Today, Surrender
“Maybe we don’t have as much control as we think. ”
Surrender to the unknown.
Surrender to the stillness.
Surrender to nature and contemplative walks.
Surrender to people with whom you disagree;
everyone is doing their best.
Surrender to your own walls and your sweet loved ones.
Be close and be grateful.
Surrender to staying in.
Surrender to presence.
Surrender to books and to art.
Surrender to your fears;
you are human and you are loved.
If you are sick, surrender to your illness.
Get rest.
Allow.
Heal.
“Surrender allows some of the best parts of us to rise to the surface, like presence, joy, humility, acceptance, forgiveness, and gratitude.”
When we surrender, we release the burden of needing to know all the answers. We release our grip on whether or not we are doing the right thing, because we understand there is only so much we can do. We can remain vigilant and still surrender. We can take care of ourselves, our loved ones, our health, and the health of others, in ways that make sense to us. But we don’t need to obsess over the unknown because we leave that part up to something bigger. As a world, we are being asked to humbly surrender in this moment. We are being challenged to prepare as best we can, and then wait.
We don’t like the groundlessness of not knowing. But our footing can find solid ground in the surrender.
We want control, because we are used to having ownership and responsibility over our life. We take pride in our accomplishments because we have a hand in everything that surrounds us, our careers, our families, our choices and our goals. Everything happening in the world today is different, new, and massive. It is clear that this is outside of us.
That said, maybe everything is outside of us. Maybe we don’t have as much control as we think. Maybe everything we have created and manifested in our life has arrived partly from our own doing, and partly because there was a letting go involved. Maybe we did all we could to get to where we are today and we left the rest up to our version of a higher power, or something outside our human capacity.
Today is an opportunity to bravely and fiercely surrender to all that is. Something sweet happens in the surrender. We become humble, we become faithful, and we abide. We sit still for the first time in a long time and after the initial discomfort and anxiety we think, wow, this feels pretty good.
Who would you be if you let go? Would you be more relaxed? Less anxious? Would you feel relief? Lighter?
Surrender allows some of the best parts of us to rise to the surface, like presence, joy, humility, acceptance, forgiveness, and gratitude.
Surrender gives you a break. For today, and the coming days, you get a break. When I stop resisting, and stop my mind from churning, letting go feels like a calm breeze across my shoulders.
Maybe, when this is all over, you’ll like the practice of surrender so much, you’ll implement it in other aspects of your life. Maybe you’ll back off from busy-ness and over-doing it. Maybe you’ll let go of unnecessary tasks and expectations. Maybe you’ll change.
