LETTING GO & TRUSTING ABUNDANCE
As I count down the days until I leave Denver to move to L.A. (2 days), I find myself in a spiritual practice of letting go and trusting abundance. Through this process I've become more aware of my relationship to material things and my physical environment. Each thing matters more because I have to make a commitment to it. Take it with me or leave it behind?
And it's not just material objects, but time. The move requires of me that I be conscious of how I spend my time. So I have a much more conscious life, and a deeper commitment to everything in my life, every choice I make in my life.
My housing situation has been rather precarious for the past two years which has forced me into this practice of letting go since early 2015. I have moved from place to place to place, part of which included backpacking and camping for six weeks in the summer of 2015, some traveling and camping this year, and living with a host of roommates while I figured out what I wanted to do with my life, and then settled on moving to L.A.
Finally I have whittled my possessions down to what I can pack into my car and a few things I will store in a tiny corner of a friend's garage. Living this way has helped me get very clear on what I actually use. That, in itself, has gone a long way to helping me let go of things I don't really need.
How, you may ask, does this relate to Non-Violent Communication? Well, one of the fundamental principals of Non-Violent Communication is letting go of attachment to outcomes. Another is knowing what we need. And a third is being conscious of how we feel about things.
Communication isn't just the words we speak. It's about how we commune. It's about how we relate. It's about becoming more conscious of how we live in the world, how we impact the world, and how it impacts us.
The truth is, I've spent most of my life in a state of fear and scarcity, lacking trust and wanting to shore things up. This is true about the way I related to other people, to the world, to myself, and to life in general. I didn't really trust or believe that my needs would be met. I didn't feel safe or trust in abundance.
Over the years as I've studied and practiced Non-Violent Communication, I've come to discover that I am empowered to meet my needs, that I can feel safe, and that I can trust in abundance. But I had to believe these things first before I could make them real in my life.
So now, when I think of letting go... in any way... surrendering... letting go of attachment to outcome... it's so much easier because I really do feel safe and empowered now. I really do trust in abundance. I trust in the flow. I trust that I can step up to the River of Abundance and quench my thirst, whatever it may be.
Whatever needs I have, I trust they can and will be met.