As we prepare for Saturday’s Full Moon, it’s a wonderful time to let go of anything that no longer serves us.
It’s not about forcing anything, simply not holding on so tight. Maybe consciously letting go.
I’ve been deadheading my little sunflowers and while a part of me feels guilty about the bedraggled dead heads, I KNOW the whole plant will be better off without their continuing to drain it’s energy. Its lifeforce.
I thought of the Hindu Goddess, Chinnamasta – life giver and life taker. While many depictions of her surrounded by severed heads look gruesome, there’s freedom, love and strength there, too.
Especially if you’re prone to overthinking things.
When we’re able to recognise what’s already dead within our lives, work and relationships, we can focus on healing, recovery and nurturing the new.
After all, focusing on what’s already gone or not working means the things and people that need your attention and love might metaphorically wither and die themselves.
My hair is still (‘Grow, Hair, GROW!’) far shorter than I generally like it (having shaved it completely in January after too many DIY haircuts and in need of a fresh start).
But even when I had really long hair, before I’d SEE the result at the hairdresser, my entire being would exhale in gratitude and relief when I felt the dead weight being released as the ends were chopped off.
What are you wasting energy on?
This might sound brutal (sometimes, I’m grateful for the chronic health condition which forced me to learn to better prioritise my energy in my mid 20s) but be honest with yourself.
What are you spending time on that either doesn’t feel good OR have some kind of future benefit?
Who isn’t interested / treating you as well as you deserve to be treated?
What is no longer working out?
What mental clutter can you let go of?
Physical clutter?
List everything and notice how it feels to even IMAGINE letting it go – either finishing the project or prioritising it or deciding that it can wait and giving yourself permission to put it off for a longer stretch of time?
You don’t have to rush anything
While the Full Moon energies are brilliant for illuminating what we’re ready to complete and release, you might want to give yourself an extra lunar cycle – or several – to take action.
I found out I needed to quit smoking too close to a Full Moon so I gave myself a month and reframed my intention for the New Moon (creating a new start for myself as a happy, healthy non-smoker).
This was back in February 2001 when surgery in the January had alerted me to a healthy heart and I realised that I couldn’t keep putting my body through the ringer the way I had been up until then.
That MONTH of preparation was hellish. I was at home recovering from surgery and my usual 40 a day was closer to 70 a day as I anxiously imagined life without my beloved Marlboro.
When the day finally came to quit, the idea of having to get through another month of preparation was what helped me keep going. I still occasionally get a craving (which I know not to indulge) but that was a huge step on my way to transforming my entire life.
It might be that whatever you’re imagining feels drastic and impossible but you can, in your own time and at your own pace, do it.
Be gentle with yourself and be PATIENT with yourself.
What are you ready to make room for?
You might not even know.
But if there’s any part of your life, work or relationships that feels a bit stagnant, consider letting go of whatever isn’t working with love.
Notice how you IMMEDIATELY gain additional energy.
And, in the case of my sunflowers, a whole new beautiful lease of life.
Obviously, this isn’t to say that only the easy and beautiful deserves space and time but by going with the flow and checking what feels GOOD to prioritise and complete and what feels good to let go of, you’re unblocking old energies and will notice beautiful shifts.
If you’d like my support as you amp up your self care, the Feel Better Every Day online membership programme may be of interest.
And, of course, you don’t need me or anyone else to get quiet and still – as often as possible – and ask your highest, wisest and wildest Self what each next best step might be. One way to do this is through Yoga Nidra – I hope you enjoy this free Full Moon themed practice HERE
With love,
