“Letting be is defined as accepting things as they are, without grasping onto them or, alternatively, pushing them away. Letting be means letting go of your attachment, not wanting more or less—allowing events to run their course. Your habit of holding on to certain thoughts and ideas may be so engrained that letting them be is no simple matter. But as your mindfulness practice grows, you begin to see the cause-and-effect relationship between clinging and suffering and consider that it might be time to think again! You start to loosen your hold on particular thoughts and let the thoughts go” (Marotta 2013, 90).
Inquiry:
Ask yourself: “Do I find myself clinging so tightly to what I want or to what I don’t want so my thoughts create stories that aren’t even true and emotions like fear and anxiety confirm my worse beliefs or place attention on how I’m relating to my thoughts by loosening the grip on needing my experience or myself to be a certain way?”
Practice:
Mindful Observation—Letting Be. Notice when you are reactively wanting more or less and not allowing events to run their course. Make a mental note Clinging, then focus not on the situation but how you’re relating to the situation and allow what’s happening to run its course.
