letting go

One of my very first blog posts this year was EMBRACE ENDINGS. I was clearly hoping for some closure in 2013. To move on. Forward. To let go. With finality.

I have to admit that 10 months later I am no closer to being good at letting go than I was in January. In fact, I forgot--or at least lost focus on--my longing for endings until I read a passage this week from Stasi Eldredge's "Becoming Myself":

I was at a Graham Cooke conference a number of years ago when he taught about how our friendships change and how normal that is. He said most friendships last three to five years. Really? And, he said, they are meant to have a duration of three to five years. Not every friend in our lives is meant to walk with us through the remainder of our lives. Oh, we love them still. And though all change feels like loss, it is good to bless people on their way, to hold them loosely, and to let them go.

Wow! No wonder some of my relationships frustrate me. No wonder I feel like I've outgrown some of them. Because I have! And that isn't bad. It's normal. And I can still love these friends even if we are no longer meant to play an active role in each other's lives.

Okay, but how do you actually let go? What is the process of "un-friending" someone in real life--someone who you will always love and care for? And what does it mean to let go of a relationship in a Facebook world?

I have no idea.

I definitely need at least 10 more months to work on this one.

EMBRACE LETTING GO.

Do you agree that most relationships are meant to have a short duration? Have you successfully, in a healthy way, ended a friendship? Your advice on this is soooo welcome!!