Letting go of what is pretty darn good

I know that many people have a fear of letting go.  I have something quite the opposite - a fear of holding on too long to what feels pretty darn good.

Quick overview, I’ve built a booming coaching and consulting business that has allowed me to buy a beautiful home. I live in an area nestled between mountains and the ocean - literally. I drive less than a mile to an 8,000 acre state park, Montana de Oro which upon entering literally puts my heart into the deepest rest.  When I set foot in this area of California over 15 years ago, the Boston girl in me knew I had to live here and I spent 4 years finding a way.  I sold my house of 20 years, all my belongings and my car. I shipped 7 boxes through UPS and moved to the Central Coast of California. Until recently I was determined I’d never leave!

After the first 5 years of my new life on the Central Coast things changed dramatically and unexpectedly. And my commitment to myself to never own a house again was challenged.  With the help of Mary Kay Stenger, I envisioned and manifested my new home and it became an oasis for my healing and growth, and a place where the introvert in me would thrive. The private little gated patio, surrounded by the healthiest, most lush trumpet vine I’ve ever encountered, has been my place of peace. Visitors who are welcomed through the gate stop in their tracks at the site of this glorious vine. The colors on the walls of the house sooth my soul and align with who I am. The gas fireplace casts a glow so cozy I yearn for cool weather, foggy days and a pot of soup.

I have developed a bevy of beloved friends and clients who’ve become like family, a few soul mates, and horses to love and ride. I’ve kayaked with humpback whales and dolphins. I hiked the hills. I’ve biked the roads. I photographed the wildflowers and sunsets.

But, surprisingly, I’ve decided to move on and sell this little oasis. I’ve decided to let go. I’ve decided to shake it up. I can feel the next iteration of my life waiting for me and if I’ve learned anything in the past, it is that when I deny the calling of my authentic self, I get small. When I am incongruent with my core values (adventure, challenge, stretching, family, lifelong learning, and love), I am no longer on my authentic path. And I when I let go of pretty darn good, the amazing next adventure drops in.

This house, this town, this community has provided me with a safe haven to heal, explore, increase self-awareness and create amazing programs and workshops that help others do the same. I am overflowing with joy, abundance and gratitude. But my heart and every cell in my being are telling me it is time to let go and take the next step.

My dad was a professional gardener, creating and caring for exquisite gardens on the big estates north of Boston. One day when I was working alongside him he said to me, “Beth, once you get a perennial garden perfect, the reward is to dig it up, rearrange it, and create something even more beautiful”.

So here I go. The realtor is on his way over and with the deepest of gratitude I am putting my much loved home on the market.

In June I will be relocating in the Sacramento area. Who does that you ask? Leave the Central Coast for Sac? I guess that’s me. I feel a calling. I’d never been to Sac before last September and since that time my daughter and her guy have relocated to that area, my partner lives there, and a small circle of friends and clients are emerging.  The rivers, mountains, seasons and evergreens call me. My second grandchild will be born there in October. The Sac airport affords me significantly more options to visit my daughter and grandson in Boston and to travel to speaking engagements and trainings across the U.S.. Plus, my clients on the Central Coast are just an easy drive south and then west.

My logical brain has a whole list of valid reasons, but what I’m leaning into is the pull in my soul and tug in my heart. It is telling me it is time to let go of what I’ve created so far and discover what is next.  I’m so thankful for the teachers and models in my life who’ve taught me to listen – not with my head but with my open heart.

It is no coincidence that as the next phase of my life is starting, my new book – “An Everyday Guide to Joy and Abundance – a new look at living with ease”  is releasing. The book chronicles my healing journey and my ability to be present in this moment, trusting my heart. The amazing Dr. Mary Kay Stenger, co-author, provides a narrative of her perspective working with me as a therapist, coach, guide and hypnotherapist. The book is jam packed with tools and strategies for finding your own authentic path.

I’m not totally disappearing. I still have many wonderful clients and friends here. A bit of my heart stays. Thanks to my amazing friends, Betsey Nash and Marci Powers, I have a bedroom here on the Central Coast. I will be returning a week or so a month to meet with my clients, do workshops, breathe the ocean air and hang out with people I love.

So yes. I’m excited to let go of what is perfect because I know the love, and the beauty and the perfection of the unknown. I guess I have a fear of holding on too long. My experience has been that when I let go, I allow space for possibility and the journey becomes overflowing with joy and abundance!

Where might you let go today?