Let Things Happen

That Little Voice 

As we boarded the plane and took our seats, my husband asked me a simple question: “Can we let things happen and not make things happen?”

One would think this probe would elicite an uncomplicated response of “Yes, of course.” But he looked at me steadily and asked it again, “Can we let things happen and not make things happen?” The query came as we embarked on a one-year break from our current established lives to experience a carefree exploration of Australia and New Zealand. And I, of course, had no idea what he was talking about.

This trip was about, seeing new landscapes, meeting new people, seeking new adventures, and celebrating a new marriage, then returning to the lives we had left, renewed but unchanged, and full of exciting stories.

But as the plane took to the air, I sat wondering if I could give up planning and controlling and live without a calendar filled with meetings, phone calls, tasks, and deadlines.

Little did I know, my world would never be the same when I let things happen, trusting the right outcomes were waiting for me to let go and trust the universe.

Freeing myself from the burdens of control and shucking the need to believe I was safer if I directed everything were not easy habits to break nor ones I gave up happily or noiselessly. Afterall, I was important, I was the boss of my life, I was the one in charge, and I had the perfect answers.

We started this odessey with reservations for our first night’s lodging, and no other plans as to where we would travel the next 364 days, sleep the next 364 nights, or what adventures we would experience during the upcoming year. We had to let go and trust what felt right, whether to stay in a place one day, one hour, one week and where to go to next. We drifted across landscapes on buses and trains, heading we knew not where, just playing in the freedom of choosing what felt good.

Letting things happen doesn’t mean we didn’t plan activities and side trips, but if we felt like changing those plans in mid-stream, we did it.

When we returned to a life of schedules I had a huge adjustment fitting back into a world of requirements, following orders defined by a job, and forgetting to let things happen.

That is, until retirement. Once again I was allowed to let go of demands made by others. I was set free to find new avenues to follow, new ways to live, and a less stressful life style. There are days when I raise my hand to answer a call to do something, but now I quickly remember that old question Jack asked 40 years ago: “Can I let things happen and not make things happen?”, and I know the answer: “Yes, I can, and yes I will.”