Let Go, Come Back

What to expect

On a bell, you let every edge go. On a gong, you come sharply back: eyes open, feet down. You look at a moment that stung, then at someone you find hard, each from both places. The switches come quicker, and at the end you hold both at once. We made this experiment for ourselves first, to practise switching on cue between letting go and coming back.

How to listen:

• Sitting, with your feet on the floor, after work or at the end of a long day.
• Follow the sounds: a bell to let go, a gong to come back.
• Headphones help. The bell comes from above, the gong from in front and low.
• Never while driving.

About

Safety and aftercare. You can stop at any gong, or at any moment in between. Pick a moment and a person that are hard but manageable, not the hardest thing you carry. If it gets too much, open your eyes, feel your feet, and stay there. Before you get up, press your feet into the floor once more.

Credits. Moving between letting go and coming back draws on the pendulation of Peter Levine and Bessel van der Kolk.

Written by Lee and Lucas + Twins. Voice: Lucas.

Transcript

Opening

Some moments ask you to soften. Some ask you to stand firm. Most days ask for both, often in the same minute. Here, they take turns first. The day is still moving.

Let it keep moving.

Find your hands.

Your jaw, its hinge.

The nearest sound.

Air touching your face.

Now one long breath out.

Breath comes back by itself.

Two sounds will lead this.

A high bell, from above and behind.

On it, let go.

A low gong, low in front.

On it, come back.

Part One: Let every edge go

Let every edge go.

Eyes can close.

Loosen the edge of your skin.

Soften where your body ends.

Release the walls of the room.

Lift away the ceiling.

Drop the name you answer to.

Set down who you are.

Let the space go on.

Listen out, as far as sound goes.

Breath moves by itself.

Part Two: Open your eyes

Open your eyes, now.

Press your feet down, hard.

Feel what is under them.

Find where your body ends.

Name one thing you see.

Say its name, inside.

Count a hundred down by sevens.

Keep the count going.

Here, eyes open, feet down.

Part Three: A moment you felt slighted

Let every edge go.

Eyes can close.

The count can fall away.

Find a moment you felt slighted.

Look at it from wide open.

Notice where it lands in the body, if anywhere.

Space all around it.

Breath still moves by itself.

Part Four: From your feet

Open your eyes, now.

Press your feet down, hard.

Find where your body ends.

Name one thing you see.

Count ninety down by sevens.

Bring the same moment here.

Look at it from your feet.

Ask what the next plain step is.

Part Five: Someone you find hard

Let every edge go.

Eyes can close.

The count can fall away.

Bring in someone you find hard.

Look at them from wide open.

Notice where they land in the body, if anywhere.

Room around them, on every side.

Part Six: Look at them from your feet

Open your eyes, now.

Press your feet down, hard.

Find where your body ends.

Name one thing you see.

Count eighty down by sevens.

Bring the same person here.

Look at them from your feet.

Ask what the next plain step is.

Next, the bell and the gong come quicker.

Part Seven: Both, wide open

Let every edge go.

Eyes can close.

The count can fall away.

Bring the moment and the person.

Look at both, wide open.

Part Eight: Both, from your feet

Open your eyes, now.

Press your feet down, hard.

Find where your body ends.

Name one thing you see.

Count seventy down by sevens.

Look at both from your feet.

Ask what the next plain step is.

Part Nine: Wide open again

Let every edge go.

The count can fall away.

Look at both, wide open.

Part Ten: Feet down again

Open your eyes, now.

Press your feet down, hard.

Find where your body ends.

Look at both from your feet.

Ask what the next plain step is.

Part Eleven: Both at once

Now let go, and stay here, at once.

Keep your eyes open.

Press your feet down.

And let every edge go.

Open all the way through.

Solid on your feet.

Bring the moment and the person.

Look at them from here.

Ask what the next plain step is.

Breath moves by itself.

Part Twelve: Into the day

Let the moment and the person go.

Feel your hands, and what they rest on.

Look around the room.

The next thing in your day is waiting.

Go to it, eyes open, feet down.