Letting Go: A Mindful Journal (Practice Day 1)

Mindful Journal: Day 1 — Letting Go (By Jaclyn Bae)

Small acts of letting go create freedom within.

Day 1 · Letting Go

Today, unfamiliar feelings rise quietly in my heart — fear, anxiety, and a subtle tension I cannot name. In the past, I would have tried to suppress these emotions, hoping they would disappear as quickly as they arrived.

But now, I choose differently. I do not push the emotions away. I simply observe them with gentle attention: “Ah… there is fear here.”

When I allow the feelings to be, they loosen their grip. Like clouds drifting across a wide sky or leaves floating down a quiet river, they soften and slowly pass.

This is how letting go begins — in the smallest moments, with the smallest choices. This practice of observing difficult emotions without judgment is a core principle in mindfulness-based therapies, such as Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). This non-judgmental stance, often called 'acceptance,' means allowing feelings to exist without trying to control or escape them. The resistance to these inner experiences is often what causes sustained suffering, not the emotion itself. By choosing to observe—to let the fear 'be'—you are practicing 'cognitive defusion,' seeing the thought or feeling as a passing mental event (like a cloud) rather than an absolute truth, which fundamentally reduces its power and influence.

Soft afternoon light reflecting on calm water, symbolizing emotional release
The beginning of inner freedom


© 2025 Jaclyn Bae · All rights reserved

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