Letting Go

A ceremony of letting go of a toxic past and the beginning of a brighter future.

The past months have been full of changes, healing from trauma and celebrating the life I've been blessed with. One thing I wanted to do was to throw away the ring my ex gave me for my birthday last year. I still wore it and I felt it was a physical symbol of our relationship that I was trying to grasp.

My beautiful friend suggested that we go to the beach and I could have a ceremony there. Then have some delicious gelato and have a swim at her parent’s pool. And later finish with dinner, which I was all for.

We went to Takapuna Beach on the North Shore of Auckland. I've never been there before so it was a new experience for me. We grabbed the gelato from Takapuna Beach Cafe & Store, I ordered a chocolate flavour. You just can't go wrong with chocolate! Then we made our way to the ocean.

I waded out knee-deep, Rangitoto Island in my view. The water transparent and crisp against my legs. I took off the ring and held it close, acknowledging the good and bad of the relationship I had with him. My heart was broken but I knew this was the first step to healing and remembering my self-worth. With one last deep breath, I threw the ring into the ocean and said my goodbye.

I know, I'm so dramatic. But I was being my most authentic self. I knew I needed to be in the water for the ceremony. I've always been drawn to water, I always feel pure and at peace when I'm in the ocean. I feel cleansed and rejuvenated from the heaviness that the world puts on my shoulders. This experience was catered to my individual needs and you have no idea how free I felt once that ring disappeared into the water.

We then headed to the pool for a dip. Splashing around and laughing, I always feel better when I'm surrounded by people who care and love me. Then I got hungry... what's new! We walked around looking for places that tickled our fancy. We landed at Regatta Bar & Eatery, it was a lovely bright seaside restaurant overlooking the beach. I ordered a Mango Colada for my beverage, a Szechuan Pepper Squid Salad, and to finish for dessert a Sage Créme Brûlée.

Overall an awesome night out with beautiful people. We headed home blasting Jason Derulo and singing till our lungs exploded. I'm still experiencing a lot of emotions but I know that I want to acknowledge those emotions in a healthy way. Letting go is never easy but it's always worth it.

Arohanui Tiara x