Having faith to LET GO.

Desiring isolated beaches requires letting go of fear of rocks and surf.
The world as it stands is not geared to make desires the vocal point of our lives, is it?
Desires are different beasts and differ hugely from everything we have learned about success and goals.
Desires are delicious anticipations of great things to come.
Many of us experienced the feelings of desire when we were children looking forward to Christmas, birthdays and holidays.
As an adult many of us have remained at that ‘childish’ level of desire, looking forward to ‘things’ , but the difference is that once we got what we desired we still were left with feeling unfulfilled.
But once we allow desires to mature from that initial child level they become more like a ‘calling’.
I now prefer the word ‘calling’ over desire as it better describes how adult desire works, it calls us forward.
Saying that I have a ‘calling’ for my return to nature feels more accurate.
‘Calling’ also makes more sense when I look at how my ‘calling’ is taking shape. It is not always fun and I never really associated letting go and having faith and being scared stiff with the word desire from my childhood and for some time that had me confused.
What I have found and understand now that I consider desires to be more like a ‘calling’;
having a ‘calling’ requires a transition into a different way of Be-ing and Do-ing.
In short we, human beings, need to let go, to change how we operate and learn to operate at the level our desires call us.
The biggest thing I have learned from my ‘call’ to live differently in nature is that it requires letting go of the tried and true, it has me jumping into the unknown and having faith.
All things that are unfortunately in short supply if you look around you.
Not many of us seem to have faith and trust; predictability is our middle name and the way we hold on to materialism and our beliefs says it all. I was no exception.
BUT . . . No change, no go.
When following my ‘calling’, I have found myself hanging onto the cliff by my finger nails unwilling to jump. ’Calling’ or not, jumping is never easy, is it?
At one point I had to let go of my job.
Money and my job were at that time my biggest imprisoner of all, they had me NOT aligned with my ‘delicious anticipation’ of doing life differently in nature and yet I hung on for dear life before jumping!
To add insult to injury I was also being out-of-integrity because I ignored John’s income stream and support. Ouch, that wholesome ‘what is so’ was hard to swallow once I saw that.
At that time my job had reached its ‘use by’ date. I started to bite the hand that fed me, I was no longer able to add value as I had withdrawn my support and in such a state I was focused on anything but desires.
Letting go of the job was necessary for me at that time to allow me to focus on more productive things, to pay attention while working out my calling and how to return to who I really am and how to trust.
I could NOT live in the old way and at the same time deliciously anticipate my future.
I needed to jump to operate at the level my desire called me to and while my ego resisted the jump big time I started to realize I could NOT be half pregnant. It was one or the other and finally I jumped and lo and behold John was there to catch me. Me of little faith.
And it didn’t stop with that jump either.
At least I was still in the city living in the house we owned, reasonably close to my daughters and friends. So when worse would come to the worst, I had always somewhere to run to and the chance to earn a bit of money here and there when necessary.
BUT as I became more intimate and knowledgeable about my ‘calling’, another jump awaited me; the jump into the unknown of rural living. In hindsight that seems obvious BUT at that time I wanted the security of the city AND the joy of rural life, what was that about being half pregnant again?
However I have gained a lot from letting go and from jumping, I am pleased to report.
Letting go simplified my life and that makes a huge difference in freedom and finances.
With letting go, liabilities that were an emotional, time and financial drain disappeared.
Commuting, city entertainment, needy friends all gone; it is amazing how a city can drain you.
Since I have increased my time in nature from 7 weeks annual holidays to total emersion, I have become congruent in who I desire to be and who I am. I eat, I work and I live where I love to be and that is awesome AND very healthy.
I have removed distractions such as television, newspapers, neighborhood and work environment noise and in the emerging quiet I can hear what is important.
After jumping I have become a lot smarter, more creative and as a result I see solutions where before I used to see none AND this is helping me to cope with the unknown. I have a growing ability to think for myself and my need to copycat other people’s success is diminishing.
Oh sure, there were times when I was tempted to copycat Leo Babatau of Zen Habits to get his success and those dollars. But as Leo obviously uniquely follows his desires, how could I ‘uniquely’ copy him?????
I am finding my own way in the internet world by paying attention and fighting off the urge to go for quantity rather than quality. I learn from my blogging community by paying attention, NOT by fearfully rushing around. By paying attention I am seeing all your wonderful contributions and I have taken the opportunity to have them add even more value by writing the weekly Friday posts.
I am also realizing that my holy cow of owning a house is no longer that holy. Renting in our current situation allows for flexibility and freedom and it gives us financial relief as the mortgage is gone. THAT was a big one, letting that security blanket go but I sure can see the win in it now.
My ‘calling’ to live differently in co-creation with Nature Intelligence has me learn and unlearn a LOT.
I understand now why desires have NOT lead me down a path of roses. I now realize that until I adjusted to the rhythm of their way of operating we were not collaborating very well!
And all that learning and unlearning is now calling you to WomenLikeMe, if you so desire. I highly recommend you do if you desire a ‘calling’ that deliciously has you anticipating your future. A scary but exciting ride awaits you if you register which if you want to, you can do today.
Related Posts
27 Comments to “Having faith to LET GO.”
Leave a reply
Subscribe to comments with RSS or TrackBack to 'Having faith to LET GO.'.
Wilma, what a gorgeous post that is bound to speak to so many souls. I love what you said about growing smarter and more creative post-jump, seeing solutions where before you used to see none. Funny how adaptable we humans are, yet our egos want us to forget that.
Everything you wrote reminded me of the quote that’s attributed to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.: Faith is taking the first step even when you don’t see the whole staircase.
Funny how those stairs appear exactly when and how we need them, once we TRUST.
Much love to you, Wilma!
Dearest Megan, do I hear experience shining through your words?
Do you think you have jumped with the setting up of your healing center?
The beauty for me of jumping into the unknown has been that I did get to access better and different solutions as another world opened up.
It is amazing how little we can think differently when we stay in the tried and true. We are not even aware of what we do not think.
Jumping sure is frightening BUT the experience once done is so valuable and so rewarding and it is the only way to experience trust.
And once you know the staircase will unfold, once you know you are smarter and you will find solutions you never ever dreamed of, the world of desires and calling has unfolded. Life how it is supposed to be can begin.
Yes, learning to let go and jump to answer your calling sure has its merits and I do desire that you are jumping. Much love, Wilma
I find it interesting that it boils down to trust in so many ways and in so much of our lives. We have to step off the cliff and trust that we can fly even if we don’t see our wings. The first step to flying is not having wings but the belief that it can be done.
Yet, how scary is that???
It is trusting ourselves and our desires/callings without being able to see what lies around the corner. It is realizing that it is worth the risk.
This was a great post. My Wednesday post is on trust and touches on this, in a way. I am not sure how we learn to quiet the noise and hear our calling – and then find the backbone to live that path… some do it effortlessly while others find the way; and still others never step off the beaten path or the well traveled paved highway.
Yet how magic is each of our lives when we dare to dream/ dare to desire; dare to believe… and dare to trust and fly!!
Dear TE, yes great minds think alike, it seems :~).
We indeed have to ‘know’ that it can be done AND that the current beliefs we have are NOT that great or safe beliefs either.
There is a whole new set of beliefs available, but most of us do not jump to try them out.
I agree;
It is worth the risk and then you will find out, like Megan, there is more safety in following one’s heart than following society’s goals. Wings and staircases will appear but we will not find that out until we let go.
This is a great question;
I love how you do not underestimate this. I do not think many of us do it nor does anyone who does it, do it effortlessly, the world is not set up to have that happen.
It will happen with the support of like minded women in our case, I often say you cannot do it for yourself by yourself, it is too big and we need to accept that too.
It is with support, like we have on WomenLikeMe that we can learn. Learn to hear our calling and where we can form backbone and become a strong basecamp. It can be done and has to be done if we want to see change. BUT we have to let go of going it alone.
These words are music to my ears as I too keep singing them;
TE, it IS possible and it is magical when women accomplish flying with each other’s support right here on WomenLikeMe.
We can be powerful and magical beyond belief; it is time you and I and everybody else get to live that way, for our daughters sake. Hugs Wilma
Hi Wilma,
I just discovered your blog last night and loved the first post that hit my inbox.
I’m sloshing my toe in the well of change, of complete trust. Every now and then the clouds part and I see that everything I love is waiting for me and all I need to do is take that leap of faith.
Finding your blog is another push forward.
Thank you for sharing so generously with your fellow travellers.
D
Dear Deborah, great to see you here and I love your willingness to receive this push forward. That is what we are about here.
I love what you say here;
Many of us are in your position, near the well of change, wetting a toe and yet . . .
For me it started with indeed seeing that there was something that was pulling me forward, that there was something very attractive to jump towards.
However there is a good sense NOT to jump straight away, I also became aware that my life skills were NOT yet geared to handle following my desire.
I have learned to NOT underestimate the fact that my old bad habits will not serve following my desire.
THAT certainly had something to do with my hesitation to jump, feeling unprepared.
It might be interesting Deborah, to check how prepared you are to handle the different consequences that following a desire will have in your life as that is what we are dealing with on WomenLikeMe.
Much love, Wilma
Hi Wilma! Wonderful post! I could actually FEEL you taking the leap! And I could hear the exhileration in your words. I’m so proud of you! It does take courage, and yes, trust and faith and letting go of our old patterns and ideas.
I’ve taken a few leaps over the years. Each time it became easier to trust and let go and just leap. Actually I don’t think they are optional. What kind of journey would you have when your days are done if not for the markers of a leap here and there? I’m now in the plank program. I’m building a bridge and I lay down a plank each day, making progress to get where I want to go in a slightly more gentle way – hey, I’m respective of my age and experience and leaping at this age could be hazardous to my old warrior body!

hugs
suZen
suzen´s last blog ..Oregano – Its Not Just on Pizzas!
Dear SuZen. You are so cool, yes it is exhilarating to make that leap and thank you for recognizing that. And yes it takes courage and yes,
Letting go of those old patterns and ideas is something we really need to face and to do that we must not underestimate what that takes and how that can stop us if we do not pay attention.
I agree, what would life be, just more of the same and with truckloads of regrets when we are old.
To leap though, to let old patterns go, we need to have skills, we need to know what to replace the old patterns with and THAT is what stops a lot of women.
Intuitively knowing I was unskilled to jump sensibly stopped me until I realized how to get my act together big time. The way most of us have learned to operate is NOT boding well for leaping and we feel that intuitively.
You and I know we had to pull our socks up and change how we did things to make a well executed leap.
You explain that here;
Yes now you are again learning another technique because you pay attention and take responsibility for the ‘what is so’ in your current situation. That is so awesome SuZen.
This says it all, how you prepare for a successful jump;
You are so wise, this is what desires and jumping do to us, they do make us smart, we learn to observe and think for ourselves because our lives are on the line. We don’t want to end in a heap under the cliff and stay broken, do we? So you learn to build a bridge, gently, THAT is smart!!!!! BUT you still have to trust the bridge those agonizing first few steps.
You are soo cool, you might get older but you are still a warrior. You do know how to live. huge hugs xox Wilma
Hi Wilma,
I loved the “half-pregnant” analogy – and that’s exactly my problem. I long for change yet I am terrified to leave the security and comfort I currently have. Happy or not – as long as secure….this life stance implanted in me by my parents is not easy to outgrow. So I set one foot towards change but the other foot stays motionless until I feel it’s absolutely safe to take this step. Waiting for the right circumstances which might never come. We can engage in this self-deceit that we are in the preparation stage, keep finding excuses for delays, but the sad truth is many of us never have the guts to complete the step. Defeated we crawl back into our dark cave thinking “maybe next time…” And of course there are always “circumstances” to blame, never ourselves.
The movie “Revolutionary Road” is phenomenal in this sense. It shows how planning for change fills you up with false hope but once you realize the change is not happening, it was all an illusion, you crash to to the unseen before bottom.
Aysel´s last blog ..Unattached – Free
Dear Aysel, you perfectly echoed my words as I have been there too;
As I keep saying, do NOT underestimate our old patterns that keep us firmly teetering on the edge.
However there is hope in these words as combined with those old patterns, come old skills that are NOT useful when pursuing desires.
When following desires I have discovered that I needed to let go of old skills and develop a complete new set of skills.
Like asking, oh Aysel, asking was a skill I avoided like the plague when still residing in my pre-desire era and it has been a big discovery that I needed that skill when jumping and following my desire. So not jumping when we do not know how to prepare for a safe landing is not that bad, is it?
Aysel, I do admire your ability to observe;
As I said you are not completely to blame for not jumping, because although you mention the preparation stage, most of us are NOT able to prepare properly as we do not know how.
Desires need different skills but nobody talks about that.
Aysel, I so hope that this is useful, I love your inquiring and engaging ways as this is exactly what we do on WomenLikeMe.
Much love, Wilma
Our desires are much a matter of maturity and of knowing what we have in the “now” VS the future. There is much to be said for future pull which helps to drive the moments in the now.
Mark´s last blog ..Many Mansions- Many Rooms
Hi Mark. Following desires is not a random act, I agree. It needs skills that are currently NOT well practiced with our old patterns. Where going it alone, dishonesty and out-of-integrity for example are accepted practices.
Desires do not respond well to these practices but we haven’t realized that yet, thus some jump and crash, and many of us see those crashes and intuitively realize we are ill prepared to pick up the pieces and thus not willing to jump. Seemingly sensible perhaps but not helpful and leaves us agonizing.
Desire belongs to a new era with new patterns, new beliefs AND new skills and scary leaps. xox Wilma
Dearest Wilma,
I’ve been so busy following my calling that I’ve lost track of time…even now, I’m up and wide awake because being, doing, and creating the rest of my life is not tiring.
I’ve been doing my homework, evaluating my structures – which ones fit, which ones need to be retired. I’ll have my update on WomenLikeMe tomorrow morning.
As I leap into the great unknown, I have no sense of “fear” ~ those niggling thoughts of self-doubt and anxiety are no where to be heard from right now. Maybe I scared them away?
Only four days until I am doing and being who I am for the first time!!
xo
Peggy
Peggy´s last blog ..Don’t Take IT Personally It’s Not About Me It’s Not About You
Hey Peggy, you know what, it is beautiful to watch somebody following their desire, you are beautiful to watch. The vitality is jumping out of the screen and is this the powerful energy of Love that is speaking when one is following one’s calling?
Isn’t that just amazing what unfolds when you access and follow your calling. That is sure the power of the energy of Love, a fire in your belly and that courageous unstoppable get up and go.
Good on you learning the skills with which to safely leap by following the WomenLikeMe program; good teacher . . .good student, they are one and the same
Oh Peggy, I am so proud of you and so happy for you, this is what we are supposed to live for, this is how alive we are supposed to feel.
Only four days until you are who you are for the first time, that is exciting (and Peggy is talking about her retreat Yoga and Reiki Under the Stars.)
Much love to you, my passion filled friend, hugs Wilma
Following my calling — what an appropriate phrase to describe what we each must do to be true to ourselves. It’s funny that you mention copycatting someone else’s steps. It’s an alluring concept if you believe that life can be boiled down to a formula; a one-size-fits all mold of sorts. But we all know deep down, even if on a superficial level we’d like to believe otherwise, that each life is unique. Each calling is unique. We each have to figure out what works for us, regardless of what so-called experts say will work for everyone. I suppose this is a hugely intimidating concept for many. No wonder so many of us fall into the trap of following someone who apepars to have “made it”. When we do this, we turn our attention away from our being, our uniqueness, our core. And I think that’s a shame because it’s so limiting in many ways and does not make room for our potential for things bigger/better/truer than we can imagine.
Dear Belinda. Calling is such an old fashioned, nearly religious word and yet I too feel it describes more appropriately what we currently call desire;
And this is the crux of the matter, this is what The Exception and Aysel talk about;
THAT is why many of us are NOT uniquely following our path and feel stuck in a life we do NOT enjoy or why all we can think off is copying someone.
Following one’s calling is NOT being encouraged, on the contrary it IS intimidating and it IS made difficult.
AND we do not know how to handle this confusion, this pulling of our calling and the pulling of the status quo that keeps us firmly away from our calling.
I agree with Aysel and The Exception, we need to learn how to develop the back bone, the courage to jump anyway. THAT is what my blog and WomenLikeMe is about, to support you to jump anyway and learn how to go from there. I want to shout it from the roofs, WE ALL DESERVE SOOOOO MUCH BETTER.
The way we live is indeed no longer acceptable now we know that there is another way to live;
It is more that a shame, it is downright inhuman to live this fearful, this limited.
Oh think about how the world would look like when we are all fully self expressed and loving what we are doing and loving the people we are doing things with. Imagine AND it is available if we only dare to ‘jump’ into programs like WomenLikeMe.
You might think I am biased and I am BUT I have also seen the results, you can see the results by paying attention to my blog.
Yes, current life is a downright fallacy which we can ignore and deny OR we can act and learn to do life differently.
Oh Belinda, it IS possible to live in balance, harmony and joy, BUT we must ACT to make a difference, we must start with ourselves first.
xox Wilma
Wilma,
I, too, love the word “calling.” Our soul is always calling us deeper, home, into authenticity, into healing and wholeness, and away from all that would keep us small or wounded or unfree. I also love the word “invitation.” Each day I feel dozens of invitations to be “me” in the truest sense. To embodiment. I imagine you do too. Perhaps the notion of calling and invitation are the same…I celebrate that you are answering yours.
Love to you this day.
J
Dear Jan, as I said to Belinda for me calling has an old fashioned ring to it but it does link me to my soul as well and it does this too;
Words and their meaning do deserve attention and for me your ‘invitation’ describes what calls me to take the leap.
It is indeed this type of invitations that call me forward;
These invitations call me to stop and take note of my intent, is it my ‘calling’ or am I acting out of fear or from the status quo that is no longer serving me.
It IS worth celebrating the notion of calling and invitation in one’s life and answering them, thank you Jan, that is beautifully expressed, xox Wilma
Mmmmm, Wilma, you’ve managed to combine two of my favorite topics, callings and letting go. And you’ve done it beautifully. There’s so much here to respond to, but I’ll try to keep it brief. Your story of leaving your job so resonated with me. Ten years ago I followed a calling to start my own business, but I still needed to keep my job for awhile. And although I liked both it and the people I worked with, I knew eventually I had to take the leap. I did after three years, but not before I went through a few cycles of approach and avoidance. The funny thing is, though, the day after I made the announcement, I got a phone call offering me a consulting contract. Exactly what I needed at that time, and a perfect example of Joseph Campbell’s claim that we will find “invisible hands” waiting to support us if we follow our bliss. Yes, it was a living and breathing experience of invisible hands in action, and it taught me so much about trust and leaving and leaps of faith. And since then, I’ve taken many more, and discovered in the interim that callings aren’t static, they continually deepen and shift and change and grow, just as people do. Never could I have imagined ten years ago that my calling would take me to the place I’m at today, and I’m so grateful that I allowed it to do its own thing, and trusted it to carry me through. It’s been quite a ride.
So here’s to callings, my friend. xox
p.s. One of my favorite books is “Callings” by Gregg Levoy. A few years ago I spent a memorable day in one of his workshops. From him, and others, like Carol Pearson and Jonathan Young, I’ve learned that we can be called to all sorts of things: people, places, work, ideas, etc. And that the deepest call of all is to come home to ourselves.
Patty – Why Not Start Now?´s last blog ..Meaning Mondays- August!
Dearest Patty, what a comment and what an inspiration for what calling and leaping can do for our quality of life!
Oh don’t we all know this so well, this approaching the cliff and then avoiding the leap;
And yet we will never know what is around the corner until we leap; we will never experience this ultimate life experience until we let go and DO IT;
How beautiful is that;
THAT is of course the biggest part we struggle with, we can NOT gain all the richness ‘calling’ provides in our life by playing it safe and resisting acting differently and not being prepared for a ‘wild’ ride;
I also love how you mention learning because I think when you jump you are finally open to learning and have it mean something as it has direct relevance to your life.
I see calling as an ultimate in growth and a chance to do indeed the best learning of all,
Much love to you and indeed here’s to ‘calling’, xox Wilma
Dear Wilma,
Yes, the notion of following your calling has a vintage ring to it!
Looking back on my roads taken, it seems that my dreams were passive ideas. Then I came to believe in them enough that they were driven by desire. The desire, or as you say calling that emerged was fueled by love.
That is what happens when you throw your whole heart ahead of you…you are led by love toward what will transpire and to what you see yourself accomplishing and creating.
Having the faith to let go is having trust in both the direction you’re taking and in the many forces collaborating on your behalf.
Thank you Wilma, I’ve recently redefined my calling and this is an encouraging message.
Love, Lisa Marie
Dearest Lisa Marie, what awesome words you write here;
Calling comes indeed from love, there is no other place it can come from if you think about it. Letting the calling unfold becomes easier and easier as we get used to the driver, the heart, which has a different idea of creating and accomplishing things than our ego driven mind.
We need to get our head around those differences.
This I love too;
Ha, to have forces collaborating on our behalf is a law that indeed fits into the arena of calling, it certainly doesn’t fit into our current mode of operandi, where instead of collaboration we find egos attacking, competing and only looking for ‘what is in it for me’.
. Together we can make it happen, you cannot do this for yourself by yourself in this current environment, but if we allow each other’s support, we CAN follow our calling and make a difference just by who we are being. Much love, Wilma
You show beautifully how it is so different from what we are used to. That of course explains why it seems to many of us like jumping off a cliff.
Oh Lisa Marie, how wonderful that you recently have redefined your calling and feel encouraged here. THAT is so what I desire to hear
Wilma,
“Calling”….what a wonderful word to use in describing this process of faith.
Faith, by the way – that’s a big one. Do we trust ourselves enough to have faith. Faith in who we really are…deep down. Faith in what CAN be, of what IS possible.
Not always easy. And so good to see where you have taken yourself to, and the lessons you have learned along the way.
So, listening to that calling deep within, trusting in who we are, and having faith that following all of this is so worthwhile – such beautiful thoughts!!
Wilma, your words are touching to my soul today – and I thank you for that.
Love and big hugs,
Lance
Lance´s last blog ..The Power Of A Smile
Hi Lance, yes this is what it comes down to isn’t it?
We have no idea how powerful we are, I agree, we have no faith in our ability to follow our calling, to inspire the universe to collaborate with us and on the earth level to inspire people collaborate with us as well.
I know with your healing you have to trust yourself enough and you have to let go of your belief that you cannot do it, otherwise healing will not happen and what a waste of possibility.
Oh Lance, there is another world awaiting us once we jump to that place where callings make miracles occur.
Yes, beautiful thoughts belong to ‘calling’ and thank you Lance for hearing what calling stands for. It is not well understood and yet such a door opener.
Much love and hugs back at ya, Wilma
Wilma,
I love how much you love to be in nature. It is my favorite thing also! I don’t know where I would be if I hadn’t discovered the beauty of nature. I really enjoyed reading this post and will be re-reading for sure. You must feel so happy to be where you’ve always really wanted to go and you were brave enough to go there. I actually know you are, just by reading about it. If only everyone had that courage! The world would be a very interesting place.
I can’t wait to one day be able to say to you, “I am living my calling too!”. I will be traveling the world and then one day I will be living in nature and enjoying the simple life as well. So much to look forward to
For now, I am becoming more aware of myself and what I really want for my life. I’m learning so much and I thank you for being one of the teachers along the way
Much love,
Kristie
Dear Kristie, this is all we ever can ask for, to be learning and to be teachers;
Real learning only comes from experience and finding useful explanations about your experiences.
And to have experiences you have to act and go to unknown places. Otherwise how can you learn and expand yourself.
Kristie, you go and live and travel. John has done that on a very small sailing boat he built himself and it has made him who he is today, a free man who lives life how it is supposed to be lived, coming from loving what you do in every moment.
I too am very grateful for my leaps, Kristie, there is NOT other way, in the end it is about leaving the cage which door was always open.
Thank you for allowing me to have an impact, that is all I can ever ask for; that is why I am doing this. Kristie, you are awesome and a big hug, Wilma
PS, nature is so much more than we understand right now, you are in for real amazing discoveries, your life will rock.
Hi Wilma .. there’s so much here and so many wise words to read .. at a time when I have stepped over the threshold of a new life .. and am moving forward with a lot of thin air and supporting hands ahead of me ..
This is too deep for me now – but the post will slot in its place in due course and I’ll be back to read once things are more settled ..
Have a great weekend .. Hilary
Hilary´s last blog ..Could this be a sitcom – or a break out sitcom Ever had a one word – at a time – conversation Fish and Chips – how do you spell it