Catch and Release: Letting go of Your Past

Taking in — or casting your net wide — will bring in things that are wanted as well as unwanted. The tendency to focus on what came in that isn’t desired is what generates more of the same.

When a fisherman casts his net wide and brings in the occasional trash or an octopus when he’s fishing for shrimp, does he throw the whole lot back? Or does he pluck the unwanted out and return it to where it belongs so it may continue to thrive — or place it in the receptacle of trash if that’s where it belongs, so the chances of retrieving it over and over are lessened?

That is what we do when we drag up old memories, past malfeasances, or occurrences that bring about feelings of shame or discomfort. We keep putting them back into the waters of our mind for later retrieval — guaranteeing future feelings of unworthiness.

Once brought to light, you may use the simple practice of catch and release: acknowledging that casting your net wide is part of living, trying things, entering relationships, experimenting with activities, or revisiting old habits that ultimately didn’t suit you. How else would you know?

Reading or hearing from someone may help you avoid certain pitfalls of life, but the best teacher is your own lived experience. And once you recognize that something isn’t part of your catch to keep, you can release it with a blessing — grateful that you no longer have to carry it on board.

Try catch-and-release with it all. It’s all part of experiencing and experimenting with what truly brings you joy… and what keeps you nourished by the fulfillment of your own life.