My life has given me both the blessings of great love and the grief of deep loss. Both these experiences allow me to hold space for love and grief for others.
Waves of Grief Mandala. Original by
Maharani Faleiro
I first encountered death in my 20’s, with the murder of a college friend. Soon after, I experienced the destructive force of Hurricane Andrew. I also navigated the painful ending of a long-term relationship. I began to realize the ephemeral transiency of life and I resolved to being fully ALIVE.
In the following decade, I journeyed through the frustration and despair of my father’s illness and death. It was our first encounter with the heartless and dehumanizing medical industrial complex.
This loss was healed and transformed in the following decade when I had the profound blessing to be at the end of my spiritual guide’s life. There, I learned that death could be peaceful and beautiful.
I have been fortunate to have had the experience of great love twice in my life. I have experienced great joy and deep love in finding a partner and choosing marriage. And then, motherhood gifted me a precious blessing and taught me unimaginable ways of loving
I never knew that I could be capable of such love… And in loving my daughter, I learned to love myself.
Image by Omar Lopez
@omarlopez1 on UnsplashRebirth
Sunflower against a blue sky by
James Frid on Pexels
Image by Jakob Owens
@jakobowens1 on UnsplashThis 5th decade of my life has been full of personal losses of relationships and rebirths.
I am feeling and moving through the pain, confusion and sorrow of separation from my child’s father and the completion of many long time relationships with family, friends, and community
And once again, I start over… It feels like a transatlantic journey even though I have not travelled physically!
