let nature take its course

[jasonlulu_2000]

Suppose a friend is anxious about not being able to do anything about an inevitable thing.

Can I say to him/her, "Just let nature take its course"?

Or what should I say to let him/her accept the situation as it is?

Thank you for your help!

Jason

 

[BrunaBC]

As John Lennon would say: Let it be.;-)

 

[charliedeut]

As John Lennon [STRIKE]would say[/STRIKE] said: Let it be.;-)

Unfortunately, the late Mr Lennon is unable to say anything right now :-(

Greetings,

charliedeut

 

[emsr2d2]

Suppose a friend is anxious about not being able to do anything about an inevitable thing.

Can I say to him/her, "Just let nature take its course"?

Or what should I say to let him/her accept the situation as it is?

Thank you for your help!

Jason

You can say that to your friend, but it won't help with his/her anxiety! It's good advice but perhaps not very reassuring.

 

[BrunaBC]

Unfortunately, the late Mr Lennon is unable to say anything right now :-(

Greetings,

charliedeut

:roll: of course... would say (if he were alive), isn't it implied?

 

[emsr2d2]

:roll: of course... would say (if he were alive), isn't it implied?

I'd use "As John Lennon would have said [when he was alive] ..."

 

[charliedeut]

I'd use "As John Lennon would have said [when he was alive] ..."

I don't think that would be necessary, since he did say it (in fact, he was so convinced of it that he wrote a nice whole song, as you know);-)


Greetings,

charliedeut

 

[BrunaBC]

I see both constructions 1) As Mr Lennon would say [if he were alive] ... (like I said first), and 2) As Mr Lenon would have

said [when he was alive], are possible, however with a difference in meaning.

 

[SoothingDave]

I'm not sure that "nature" is the actor in all inevitable situations, so I don't think the phrase always applies.

If I'm complaining about all the taxes I have to pay when I sell a house, it doesn't make any sense to say that I have to let nature run its course.

 

[jasonlulu_2000]

Thank All of You for Your help! What else can I say to reassure others apart from "let nature take its course or let it be"?

 

[emsr2d2]

Chill!
Relax!
You can't do anything about it, so just go with it.

If they're religious, you could give them this well-known prayer:

"God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,
The courage to change the things I can,
And the wisdom to know the difference."

 

[Raymott]

Thank All of You for Your help! What else can I say to reassure others apart from "let nature take its course or let it be"?

A common phrase is "Sh*t happens", or "Stuff happens" if you don't want to use the vulgarity. It means that "Things happen - you can't avoid them, and you can't do anything about them."
You can also say, "There's no point crying over spilt milk". That is, the milk is spilt, and you can't do anything about it.
Religious types might say, "Leave it in God's hands" or "It's all part of God's plan".
There's probably lots of other things people say.