Hakone Zendo

By Chloe

I’ve been diving into The Let Them Theory by Mel Robbins lately, and there’s a specific passage that has fundamentally shifted my perspective:

“When you let people be who they are, it frees up all the energy you’re using to try to change them, or manage their opinion of you. When you say ‘Let them,’ you take your power back.”

For a long time, I carried the weight of other people’s expectations. I’d hesitate before sharing a post on social media, worrying about what my mom would think or if others would judge me as “inappropriate.” I realized, however, that most people are far too busy with their own lives to give me much thought. By simply saying “let them” to their opinions, I found a peace that wasn’t there before.

This shift in perspective reminds me of when I learned to fly ten years ago. While others warned me of the dangers, I knew I needed to see the world differently. On the ground, life can feel two-dimensional—limited to left, right, forward, and back. But from the cockpit, you enter a 3D world. At a higher altitude, the “noise” of ground-level judgments fades away. You’re fully present, reacting only to the wind and your speed, realizing just how much vast, open space there truly is.

In our practice together, I invite you to find your own higher altitude. Think of a situation where someone else’s opinion has been holding you back. Imagine yourself rising above it—no arguments, no explanations. As those voices grow smaller and quieter, softly tell yourself, “Let them.”

Let’s sit in that quiet, open space together.