This was a happy, yet melancholy, day from about a month ago.
We met my sister, her hubby, and my nephew (who is one month older than Liam) at Northern Arizona University. My nephew is a freshman there this semester. He is an only child and his parents live in northern Colorado.
I watched my sister wrestle with all the emotions of letting her “baby” go to forge out on his own journey while she and her husband start planning for the empty-nesting activities they’ll be doing.
I’m glad I have an older son that I had to “send out of the nest” already so that I could empathize with and comfort her. Because, most likely, I will never have this moment with Liam — or if I do, it will look very different for him with the level of support/care he needs.
As she grieves the transition of letting go, I grieve the transition of not having this opportunity with Liam. Both feelings of grief are valid. Both require us to sit in and process our feelings. Both require us to come to a place of peace, hope, and purpose for the future.
I find so many people avoid acknowledging and processing their grief and so it holds them back from the peace, hope, purpose, and joy they could have in the future. Grief is inevitable. It is part of being human. Being stuck and held back by grief long-term is a choice. I choose to move towards peace, hope, purpose and joy… sometimes just one moment at a time.
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