Don't let go - Spring is coming!

Hold on. Don’t let go. That’s one way of doing things.

You can get angry. Stay irritated. Keep the edge. There’s power in it. A charge runs through the system when you hold onto something. You feel sharper. More defined. There’s even a strange satisfaction in it.

You know where you stand.

And if you’re honest, part of it feels good.

Being cranky. Irritable. Letting people know you’re not in the mood to suffer fools. There’s weight in that. People tread more carefully around you.

In some cultures, this isn’t just tolerated. It’s expected. There is a clear obligation to take revenge. To repay slights. To honour blood debts. Wrongs are not forgotten. They are carried, sometimes across generations. Whether it’s the killing of a relative, the theft of something valuable, or a public insult, the code is simple. It must be answered.

There is no virtue in letting it go.

The honour is in remembering. And acting.

Underneath that code is something simple. The feeling of being right.

And being right feels secure.

It gives you the sense that your thoughts, reactions, and actions are justified. That you are exactly as you should be.

The only trouble is what it does to the body.

You can feel it if you pay attention. The jaw tightens. The breath shortens. The chest hardens. The belly holds. You replay the story. Again and again. What was said. What should have been said. What you’ll say next time.

And while all of that is happening, something else is happening underneath.

Things stop moving.

Circulation changes. Not dramatically. Just enough. Some areas tighten. Others dull. The system loses fluidity.

Holding on has a cost.

From a Taoist point of view, this sits in the liver system. The wood element. This is the energy of movement, direction, growth.

When it flows well, you feel it. There’s ease. A quiet good humour. You let things pass.

When it doesn’t, the tone shifts. Irritability. Frustration. That low-level sense of being bothered by things that wouldn’t normally bother you. You don’t need a big reason. It’s just there.

We’re going to be working on getting that liver energy flowing. But sometimes it’s more extreme.

There’s a story my father told me about his Taoist meditation teacher. A man from a lineage that goes back centuries.

He said, if someone makes you angry, go away and do the healing sound for the liver three times.

If you’re still angry, do it nine times. There is power in the multiples of three and nine.

Still angry? Do it thirty-six times. Then stop. Sit. Meditate on the positive qualities of the liver. Forgiveness. Humour. Cheerfulness. Kindness.

If that doesn’t work, find a quiet place. Do it eighty-one times.

And if you’re still angry after eighty-one times, go and find the person who made you angry and punch them.

There are limits.

But most of the time, it’s better to let it flow.

Because the damage isn’t done by the moment of anger. It’s done by the holding on.

Repressed emotion doesn’t disappear. It builds pressure. It creates blockages. It distorts circulation.

And when circulation is distorted, the system doesn’t function well.

When that same energy is allowed to move, it changes quality.

Irritation becomes clarity.
Frustration becomes direction.
Anger softens into kindness, forgiveness, even humour.

Not because you force it.

Because the system is no longer blocked.

Forgiveness sits right in the middle of this.

We think we forgive for others. We don’t.

When you don’t forgive, you keep the story alive. You rehearse it. The body keeps responding. The tension stays.

When you forgive, you stop carrying it.

You get your energy back.

So yes, holding on is an option. It has logic. It has strength. It has honour in certain contexts.

But if you want freedom—a body that moves easily, a mind that doesn’t get stuck, a system that feels light and alive—then holding on, never letting go, never forgiving, isn’t the best strategy.

The yogic and Taoist traditions don’t judge this morally. They look at function.

What helps the system work well?
What supports circulation, organs, chemistry?

Lightness helps. Laughter helps. Good humour helps. Kindness helps. Forgiveness helps.

Chronic irritation, anger, resentment—they don’t.

Not as an idea.

As a physical fact.

So the instruction is simple.

Let it go.
Find ways of letting it go.
Keep things moving.

Spring is the season of the liver. The time of growth and expansion. Working with circulation is part of that. Helping the system move again. Open again. Distribute energy where it’s needed.

You can hold on.

Or you can let it flow.

You decide.