Happy Let it Go Day! No, this isn't a day to dress like Elsa and go sing in the snow. But if that's your thing I'm not one to judge, especially if you're able to find snow in North Carolina in June. Everyone has probably experienced those nagging regrets and grudges that tug at their souls for weeks, months, or even years. It doesn’t even matter how much time has passed after the people, jobs, or situations which once made those negative feelings important ceased to be part of their life. It's an unfortunate part of human nature that it can still be so very hard to let go of these things. This is an experience we all share at one point or another in our lives. Most people never manage to move past it and the few that do almost seem to have superpowers. We have all had times in our lives when it felt important to take every opportunity to demonstrate to that ex, former coworker, or classmate how well things were going without them, or at least had a strong temptation to do so. But isn’t it finally time to move on and let go of all of those negative emotions that tend to drag everything down? Even a temptation not acted upon chews up your precious time and emotional resources. And for what? There's certainly no material gain to that. And whatever pleasure it gives you is short lived and ultimately hollow. Whatever the original problem was isn't solved, the emotional wounds aren't healed, and if that person didn't care enough to treat you better in the first place they certainly don't care enough about you now to think "Oh, yeah. You got me now!" In fact, you're probably going to feel even worse because you know deep down that you're now the one being the dick. At best, you've now lowered yourself to their level; at worst, you've given them the moral high-ground. Regrets are not particularly useful to anyone. They tend to weigh on people’s consciences and leave them with a deficit of joy, often at a time when those who have been wronged have long since forgotten them. Even if the other person hasn’t offered forgiveness, it is an important step toward healing for people to learn to forgive themselves. If we are honest with ourselves we can admit that we aren't always upstanding with other people too. This helps with the process of moving forward without guilt or bitterness and allows people to endeavor to live a better life in the future. But how do you do this? Write down a list of the things that are regrettable, such as fear, holding grudges, guilt, regrets, the past, excuses, and toxic people who just make life miserable, and spend some time letting them go. To do this, simply work on trying to relax and let that guilt and fear vanish from the moment and, eventually from the whole of life. One example of a way to symbolize this is by throwing that list into a fire to watch them burn. Let the smoke and embers carry those worries to the sky and wind, where they’ll be erased. Since these things can be easily forgotten, go ahead and use Let It Go Day to create some reminders that will move forward throughout the other days of the year. Whether it’s something as simple as hanging a poster of Disney’s Elsa singing the song, or painting a canvas filled with inspirational ideas, use this day to set those reminders.
