When I was a child, we used to blow the seeds from dandelions and watch them fly away to take root in a new place. It’s a good analogy for what’s it’s like to be bereaved. I wish David was still alive but he’s not so my personal landscape is forever changed by an event over which I had zero control. If you are bereaved or even a caregiver, this is true for you too. Our energy and ability to focus become unreliable and some members of our community fall away. All we can do is ride the wave.
In the endless landscape of grief light to despair,
we commit to thrive or survive, expand or contract,
no matter what our circumstances.
Life has its own current, even in the midst of grief.
Seasons pass and we go on, experiencing and feeling,
even loving sometimes.
Staying miserable means digging in our heels against joy,
closing our eyes to periodic or even daily delight,
trying to escape the flow.
When the past is gone, except for the memories,
and the future seems perilously precarious.
The present is all we can count on.
Trust confidently.
Forgive without reservations.
Love with your whole heart.
Be all of you again.
