The Heartbreak and Beauty of Letting Go

Why saying goodbye to what you've loved creates space for growth, healing, and new beginnings.

You get this strange feeling when you’re about to leave a place.

Somewhere deep inside you know that everything is about to change and nothing will ever be the same.

Everything in your life, the people, places and details are all about to turn into memories. And as scary as that can feel, deep within your bones you know that everything leading up to this point has prepared you for this moment.

I am here…but I don’t feel like I’m really here at all.

I’m gone. Long gone.

By early morning, I will have untied the last of the ropes, only to return if the tides bring me back by their own will.

We will see if they ever do.

Lately, I’ve been in this place of deep reflection.

Maybe that doesn’t really cover it. This is something far deeper than that. All the forces of my life are converging at once and pushing me out the door to make changes that I know I need to make.

So whatever you call that, that’s what this is.

I know what I need to do in my heart but my head doesn’t quite fully understand what’s happening.

There’s this gentle but insistent pull, like whispers at the edge of my soul, asking me to do the work I’m here to do.

I’ve tried them on at times, tested them, and found that they were a part of me all along.

Waiting for me to slow down, to listen, to sink my roots into them.

Now it’s time to let those whispers nourish me through and through and teach me the lessons I need to learn.

When you’re leaving a place, there’s always that instinct to want to turn back and look at what you’re letting go of.

It can be memories, maybe moments years ago. But there’s always that desire to take one last look, to see what’s slipping into the past. To see exactly what you’re leaving behind and what it means to you.

I’ve spent years writing about it and finally coming to peace with it. I may look back from time to time, but I’ve let go of wanting to go back—and that’s a pretty big win for me.

This isn’t an escape.

It’s just me letting go. A calm goodbye. A farewell to holding on.

I’ve come to this place by diving deeply into myself, peeling away the endless layers and stripping back to the core of who I am.

This hasn’t been comfortable at all…not one bit. But it has helped me understand who I really am and the opportunity that exists in front of me.

There are fresh pages waiting to be written. New moments are coming my way. Love, passion, experiences—I welcome them into my life like moths to the light.

And all I have to do is just let go.

To take my oars out of the water. To float. To stop fighting the currents, and to trust that I am being led exactly where I need to go.

It’s time to embrace this adventure of the soul.

This journey is no longer about reaching a destination, about getting to some mythical place where everything “works out.”

I’ve come to realize that there is no island to get to—just endless layers unfolding, like rings of a tree expanding outward, each one bringing its own lessons, challenges, and joys.

The beauty lies in the process, in surrendering to it all instead of fighting against it.

And in the face of all of this uncomfortable growth, something else has emerged—a quiet, unshakable faith.

I won’t dive into all the stories behind it (maybe in future posts), but I can tell you this: it feels like freedom.

A release.
A softening of a white-knuckled grip.
A willingness to let go and allow life to carry me.
A strength in trusting the way.

It’s faith in its purest form.

Deep feels right now.

In this moment, there’s also sadness.

I know that always comes with leaving somewhere you’ve grown to love. In many ways I love this place—the people, the moments of pure joy and even the ones where I suffered.

I’m grateful for how they’ve shaped me into the person I am today and the person I will become.

Without all of that, I wouldn’t be here. I wouldn’t be ready for all of this.

And yet, beneath that sadness, there’s a deep current of steady and unyielding resilience calling me forward.

It’s time.

It’s time to explore the unknown.

No oars, just the current, the whispers of the heart, and a faith that grows stronger every day.

Sometimes, losing yourself is the only way to find out who you really are.

You think you’re just a drop of water in the ocean. But the truth is, you’re the whole thing. You’re all of it. You always have been.

So go, off into the unknown.

And if you never come back—

What a wonderful adventure.

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Here’s how you can integrate this:

Intention: To embrace the process of letting go as a way to create space for new beginnings.

Reflection: What are you holding onto that might be preventing you from stepping into the next chapter of your life? Reflect on the lessons these things have taught you, and imagine how releasing them could open you up to major growth.

Practice: Take a moment today to write down one thing, memory, person or idea that you’re ready to let go of. Acknowledge it’s impact on your life so far and express gratitude for the lessons it’s come with. Then, choose a symbolic act of letting go—writing on a piece of paper and burning it (please be safe), pray and meditate, say goodbye in your journal, or setting an intention to move forward and not look back. Reflect on how this makes you feel and how it changes your perspective.

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Thank you for being here,
—Evan