Leave It, or, How to Stopping Beating Dead Horses

"Leave it" is what my dog trainer told me to tell my dog when she is holding something in her mouth, like a shoe, or something else I would rather she not be nomming on. It's one of the only commands that I've succeeded in teaching her. She still eats my pillows while I'm in the shower, and devours phone chargers while I make dinner, but if I'm looking directly at her while she attempts to feast upon my belongings, "leave it" works, about 90% of the time. There is a lesson here. I swear this isn't going to become a blog about my dog. The rest of my life if completely filled up with that wild beast, thankyouverymuch. Out of my blog, dog. The point is that there's a whole lot of crap that I think we need to just leave. 

Here's an example. Let's just say you are totally annoyed with something someone in your life does. Your girlfriend hangs out with her ex way too often, let's say, once every 3 months. The nerve. Or maybe your friend loves to talk about work. Always. Or your roommate thinks soaking dishes is acceptable and you think that is foul and insane. Whatever it is, someone is doing something that is annoying, or, in your opinion, total bullshit. Now, you still want them in your life, right? Okay, check, so we're not getting rid of this person. Have you voiced your opinion? "Hey, I hate your dumb ex, simply because you once dated. Please refrain from ever being around her/his gross self". That reasonable argument did not work? Ugh. Okay. So now you have something that you do not like, that is happening, that is apparently going to keep happening. Now, this is the really annoying part. You just have to leave it. Drop it. No, you do not get to drop catty comments every time your roommate sets all of the plates in the sink overnight for a long soak. To clarify, if there is a situation that you think needs to be addressed, like, is there something more to these bi-monthly hangouts between your gf/bf and their ex? Is your friend a selfish jerk? Once you've ruled out those kinds of "oh hell no" possibilities, THAT would be the time to move on. The thing is, once you've made a commitment to accept something about someone, or about a situation, you have to leave it alone. It's part of acceptance. Unfortunately. 

I am so, so bad at this!! That's an understatement. I am awful at letting something go. "Dead horse beater" is a hobby I list on my resume. Just ask anyone who has tried to brush off an argument that we are clearly still in the middle of. Good luck, buddy! Or my brother- I love him, but that man drives me crazy. I feel like I do an awful job of just accepting him for who his is. I don't want to be that way though. I want to be able to let things just roll off me, and not care anymore. I may not feel like I'm in the wrong, but I know the thing that's bothering me doesn't matter in the long run.

Kind of feels like you're admitting defeat, right? "Giving up" isn't necessarily celebrated in most circles. It's about choosing battles though, and I think that some battles are more exhausting then they're worth. If it isn't the biggest deal, maybe we can just say "I have no more shits to give about that" or something equally as eloquent, and move on. 
I'm going to try that this week. It's already Wednesday, so I've given myself a head start. Clearly, we want to remain concerned about things that need our concern, like work and school and our health and ohmygod there are so many things to be concerned about, I think knocking a few off the list might even be relieving! I will report back. If you try this and it works/fails, please let me know in the comments below. 

Gotta run, dog has gotten her head stuck between the fridge and the oven again. Again! Crazy girl doesn't know when to "leave it" sometimes.