CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Lately I've had a lot of practice at learning to "let go." This has come in the form of things that haven't gone as I'd planned. Instead of getting upset and bemoaning the facts -- or trying to control the situations -- I've looked at "letting things go."

For me, this has not come easily. I'm the type who thinks I can jump in to change a situation. I often equate getting into action with helping to solve a problem. Granted, my examples are not earth-shattering. They have, however, given me the foundation to practice what I preach.

In the past couple of weeks, I've endured the following challenges, to name a few:

Like I said, none of these things are major. It's funny, though, how I've reacted. While I'll admit to being frustrated, I've made a conscious effort to shake it off within a few minutes in each instance. There wasn't really anything I could do to make the situations go away, so I decided to "let them go."

In every case, the situations resolved themselves. And I was no worse for the wear. That got me thinking -- if I can learn to do this with little things, could I repeat the pattern with bigger things?

I'll mention one of my favorite sayings again, courtesy of my niece, Caity. She often tells her toddlers to "PIP it!" Translation: Put Into Perspective. Whenever I do this, I can always find more peace in any situation. Easier said than done, though.

I'm not saying we should stuff our feelings down inside. I'm just suggesting you may want to consider moving on more quickly. When you think about it, we actually create or perpetuate much of the stress in our lives. Here's a chance to relieve some of it before it can take hold.

The sprained foot has given me an opportunity to sit and sort through piles of accumulated stuff in my home and office in an effort to be more organized. Come to think of it, this is how the injury occurred in the first place -- hmm. I was attempting to rearrange some things in my home office, and a portion of a desk surface fell down right on top of my foot. Ouch!

Fortunately, nothing was broken (although it certainly felt like it at the time). So, I'm just making a fashion statement with a somewhat-less-than-attractive sandal "boot" foot while everything heals.

Speaking of healing, I've been musing on the location of my injury. I often look for hidden meanings in things, so I've been tossing around the concepts of "getting more grounded/slowing down/getting a foothold -- and heeling." Whether this is merely playful -- or indeed has some validity in metaphysical healing practices -- it's given me a chance to pause and reflect.

The circuit breaker issue, while posing some minor irritation, was quickly remedied by my husband, John, and an electrician. We get power outages rather frequently at our house, so I've had some practice in this area. And I've come to realize the curling iron really isn't that important.

Now on to the Internet service. It's amazing how dependent we've become on technology. In fact, this column needs technology to transmit whatever pearls of wisdom -- or lines of drivel -- spring from it. Again, this issue took some time to resolve. While it was an inconvenience, it didn't really rock my world.

Back to the big things. I'm a firm believer that habits (good and bad) are formed and reinforced through repetition. If we can break the cycle with little things, it's good practice for the big ones. In the past I've had an issue with "letting things go" because it seemed as if I wasn't doing everything I could. That's actually part of the problem, though, when we try to force things.

I'm reminded of a theory espoused by psychologist and author Wayne Dyer. When attempting to solve a problem, Dyer recommends the following formula for arriving at a solution:

1. Put your in-tention toward it.

2. Put your at-tention toward it.

3. Remove the tension involved (let it go).

While I'm pretty good at the first two elements, I've often struggled with No. 3.

I think part of my internal drive to get into motion on things is a throwback to my childhood. Like many of you, I had a strong work ethic lovingly pounded into me. One was never to be regarded as "lazy." I've had to come to grips with the fact that "letting go" is not being lazy; it's just trusting and allowing the process to unfold.

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Speaking of a strong work ethic, no greater model exists than West Virginia's own Sen. Robert C. Byrd. This past week, with his passing, has been deeply moving for so many of us, on so many levels.

Hailing from the same county (Raleigh) as Sen. Byrd, I was greatly aware, while growing up, of his tremendous impact on our state. Our family, like many of yours, knew him. And, unlike many of the fallen statesmen we see these days, Byrd never forgot why he was in Washington. And he never wavered from his mission.

I add my voice to the chorus of countless others who mourn his loss, while being comforted that his legacy as a passionate leader, a gentleman and a scholar will continue for generations to come. This one sure is hard to "let go," though.

Linda Arnold, MBA, is a certified wellness instructor and chairwoman/CEO of The Arnold Agency, a marketing communications firm specializing in advertising, public relations, government relations and interactive marketing. Reader comments may be directed to Linda Arnold, The Arnold Agency, 117 Summers St., Charleston, WV 25301 or e-mailed to livelifefu...@arnoldagency.com.