I don’t have many words today; words cannot capture the grief that some of my friends and family members are feeling right now, as they don their black clothes and remember loved ones who have recently passed away. A father, a child, a friend: these souls are leaving in their wake countless people who were affected by them, and who will mourn them for all time.
It is those people, the ones left here to mourn, who I am thinking of most today. Saying goodbye is an impossible task. Try as we might, death is not something that we understand, except to know that it is part of life, except to know that it is nothing we can change.
Today I am reminded of the fact that people are so brave. We love. We love and we love and we love, and in that love we inevitably discover heartbreak. It shatters us, makes it difficult to breathe. We don’t know if we can make it through, and yet, with such courage, even in the darkest moments, we continue to love.
For those in deep mourning, all of my thoughts are with you. All that I have crosses these many miles to reach you today. I put on black this morning as well, thinking of you, wishing I could be with you to bear witness to the pain of these moments, wishing I could be with you to wrap my arms around you.
I know the world will never be the same without the laughter, strength, kindness, and brilliance of those you have recently lost. Today, I hope that you are carried by those surrounding you, so that some small, quiet part of you is aware of a vague presence of peace, even in the midst of such ravaging sorrow.
Though your heartbreak will always be with you, may love also hold you in close embrace.
The Wandering Introvert 