Hanging On, Letting Go

I have finished my summer holidays and now I am getting back into the swing of life in churchland! One of the many enjoyable things I did on my holidays was attend a concert by singer and song writer, Royal Woods. It was great! One of his songs was written as he leaned into living without his father who had been a huge role model and mentor for him. His father died with Alzheimer’s. Royal talked about the importance that photographs have to bring back happy memories and to help recall the person who was. That thought has stuck with me and I have done a lot of thinking about hanging on and letting go ever since. I have banks of family photos in my house. I like what they remind me of – happy times – holy times. But I also know that photographs are still and frozen in time. I think there is a difference between cherishing memories and moving forward.

How do you decide what to hang onto and what to let go of? This question covers a large swath of daily reality. Do you hang on to a grudge? Do you let go of a compliment? Do you hang on to a good memory and let go of a painful time – or is it the other way around? Do you hang onto clothes that won’t fit and items that you will never use again?

There is a lot in scripture about hanging on and letting go. Think of Nicodemous who came to Jesus in the dark of night because he couldn’t let go of his reputation even though he wanted to know more about Jesus. Think about Lot’s wife who was so grieved to leave her home and her neighbours and friends that she turned back and in doing turned to salt – was it the many tears she cried that made her so filled with salt? Thinks of Jesus’ enigmatic words, “Any one who puts his hand to the plow and turns back is not fit for the Kingdom of God.” Wow – that is hard to hear. I like looking back, thinking things over, remembering and even nursing a hurt now and then! Jesus seems to think that this energy not needed. When he spoke of plowing he was talking to the farmers in the crowd who knew that if you wanted to plow a straight furrow you have to pick a spot on the other side of the field and walk towards it. You can’t make a straight line if you keep glancing back over your shoulder to see where you have been. While it is not impossible to find scripture that talks about valuing the past and our heritage more of it talks about looking to the future with eagerness and openness.

So my resolve, after my summer vacation, is to throw out a few things – after all one of the books I read was ‘The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up’! Hanging on to things can weigh us down and hold us back. Moving forward calls us to be light and unencumbered. I am trying to lighten up – how about you?