Grief Comes in Waves

Processing grief is not a linear process. Emotion is water, our tears. It ebbs and flows like the tides. Sometimes it feels like tidal wave, other times a small crash upon our shore. When we have lost a loved one, it hurts beyond words. It’s deep, deep pain. It’s primal. It’s so much a part of us, it feels like a limb is being ripped away from our very being. And then, we recover and get on with life…for a little while…until another wave crashes.

We must all give ourselves the compassion to let the waves come in when they come in. Sometimes we are not just grieving a loved one who has passed; sometimes it is other endings in our lives. The key to move through grief is to allow ourselves the space to feel it, even if it's one minute of spontaneous crying while we are in the middle of folding clothes. When the wave hits, allow it.

Have you ever picked up a large jug of water? It is heavy. We can’t hold on to our grief, we must let it pass through us to remain relatively light in this world.

As we cry from loss, what we must recognize that we are crying for the love that we experienced—the deep, deep love—and somehow that makes it better. We may lose this amazing person in this life, but we always carry that love with us—that never dies.

Soul-Prompt: How can I create space to process my grief? How can I spontaneously release it when it arrives? Who or what am I grieving?