Nature in all its forms has always inspired and taught me. When I show up with nature, fully present, it nudges me gently on my shoulder with a message. Tell me I’m not the only one this happens to? I also talk to my dog and he promptly answers in his next action, or grunt, or eye roll. 

The message the other day in these beautiful leaves scattered about, as if by hand, was on the gifts provided in letting go. I stopped dead in my tracks at the gorgeous play on pattern, texture, and color. First gift: something beautiful to see that hugged my soul reminding me that what we let go of just might bring joy to someone else. Trees are able to survive winter and hold on to critical nutrients by this cyclical process of letting fall away. Second gift: another amazing year for that tree which will benefit many. 

Have you ever noticed that when the leaves fall off the trees you can more clearly see what’s on the horizon and how to get there? Next gift: clarity of sight and action. The leaves also insulate plants during the cold winter months and as they decompose provide nutrients for the soil. Another important gift that keeps on giving. 

There are so many gifts in letting go of what no longer serves you, of what won’t get you through your next phase of life, yet so many of us hang on tightly and dearly. 

Often in order to invest in you and the life you’re building you have to make trade-offs. You have to let go of something you had, someone you once were, something you always did in order to make room for better to enter. And if you read my last post on Fueling Your Fire, when fire has too much that fuels it, it burns too hot, too fast, and its devastation runs rampant. 

How exactly do you know what’s ready to fall away?

See below for three questions I ask myself.