There are days of joy and happiness and suddenly like a gentle stream, a memory passes by and you glance without a grip. Tears ebb and flow with the stream as it turns a corner. You watch.

You come back from your retreat with grief and realize …. you’re still on this wild edge of sorrow … in the midst of living this amazing adventurous life.

And life lives and the journey flows.

Why do we Grieve?

Grieving comes from all aspects of life. It’s not just from the death of a loved one. We grieve because our world changes, because familiar patterns of life are gone, because our future is unknown, because the roles in our life are shattered, because our personal identify was shaken to its core, because our sense of purpose seems lost, because some spiritual beliefs are undermined, because our everyday tasks are overwhelming, because we just do and don’t understand why. And yet, we grieve.

Our Journey of Grief

In our journey with grief, we move as grace allows. We may pursue everyday tasks. We may experience shock and denial. As we adjust to our new realty, and we weather emotional turmoil. Those sudden and unexpected moments of grief may bring us to an emotionally abandoned feeling and yet we move toward acceptance and begin to reconstruct our life to our life with grief. We move forward, because as death is final, life goes on.

Ways to Process our Grief Experience

Each of us lives with grief differently. There is no right or wrong way. No timeline. We may feel like we are on a rollercoaster, feeling out of control. There are ways to guide us through this journey. As we lean in, embrace the grief we begin to heal. Retelling a life story can help us process through our grief of a loved one passing.

The Work of Grief

Healing from grief requires an active inner work on our part. As we rebuild our personal identity, rediscover of passions and purpose, learn to open our heart, we heal day by day.

 Tools for Healing

We have within us a grief toolbox. Physical and spiritual aspects of letter writing, seeking encouragement and support, creating a legacy project, mapping emotions, experiencing a guided imagery or meditation are just some tools to help us rebuild our lives from grief.

Signs of Healing

A simple list of some signs that you are healing from grief: