The Truth About Surrendering

The truth about surrendering

How would you feel right now if you had absolutely no idea where you would be in 24 hrs, or in 24 days? If you were halfway around the world, with no ticket or money to your next destination? And only owned one small suitcase of clothes.

And yet, filled with an unbreakable certainty that you are exactly where you are supposed to be, right here and now. And that you have never been happier?

I’ve been wanting to write this post for a while. I kept telling myself tomorrow.

But something kept nudging me to write. To begin to share the story of this incredible journey that is unfolding right in front of me.

I have never been one to “follow the norm.” Always being guided by something I could never quite explain.

Until now.

13 months ago, I started working on a project that was near and dear to my heart. I had put everything of myself into this project. Willing to sacrifice whatever it took to create this thing to share with the world. With hopes that it would inspire others.

But along the way, something happened.

An old saying goes something like, “what you think is the goal really has nothing to do with the real goal..”

Over the past 13 months, I kept meeting the most amazing people, sharing experiences, and connecting in a way that was genuinely touching something deep within my soul.

But none of these people or experiences were directly involved or related to the project I was working on. Not a single one.

One of the amazing experiences was getting into a Bla Bla Car in Paris to drive to Amsterdam. Christian’s van had a Taos Ski Valley (New Mexico, USA) bumper sticker on it that I noticed while loading my suitcase. I made the comment that that was where I learned to ski. Ends up that his father was my first Ski Instructor at Taos, NM...many years ago.

Or how about finding out several weeks into staying with some brand new friends in Alicante, Spain, that he was the best man at a dear friend of mines wedding several years ago in Miami!

These kinds of situations happen to me ALL the time.

And are becoming more and more frequent. The more I surrendered, the more they happened. As they kept happening. And I started paying more attention.

And then, one day recently, something clicked deep within my soul. And it all made sense.

The project I was pouring my heart and soul into...was the conduit for something much more significant that was happening. And so I made a conscious decision to no longer try and force things to happen.

I surrendered.

Since then, my life has been more full of joy, peace, and love than I ever could have imagined.

I’ve learned so many things since opening up and letting go of feeling I “needed” to make things happen. That I needed something to go a certain way.

Here are 10 of the biggest lessons I have learned so far.

I’m more present. By not worrying about “what might or might not happen,” I am now more present in each moment. I can put all my energy into what is right in front of me. I am much more mindful!

Attracting the most amazing people. I make a conscious effort to connect with strangers all the time. And by doing that, I am continually meeting the most amazing people. For example, I am sitting right now in a Hostel that is run by a Swedish family, whose grandparents I connected within the Stockholm Airport. They had just landed and were having some logistics problems, so I offered to help. And since then, I have become part of their extended family!

This too shall pass. When I look back on my life and think about all the times I spent (wasted) energy, worrying about how I was ever going to get thru any number of situations. But yet, here I am. I’ve gotten through every single one of “those situations.” So yes, whatever hurdle it might seem that I am going thru....trust me...this too shall pass!

Less stress. I know this one might be a little hard to believe. How can having absolutely no idea how something will work out equate to less stress? To 99% of the world, that sentence makes no sense. When you surrender and trust that you are exactly where you need to be, you let go of all stress in each and every moment.

Always adding value. I can focus more on how, in each situation, I can add value. How I can be of service.

Choosing myself. Being mindful of each day and every day takes care of my: Spiritual, Mental, Emotional, and Physical Health.

Seeing more miracles. Every moment holds the gift of a miracle. When we are running around focused on what is or isn’t happening in our world, we miss them.

More joy. More peace. More love. To be so full of joy in even the simplest of situations. I’ve let go of that little voice inside me that tells me how I should or shouldn’t feel.

Deeper faith. My faith in God, The Universe, or whatever name you want to give that all-knowing, all-loving energy that we all have a spark within us has never been stronger.

EVEN more comfortable with uncertainty. Anyone who knows me knows that I have never been one to shy away from uncertainty. I have always been up for a last-minute adventure. But now I’ve taken it to a whole new level.

In Autobiography of a Yogi, Paramhansa Yogananda tells the story of being told to “Never admit that you live by the power of food and not by the power of God! He who has created every form of nourishment, He who has bestowed appetite, will certainly see that His devotee is sustained!”

I love that idea of knowing you will always be taken care of and that there really is a greater plan.

And that by completely surrendering, you are giving way to something much more amazing than you could ever have imagined.

But I am just not talking about surrendering a “little.” For example, expecting to do A, B, and C, but if D happens, well, then I guess that would be alright. Nope, I am talking ALL IN surrendering. The jumping off the cliff and KNOWING the wings will appear kind of surrendering.

As I am sitting here typing out this post. I have no idea what even tomorrow holds for me or where I will even be 1 day, much less 7 days or 30 days from now. I know that all of my needs will be met, that I won’t go hungry, and I will travel again within the next few days. But don’t know how or when...or where exactly...

I do know without a shadow of a doubt that I will be exactly where I am supposed to be. And that I will be thriving, adding value and being of service. And that is my idea of a very happy life.