I Surrender…

The word “surrender” connotes weakness in our culture. We tend to think of it as giving up. Waving the white flag, and therefore, losing.

But what if what we have to lose is what’s been doing us harm? What if what we are holding on to, or fighting for, is our destruction in disguise? What do we stand to gain from losing?

To hold onto what is bad for us is part of the human condition. It may be wrapped up in our self-worth, or what we think we deserve. It may be seen as the safe choice, the easy fix, or a vice we can’t resist. But what if true strength comes not from fighting and holding on with all our might, but in letting go?

We can cling to the physical object that has been slowly destroying us—the person, the bottle, the smoke, the food, the pill, the credit card—in our search of fulfillment, or a sense of self, or an absence of pain. But ultimately, we will only find peace through releasing it.

Why does is seem impossible to give up the thing that is killing us when letting go leads to life? Why do we hold on to what brings darkness when releasing brings beautiful light?

It all hinges on that point. That moment, that revelation, that exhale. The surrendering of what is breaking us to a yielding of what will save us. Out goes the poison, in comes the hope. There is beauty, and strength and life in the act of surrender.

Maybe that white flag isn’t a sign of giving up…maybe it’s a sign of starting.