Nothing is Under Control

What if we stopped trying to control our lives?

What if we stopped trying to control anything at all?

What if we allowed our lives, and the lives of those we love, to simply unfold?

There’s so much vitriol in politics today. More than I’ve ever seen or remember in my 48 years on Earth. Both sides think they’re right. Both sides think the other is stupid/lazy/uneducated/(insert bad trait here). There is no clear way to resolution, so fighting erupts.

The same thing happens in our personal lives. We think our kids should study harder or spend more time outside. We think our partners should pay more attention to us, spend less money, load the dishwasher correctly, and put their dirty socks in the hamper instead of leaving them on the floor. Whatever it is that’s irritating us, they are doing it wrong and need to stop being so stupid/lazy/uneducated/(insert bad trait here). There is no clear way to resolution, so fighting erupts.

What if we just let go?

I have struggled mightily with letting go of control. Since I have freed myself from the chains of relationships that dragged me down and kept me on constant emotional alert, it’s been easier to just let things be as they are — to allow people to do whatever it is they need to do to be happy, and realize that everything is going to work out however it is going to work out.

What if, just for today, we practiced radical acceptance?  No resistance, no need to control, no concern for deadlines or what we think is right or wrong. Just open acceptance to allow life to drift over us like water over river rocks, smoothing our edges and reaching our destination, wherever that leads, without worrying how to get there.

Imagine how much more peaceful our lives and the lives of everyone around us could be if we all let go of our need to be right, and we all understood that nothing is under control.