Surrender = Freedom

Dear Friends,

We are midway through 2024 and I’ve been thinking about my word of the year - surrender - and how it’s played out in my life so far. 

I think the word surrender gets a bad rap. Some people view surrender as giving up. What it’s taught me is that to surrender is to cease resistance.

For me, surrender this year has manifested in many different ways. In business, the real estate market continues to be unpredictable. I’ve had to surrender the outcome of my daily activities. The only thing I can control is the tasks I know I need to do to keep our business running. As long as I am committed and consistent to those activities, I do not have control over the outcome, and when I choose to surrender and not worry about what may or may not happen, there is a level of freedom that comes with surrendering.

In my personal life, there have been people very close to me that experienced medical issues that none of us have control over. No amount of worry or stress will change the outcome so I surrender. The act of surrendering in and of itself is freeing. 

A celebratory vacation was abruptly cut short - complaining, being disappointed or being upset about it wouldn’t have changed anything … surrender. A trip to meet family that I’ve never met in person continues to get postponed. As sad as I am about it, it is simply out of my control … surrender. A few relationships I’ve been trying to cultivate aren’t working out as I had hoped. There is continual rejection. There are times when I want to stop trying yet I know if I do, nothing will ever happen. I keep trying, inviting and whatever is reciprocated, I accept and that’s all I can do … surrender. 

What I’ve learned these past few months is that all I can really do is my very best. If I am committed to doing my best in every situation and simply detach from the outcome (surrender), things will take care of themselves. 

The progress I’ve noticed is that I am doing so much better at not taking things personally (that’s a big deal), the need to “always be right” has dissipated (an even bigger deal) and that the chip on my shoulder has become a weight too heavy to bear so that “need” to prove myself is slowly melting away (a tremendous deal). What I’m left with is complete surrender … not resisting what happens and being detached to that outcome. It is a freedom and peace I’ve never experienced before.

Don’t get me wrong, it’s not easy.  However, the more I let go, the more at peace I am with myself and those around me. I pray for that same peace for you. 

With love & surrender,

Rica