What if you choose to simply Let Go?

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Written By Hollie Wildëthorn

Question :

Why do you always write S.H.I.T. so it looks like an acronym?

Answer :

Because it is.

Stuff that Haunts you Into Tomorrow is my terminology for all the crap you carry and allow to take up priority space in your mind, heart and body, even when it is not important to the present moment.

It's the stuff that happened before, or you think is going to happen, or hasn't happened yet that you dedicate your attention to, and that takes away from your attention being where it is most beneficial : to the work and practice of Self Crafting.

S.H.I.T. could show up as physical signs of stress like digestive issues, headaches, or memory loss; or behavioural anxiety; or avoidance. It could be the mud-head that keeps you from clear thinking, and it's certainly got a lot to do with your feelings of not being good enough and comparing yourself with others. That's a lot of Stuff to keep until tomorrow!

Attention is your greatest commodity - think about how we language attention : you pay it right? Like, I might say, "Were you paying attention to what I was saying?" and your response could be "Yes, it's important to me," or "No, I was somewhere else."

Your attention is a commodity entirely owned by YOU and it's your choice how to spend it. You can spend your attention on the crap that's keeping you down, broken, a slave to the wounded culture from which you've come OR you can spend your attention on the whispers of your Wild Heart, the part of you that informs your Big Wild Dreams, that which you came here to contribute to make this world everything it can be.

Paying attention is another way to say 'that which you prioritise'. Most people believe they prioritise the whispers of their Wild Heart, like "I'm all about saving the environment" or "I'm dedicated to ethical XYZ" or insert big save-the-world-ideals-here. As a responsible Self Crafter though, it's important to get real about where you're at.

Could you give me a moment of your attention to work a quick exercise in Self Crafting, dear heart?

It will pay forward to you too, I promise.

Okay, yes? Good, go get a piece of paper or use your notes app.

Let's go.

Write down the 5 - 10 things that took the most of your time, energy, thought space, being and doing in the last week. It probably includes things like work, planning for retirement, changing nappies, online shopping, Facebook… Whatever it is, do an audit of your day and look at exactly how your attention is soaked up.

Those things on that list : that's where your attention is being paid. You are giving your most important commodity to those things and thoughts, and they make up the bulk of your priorities.

When I talk about Big Wild Dreams, I'm referring to the whispers of your heart that may be too frightened to shout themselves out loud. They are actually very Big (the perfect size for you), and they are taking up huge spaces OF You. The time you try to ignore your Big Wild Dreams, because you've decided they are too big, too wild, too idealistic, too dreamy… That's hard work ignoring them to pay your attention to other S.H.I.T. What would happen if you spent your priorities on your Big Wild Dreams instead ?

Now, back to the exercise.

On that list, cross off whatever doesn't align to your Big Wild Dreams. What's that, you're not sure? Whispers are hard to hear, especially when there are so many other noisy and annoying priorities shouting over the top, hey? Just start somewhere. It might take a few rounds of this exercise until it really speaks your truth.

That's normal in a culture that prioritises S.H.I.T rather than Big Wild Dreams. Self Crafting is the work and practise of shaking off the S.H.I.T. so that you can be the artisan of a life that is everything you came here to have and Be.

The main key in Shaking off the S.H.I.T. is simply letting go. You always have choice. Once you see the S.H.I.T.; hear it, notice it - once you become aware of the way you're spending your attention you can choose to let it go. Drawing a line through the list in the exercise is the first step. And then, each time this S.H.I.T. comes up, draw a metaphorical line through it while it occurs. Notice it, then pay your attention to something that serves you better.

But what if the S.H.I.T. doesn’t match my BWD but I still care…?

There are things that happen in this world that are out of our control, and really shitty. The urge to change them due to the shit-ness can be so strong that it can affect us similarly to the S.H.I.T we don’t actually need.

When you open your eyes, pay attention and live from your heart, it becomes impossible to unsee injustice and inequality. It makes me think of that phrase "If you're not angry you're not paying attention," and surely, there's plenty to pay attention to. For me, some of those things are a myriad of feminist issues; prevalence of Domestic and Systemic Violence, deaths in custody, systemic racism, land degradation and sustainable food practises. Realistically, the system isn't broken - it's working exactly as it's designed to. If you're finding it hard to cope, there's nothing wrong with you. It seems to me, what's more 'wrong' would be to thrive in a system built on power, greed and corruption.

So if these issues are part of the S.H.I.T following you in your everyday, remember that your Big Wild Dreams can be activated to address some of these issues. There’s no one or right way to do so. Only you will know if your Vision matches a target of ending the structural and systemic, mainstream problems that hold people back form freedom.

How do you survive the sick system, heal from a culture of harm, and thrive in a world of your own making? That's what it's all about here.

Now, as the last part to our attention exercise, write down the priorities that really do match your Big Wild Dreams. What would your life look like if you were paying attention to the activities, thoughts, concepts, doings and beings that match your Big Wild Dreams? What would you spend your attention on then?

And the leftovers: you can simply let go.

Hollie Wildëthorn
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Resources for Self Crafting : The True Cost documentary