The Let Go is about detaching.  However, to detach does not mean we no longer care. Sometimes it means we care too much to hold on.

We like to attach to things. We attach to people, to places, to ideas, and animals.  Nothing in nature stands still. So to keep up with the flow, we attach and detach as we grow.

To detach takes more effort than to attach. Sometimes the detachment is easy, and often it is not. It can be emotionally charged and messy. Even when we know the change will happen and we ‘prepare’ for it,  we can resist, and it can still hurt.

Sometimes we enter situations that we know are temporary, and yet our tentacles begin to attach immediately.

I recently had an opportunity to examine the process of short-term attachment.

Cami was with me for 4 nights and 5 days; she was a foster. From the moment she entered my life, it felt like she had been here forever.

I knew when I said yes to fostering a 2-year-old, my heart would be tender at the end of the 5th day. Luckily for all of us, it was going to be an almost immediate transition. She had her family waiting for her on day five. I was just a stepping stone. Each day I told Cami that I was just the bridge between where she had been and the wonderful new life she was going to have. I witnessed her forming attachments to me immediately, as well as me to her. Knowing that they would be long-lasting and temporary, I struggled with my sadness and empathy for her vulnerability.

She was sensitive, and her eyes were not as much forlorn as they were hopeful that I would want as much as she wanted to become family.

I couldn’t bear for her to sleep in her own bed; she looked so small and alone. I brought her into bed with me, and all night our heartbeats comforted each other.

In the morning, she was active, wanting to play, and thankfully, Joie, my  2.5 yr old wanted to entertain her. We went to the park so she could see the bigger world. Each day she joined in my life as if she were to stay forever, and on her last day, she and Joie came to work with me. Lucky for me, my studio loves youngsters.

Knowing that Cami was a foster only made everyone love her more.

Her eyes held the key to her soul and her soul was deep with shadows of sadness that she didn’t allow to dominate.

And it was through her sadness that touched the hearts of us all. She was quiet and wanted only to be held and loved. It was as if she knew that to stay quiet was her salvation.

On our drive home, I was melancholy when a friend texted to say they were all at the park.  We stopped at the park to see her recently acquired friends and play with Henry, who is a bit younger but also full of energy and life.

When we arrived home, we had a quick dinner, then I packed up all of her belongings and put together a care package of the foods and toys she had grown to like.
Her new mom, Marilou, came to pick her up with her new sister. Reba was welcoming and kind. They seemed to understand that a bond was going to form.
Secured in the back seat, I  hugged her then waved goodbye with tears welling in my eyes.
She will be in my neighborhood so that I will see her again. My heart was full of hope that she understood that I had not also abandoned her like the many before me, but rather I was the bridge to her new life.

For 5 days that she was with me, I sent my strongest thoughts of love to her. I know that love heals all, and given her past, she had much to heal. In return and she too was healing my heart. Knowingly or not, I am not certain, but genuinely it was working.

Cami is a one in a million dogs, a Doberman Pincher.

In the short time that she was with me, every person she met wanted to keep her. I would have kept her too in a snap if Marilou had not instantly seen the specialness in her. She will become a therapy dog to spread her healing energy to patients and seniors to visit with her new mom. I could not think of a better soul to take on that job.

ALL animals touch my heart—some more than others. Cami is one of the exceptional ones. It took her many humans to make her way to me and hence to Marilou.
I thank the universe for how it works to make what is supposed to be, BE.
Joie de Vivre, my 2.5-year-old, was also sad when Cami left. However, I take her lead. Joie lives her life in the way of nature. She understands to be in the moment and to love whenever possible. It is always possible.

Cami made a cameo appearance in my life, and I will hold that dear to my heart.

Through her, I Let Go of my attachment to forever, understanding to embrace the now, to live in the moment.

Animals are amongst my greatest teachers.  Being present is the number one lesson.

Whether we want to break ties with certain people, certain things, certain situations, or certain behaviors, the process is similar.

If we can:

~Understand why you want to Let Go will assist in the detachment.  Without a concrete reason for doing it, it is more difficult to follow through. This step will aid you. The reason must be strong enough to drive you through the entire process as you detach completely.

~Look forward to what your life will look like once you Let Go of whatever it is you are detaching from. It may be painful. However, it may be more rewarding than you can imagine at the time.

~Be grateful for what was. The scars and wounds, the joys and smiles followed by sorrows, are all our growth elements. See them as the colors that make you, YOU.

Let Go’s come in many shapes and sizes.  Although this story is of a dog and may not have the magnitude as some Let Go’s, it illustrates life. Small or large, if we train ourselves to attach and detach, our lives will lighten up, always creating room to attract what is next in store for us. We will not stay rooted in the past; rather, we will be open to the future as we strive to live in the NOW.

As Ram Dass said “BE HERE NOW”

You can read more about how we form attachments in Cut the Cords and Set Yourself Free.  

And about Decluttering our Lives