Grief is a Map

"Grief begins not with death, but the moment we sense something precious slipping away."

"If you don't grieve, you cut the lifeline to ever feel alive again."

"Grief is the map. It tells us the life we had before is gone, and it helps show the way to the next place."

These pithy sayings by the great, late, Irish writer John O'Donahue cut to the core of my truth. They flew eloquently out of his mouth during an interview with Krista Tippett on On Being.

In my experience as a human, and as a doula, and as a conscious dying educator, Grief is indeed a great teacher and guide. 

We need to lean heavily on grief in order to go on living. 

If we try to repress or deny it, it finds its way back to us, demanding to be faced. 

There is no way around it. We must go through it.

Grief is with us every day, in the tiny and monumental losses we face. It is a silent friend, like sorrow.

The process of grief is so very non-linear, that we need to hold on tight and trust that it will guide us.

Grief reminds us that all we have for sure is groundlessness. Enjoy the wild ride, with all its up and down bumps, with its tears and laughter, with its aloneness and connectedness!