Great starts are easy, the goal is to finish well
Now that the world has reawakened from its pandemic paralysis, families and friends are beginning to once again gather in person for get-togethers. Celebrations, memorials, and weddings are no longer being held virtually, or any other creative ways folks came up with to gather at a distance. Although the year 2022 began with yet another variant, the sounds of silence finally began to decrease, as the voices of joy slowly started to rise.
As I sit down to write, I look out the window and notice how gray the day seems to be. The skies are gray and a bit misty as the rain drizzles down. The birds are not active – most of them have taken shelter in trees. I can spot the red feathers of cardinals peeking out under leaves – decorating the large beach tree in our back yard. Today’s weather mirrors the topic I am planning to write about. Grief.
As I begin packing for another trip to California, (of course, that was before the world shut down due to the Coronavirus), I am reminded that this is becoming all too familiar. Not the trip, but the reason for it. Loss. After a certain age, the expectation that we will experience loss becomes more likely, not that it cannot happen to anyone of any age. My experience has been that loss is becoming a more recognizable part of the landscape along the way. We can’t escape it. It is part of humanity; every person in our life carries the risk of loss. The risk is worth it though – how joyless and lonely would we be if we shunned companionship in order to shield ourselves from the sadness connected to losing someone.