A little "letting go" goes a long way...

I have been in a bit of a panic over the past week, after interviewing for a doctorate program at UNC-CH that I'd really like to get into for this upcoming fall. I was in a state of limbo, not really knowing how I did on the phone interview and if I would get accepted or rejected.

In case you haven't experienced a phone interview in your adult life, I'll just tell you that it's one of the most difficult situations I have ever been through; it's EXTREMELY different from an in-person interview. During an in-person interview you can see the other person's facial expressions and body language, and they can see yours. Over the phone, that element of sending and receiving messages via body language is not there. You have to be very clear about your intent, and you have to sound very knowledgeable and sure of yourself. You have to enter the conversation, from the moment you answer the phone, with complete confidence in yourself and your goals. That's not easy.

But I was reminded earlier this week, and particularly in a conversation with a friend last night, that we have control over NOTHING outside of ourselves. Pondering what MIGHT happen, or worrying about what I'll do if it DOESN'T happen, doesn't change the circumstances or the outcome. How often do you spend hours and hours planning your future only to find out that what you thought was going to happen actually doesn't happen?! And what you didn't even think was possible is suddenly placed in front of you as a very real opportunity?!

Letting go of control is directly intertwined with being open to those random, seemingly impossible opportunities that suddenly become a very real part of your life. Last night I decided that I needed to journal on letting go. I needed to be open to whatever the universe (or God or whatever you want to call that higher spiritual being) had in store for me, even if it wasn't the direction I "thought" my life needed to go in.

It's a huge leap of faith ... and takes a lot of LETTING GO OF CONTROL.

Sometimes what you want for your life is exactly what the universe has in store for you too. Letting go of the outcome last night before bed allowed that opportunity to come through without any of my own expectations, attachments, and desires. Then, it could actually just be a pure acceptance of what comes...(no matter what "it" is...)

"Welcome back to school!"

I drew this a few weeks ago, but it seems fitting right now: "Miraculous Gratitude."