A lesson in letting go

Isn’t absolutely incredible how much we can learn from little children? I mean, I spent all my life thinking about all the things I would teach my children one day, but I never even knew how much my daughter could teach ME. She teaches me so much about life and about love all the time, but recently I had a really great lesson from Lily. A lesson in letting go.

The last time we had done this activity together, she was terrified. We don’t know why, but she was super scared to help make sugar cookies. She was roughly 1.5 years old and we were still living in Portland, and I was making them for the first time as an adult. My mom had given me the family recipe, and I have years and years of memories with my mom in regards to sugar cookies. How we’d try to sneak the cookie dough when she wasn’t looking; how she knew the recipe by heart; all the different sprinkle options; and alll the different cookie cutters she had in our kitchen growing up. I was super excited to share this with Lily, but lo and behold, she wasn’t into it, haha.

Fast forward to about a month or so ago, and we tried again. Lily could NOT wait to help her mama make these cookies. She was super engaged the whole time and had so much fun making these cookies. I was so excited  when my parents were here for Christmas and Lily and my mom worked together to make cookies, because I know how special that was for my mom… and for me.

When Lily and I made them together this year, she took that cookie cutter and she proudly and excitedly just slammed that thing down in any spot she wanted in the dough. At first, I almost stopped her and showed her the “right” way to make sugar cookies. You know, the way where you maximize all the dough and your cookies have complete shapes to them.

Lily had other ideas, and as soon as I was about to “correct” her, I stopped and let her be. I let it go, because at the end of the day, they’re just cookies. I didn’t want Lily to think that she wasn’t good at making cookies just because she did them differently than I wanted to do. She was SO proud of those cookies and she had soooo much fun! When we were all done, I was just proud of her, and so happy that we got to do this together.

She reminded me about letting go. Letting go of the things that don’t really matter in the grand scheme of things. And she reminded me that things can be done differently and be just as fun or just as good.

Why do I share this story? Well, to remind you that sometimes we hold on too tightly to things that don’t really matter. So, take a deep breath, take a step back, and let it go. 

 

 

Linda is a Boston-based photographer specializing in weddings and creating family legacies. You can see more of her work online at lindabarryphotography.com, on Instagram, or on Facebook. If you want to reach out directly: linda@lindabarryphotography.com. To sign up for the monthly newsletter full of encouragement and real life, click here!

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You can usually find me adding books to my never-ending “to read” list; challenging myself to do things like not shop for a year; sneaking crispy m+ms from my secret hiding spot so I don’t have to share them with my daughter; and melting over seeing my children smiling at each other.

Oh and I guess I should mention - I’m a seasoned Portland wedding photographer who provides not only kick-ass wedding photos, but also a meaningful and laid-back experience from the time you book to the delivery of your final images. 

I share all things personal, business, tips, and life as a mom and business owner here on the blog!

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