This might be the most helpful thing to remember in times of distress. I really love this quote from James Baraz:

Mindfulness is simply being aware of what is happening right now without wishing it were different; enjoying the pleasant without holding on when it changes (which it will); being with the unpleasant without fearing it will always be this way (which it won’t).

We’re so afraid that the good day is gonna be gone too soon and that the bad day will last forever. Nothing is gone too soon and nothing lasts forever. Everything changes. All the time. That is the only constant. We know this.

Living life with an open palm means being with what is and witnessing it come and go, without grasping on or trying to push things away. We know that most unhappiness lives in the gap between reality and our expectations of what reality should be. How can we practice being with what is instead and spare ourselves from unnecessary suffering?

I don’t have a definite answer, because I definitely do both grasp and push, on the daily. But I do notice my daily awareness practice through meditation helps. Talking about it with other woke people helps. Showing compassion with myself as I fail is instrumental.

Some say awareness is 50% of change. Well, let’s celebrate every second of awareness then, shall we?

What are your best tips for letting go and letting be as life moves through you?

With all my love,

Helena