My mother-in-law passed away suddenly the week before last. It was incredibly sad for all of us. 
She was an amazing delicate woman who would always listen to you and offer advice, and it was mostly gentle advice:  no hate or pushing, just love.  So it broke my heart (and the hearts of those who were lucky enough to know her).

It brought up memories and feelings of my own mother passing away nine years earlier, and although I knew my mother was going to pass away, I didn’t really believe it.  
It doesn’t feel real that someone is gone from your life, whether it be a human or a beloved pet: it just seems as if they have taken a permanent vacation somewhere and you’re left behind to miss them terribly.

How do you even try to move on and enjoy life again? What are your choices?  If we can’t bring the person back, and we can’t go and see them, then what do we have left?

How do you heal yourself from losing a loved one?  
The first step is to just let yourself FEEL whatever you are feeling: whether it be sadness, anger, fear or whatever feeling you have—just feel it and know that you are acknowledging what your body and mind need to do. Everyone will do this differently, so don’t be hard on yourself—trust that your body will know when it’s time to stop crying.

The more you try to hold yourself together, the longer it will take for you to move through the first step to the second part: the HEALING. To heal means to take the experience you have had and find a way that you can make peace within yourself, and having your heart hurt less as time passes.

Death helps remind us that our lives are precious and that we should take moments and truly go deep with them.  

Death causes a major shift in perception: I believe it changes our energy and activates our vulnerability, providing the opportunity to rebuild ourselves with better energy and the courage to finally take steps towards change. It reminds us to let go of the little crappy things that niggle at us and to focus on a bigger picture of love and happiness…

Healing can begin when we surrender to our feelings. Death is something that can teach us to be better human beings, giving us a kick in the ass—forcing us to take action to LIVE.  
Death challenges our feelings of fear: Once we have lost someone we love, nothing else could possibly hurt us, so we become superheros—fearlessly standing up for ourselves and setting new boundaries.

Is there someone you loved and lost, and how did it change you?  

Sending out big hugs to all of you whom have had to deal with loss and grief.

With Love and Creativity,

x Laurie