I have been thinking about letting go a lot lately.
Because we are in the waning part of the year; because we are at the last quarter moon; much comes up to be released at this time.
Personally I love this time of year. It’s my birthday season (16 degree Libra Sun here. October 10th was my 40th birthday), and true to my libra nature, I love celebrating.
But this year, I’m straddling this super odd juxtaposition of ushering in that which is new, while also letting go of that which is crying for death and completion.
Letting go can be sad, difficult, and sometimes very painful. But it’s a part of life. And it is not to be mistaken for not liking or not wanting something.
I can see how these two things can become conflated. As humans, we tend to be creatures of great attachment. I have witnessed so many friends, family members, clients (and once in a while myself – more on that in a moment), resist letting go.
We often sense an ending long before most of us take the steps to actually let go.
How often have you dragged out the end of something? Instead of making preparations to let it go once you got the initial intuitive nudge, you clung for dear life, long past its expiration date.
That’s when it gets really painful.
Whether it be the job, the relationship, or any other situation, waiting too long often creates a volatile mess. Which is why I think letting go gets a bad wrap. Because we usually wait too long.
But it doesn’t have to be this way.
I mentioned earlier that I generally don’t have this affliction. Usually, when I’m done, I’m done. Be it a relationship or a project or a business.
Some people, my partner included, look upon this aspect of me with great suspicion. It def has been known to make people uncomfortable.
And I know it’s hard to believe, but I’ve even been accused of [ 😲 feigning shock here . . . ) being cold! I mean, I never . . . 😂
The thing is, most of us live in a culture that prizes birth over death. Expansion is valued over contraction, pruning, and release.
Somewhere along the way, we started to think subtraction = loss, and that’s bad; while addition = gain, and that’s good.
But bringing light to death is beautiful. I love taking the time to honor that which is dying; I give thanks for all that it has given me; even the hard lessons, for they too are gifts.
Perhaps it’s because my natal moon phase is a last quarter moon that, as my astrologer Bronwyn Simons said to me once, “you have a chart that’s built to complete things.”
So rather than be a freakish quality, I’m looking upon my ability to discern that which is ready to release as a unique gift of beauty and service. Because letting something go when it has completed its journey is truly an act of love and service.
So with this last quarter moon upon us, I would ask you:
What are you letting go of and releasing?
What is releasing from your life (whether you want it to or not?)
This can be something tangible like a relationship or less tangible like an identity you’ve held on to way too long;
Or maybe a spiritual practice or belief system, or a tradition that once served but no longer does.
Or maybe a dream that is no longer true for you, and its energy is still taking up space in your consciousness.
This time of the year in the northern hemisphere invites deep honesty.
Of course we aim to be honest always. But there is something about the blaring sun when it’s at its zenith that makes it hard to see some difficult-to-swallow truths. When the light wanes and the shadow sets in, those bare-bone truths are often revealed.
As they are being now if we dare to look.
It can be difficult, but also beautiful if we do so with tender loving care, honor and respect. That’s what this season is about. Giving a good death to that which is completing.
Blessed Be.
Diomira Rose