The holidays are rich with traditions and memories. When we have suffered a loss, the first major holiday is the worst. My friend and I were discussing this over dinner last night. They lost her father-in-law in September. She had tried to explain to her husband what this loss would feel like and he “understood”. He totally “got” that it was going to be painful but “at least he wasn’t going to suffer anymore”. Then his dad died. And he was at a total loss. He couldn’t understand why seeing candy corn at Halloween reduced him to tears in the grocery store.

The thing is, unless you have experienced it personally, there really isn’t any way you can honestly know what it’s like to lose someone you love. And, each loss is different. It has always been my fervent hope that my writing can somehow prepare you for what comes after loss…even if it’s just to understand that you’re not alone, your grief is the worst grief, you are loved, and you will get through it.

I was listening to music on my iPad as I flew yesterday. I called on Mr. Virgo and asked him to come sit with me for awhile. I searched my phone photos for those great pictures I have of him. I didn’t feel sad, per se. I let him wash over me and felt his energy surround me in a cosmic embrace. My 7 year old grand daughter snuggled in bed with me Saturday morning and we talked about God and what happens to us when we die. She told me not to worry…that when we die it’s just our bodies that leave. WE’RE still here. She told me Papa Dan is always with us, all around us, and she has seen him. I love that. Why do we beat that out of kids? They are so much closer to God than we are. They see the source. I try to keep that alive in myself and encourage it in others.

❤