Why Can't We Let Go?
I have never been any good at letting go. Whether it's been right or wrong for me, I can never figure out how to loosen my grasp. I dig my nails deep into its flesh, tethering it to me whilst I drag it from room to room, burdening my every step. I would still have my baby teeth if I found a way to superglue them in my mouth (gorilla glue does NOT work, trust me). It may be humanity's fear of moving on or our crippling remembrance of the past, but oftentimes, we just don't let things go. It's never because we truly love the thing or because it's good for us. Alcoholics don't cling to beer because it makes them better; they cling because they have convinced themselves they need that thing to survive.
We become attached to the things around us, and we convince ourselves that we must keep everything in our lives all the time because that's what's keeping us afloat. Without it, we sink into the great unknown. We crave stability like a drug and use obsession and reliance on our circumstances to feed our fix. Our identities get placed on the things around us rather than on who we truly are.
Every good thing that comes into our lives gets chalked up to luck, the world threw us a bone, and now we must choke on it to show our gratitude because we don't know when the next ribeye will be cooked.
The problem with relying on circumstances for stability is that circumstances are ever-changing. It's like putting a twenty-dollar bill in a river and expecting it to be there for you tomorrow. The river is going to run, flow over rocks and ledges because that's what a river is meant to do. The same with circumstances.
That's why we feel unstable all the time, because we are looking for stability in something that is built to change. We have to stop giving so much credit to our circumstances. Yes, it's great that they're here, but who brought them? It's you, you are the magnet for everything within your life. Every good thing you have is only made possible because you exist.
It's like seeing a flourishing coral reef and giving credit to the fish. The fish are definitely a factor in its success, but it would've never gotten to that point if the environment wasn't suitable. Think of yourself as the coral reef and the things in your life as fish. The fish will move and die, star in the 2003 hit Pixar film, Nemo. But as long as the ecosystem is thriving, there will be plenty more fish to replace them.
The good things in your life aren't a fluke; the world only rewards what is given to it. You are a beacon of light and love that attracts every good thing in your life. You are not powerless to fate; you are your own fate. You decide the course of your life, and the life you will lead will not be empty of goodness. Do not attach to things that already have their foot on the gas.
You are bigger than the things around you. It's okay to loosen your grip. Remember, anything that can be taken away was never truly yours to begin with.
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