Man, I just love Anne Lamott - she writes about real stuff in such a down-to-earth and wise way. Here’s an excerpt on Letting Go (a favourite topic of mine). When Anne was dealing with an unexpected pregnancy, trying to figure out what to do, a friend called after an AA meeting in Hawaii:

The Drop the Rock meeting was based on the understanding that left to our own devices, we — as a species — tend to lug these big rocks around. They are the rocks of our concerns. Everytime we get up, we reach down for our big rock and then we lug it out the door, down the stairs, and roll it into the back seats of our cars. Then after we drive someplace, we open the back door, get out our rock, and carry it with us, wherever we go. Because it’s our rock. It is very important to us and we need to keep it in sight. Also, someone could steal it.

So these Hawaii drunks suggest that you practice dropping the rock. That you put it down, on the ground at your feet. And that you say to God, to Mary, to Pele, Jehovah, Jesus, or Howard: “Here. I’m giving you the rock. YOU deal with it.”

When I heard this, I realized that more than anything, I wanted to put down my rock. My psychic arms ached from carrying it. I got my note out of the God-box, and I re-read it, and then I folded it back up and said to God, “Here. Look at me — I am putting down the rock. It’s in your hands now. RSVP.”

Maybe it’s about turning one’s attention from what’s holding us enthralled. Maybe it gives us a little room and a sense of fresh air, and with that comes some kind of healing breath. Maybe it gets us to stop looking in the one direction where we think the mountain is going to rise up before us, and so instead, with our minds free to wander and bob, we notice pathways and even airy glades we hadn’t seen before. I do not have any idea how it works, only that two weeks later, I woke up from a very clear and specific dream, and I smiled in joy, even though I was full of fear, because I knew I was going to keep the baby. And I did, and we have been abundantly provided for every step of the way.

In my own life I’ve been travelling, life has been busy-crazy and disorganized but I’m spending all weekend at a yoga conference anyways. Reading this is timely - it’s not one boulder for me right now, it’s an armload of pebbles and I’m committed to dropping each one into the dirt. I’m going to say ‘whatever’ to the laundry and dandelions and to-do lists and the rellies that are coming for an overnight on Saturday and breath. I’m going to feel free to wander and bob. I’m going to absorb as much yoga-goodness as I can.