When it's Time to Let Go of the Story

We cling.

That’s what we do as human beings. We become attached because this is what we are wired to do.

We attach to people and belongings, but also to our stories and ideas about who we are. It’s healthy to attach to people, our pets, our homes, and even our possessions. These are all wonderful as long as we don’t become defined by them.

But when we become attached to who we think we are and our stories, we limit our ability to become who we are meant to be, and the possibility of who we can become.

These stories we carry about ourselves define us and as expected become the identity we carry through the world. This is the persona, to ego, or the Self.

There comes a time when these stories no longer serve us. We know this because we become unhappy and struggle with who we are or how we are living. This is a sign that the stories and the identity we have been existing with are no longer working.

But stories are sticky.

We have been writing and rewriting these stories our entire lives. We have even allowed other people to contribute to our stories. Letting them go is challenging because what will there be once the story is gone?

This is where things get interesting. It’s like being reborn. You get to become the person you are. The person you were born to be.

The first step is to assess who you are by imagining who you would be without your stories.

How would you relate? Where would you live? What would you do for pleasure? For work? Who are your friends? Who do you spend time with? What do you do for fun?

This process can feel overwhelming because it’s never easy to create something from nothing. The imagination is powerful, however, so creating the space to reflect on the idea of who you are meant to be is essential.

By releasing the stories we allow something else to grow. By releasing the ego we make space for the truth of who we are to surface.

We must learn to be empty, to let go, to release, and most importantly we must be brave enough to abandon what we know to embrace what is possible.