them is poking their wound.  

They can’t just go away because I want to LET GO of the behaviours!  

And so the Sunday Breathwork was a long (3-hour) peace-making with my inner daycare, and high school, and another step in right relationship to them.  

And so the Sunday Breathwork was the best I’ve ever experienced.  Ever.

From deep within, as a witness to myself as a body, this vehicle for breath, my awareness goes to another in the room who is making loud sounds…then I’m aware that my Awareness to another is ALWAYS present, but my attention to the Awareness to the Other EXCITES the EVER-Present Awareness.

This was so cool.

There was the sensation of physically expanding.  Well beyond the body.  Witness to Awareness.

And this Awareness INFORMED the mourning through COMPASSION for the other…then for ALL.

This Awareness informed the awareness of the suffering, with DETACHMENT, yet FULL Awareness, and each cry was FULLY expressed, the nuance of every drop of suffering fully FELT with and by the compassionate Awareness.

What was left was a sense of detachment from the suffering and the feeling of a JOB WELL DONE.  Truly spent, fully felt, clearly seen.

And LET GO WITH LOVE.  At last.  Again.

Letting go with Love – from your Heart! – IS the Awareness’s PURPOSE!

Gratitude is the gift of letting go.

To me, Gratitude is a STATE, a RESULT of something – usually a change of perception.   A glimpse of forgiveness for your Self AND what you are letting go OF!  A RESPITE from suffering.

There is a knowing that what we TRULY are IS that Awareness that we can became AWARE of, and its another step forward in healing the wounds that drive.

Is our ONLY real RESPONSE-ABILITY here to HEAL from the thought that we are NOT Awareness, aware of itself, experiencing itself, and BE FULLY ABLE, in Awareness, to shift the FLOW of our Awareness with our ATTENTION? Hehehe.  Maybe even I didn’t follow that.

So much simpler when the Breath has swept some space into the SELF, in the Heart of the Matter.

And it is always right there! Right under your nose! 

Breathe Deeply, Dear Friend
Kathie