Let It Rain

It’s raining today. It’s interesting how people can have such different reactions to rain. For a farmer, rain is a lifesaver. It means that the crops will get enough water to grow. For a person on their way to work, rain can be terrible (especially if they forgot their umbrella). The rain itself isn’t good or bad—it just is. But we tell ourselves a story about how the rain is good or bad, and then we feel a particular emotion based on that story (e.g., happy, relieved, angry, frustrated, annoyed).

Let It Rain

I heard someone once say that the best thing to do when it’s raining is to let it rain. It seems so simple—of course you are going to let it rain, what else can you do? But how often in our lives do we waste our energy trying to change things that are outside our control? It happens to me all the time. I spend my time worrying about what someone else is doing, or fretting about things like dying or natural disasters. If it’s outside your control, the best thing to do is practice acceptance.

Friends with the Wind

Byron Katie once said she was known as the woman who made friends with the wind. In the town where she lived, it was really windy, and the wind would blow up dust through the town. Everyone hated the dust and would complain about the wind. But the wind  itself isn’t good or bad—it just is. Katie began to practice loving what is—and it changed her life.

Is there something about your life or world that you are frustrated about—even though it is completely outside your control? What would it look like for you to practice accepting it—or even loving it? How might you make friends with the “wind” in your life?