Devastating loss

7 quotes to support you through the darkness

This week has been rocked by the tragic loss of a good friend, father, grandfather, uncle, brother.

I’m taking a pause to lean on the words of others who have experienced tremendous loss.

THIS WEEK’S INSIGHT

Devastating loss: 7 quotes to support you through the darkness

1. “We bereaved are not alone. We belong to the largest company in all the world – the company of those who have known suffering.” Helen Keller, We Bereaved
2. “Grief can be a burden, but also an anchor. You get used to the weight, how it holds you in place.” Sarah Dessen, The Truth About Forever
3. The reality is that you will grieve forever. You will not 'get over' the loss of a loved one; you will learn to live with it. You will heal and you will rebuild yourself around the loss you have suffered. Elisabeth Kubler-Ross
4. “Grief has its own time frame. It has its own itinerary with you. It has its own power over you, and it will come when it comes.” Elizabeth Gilbert
5. “There is no grief like the grief that does not speak.” Henry Wadsworth
6. “For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted; a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; a time to throw away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; a time to seek, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to throw away; a time to tear, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; a time to love, and a time to hate; a time for war, and a time for peace.” Ecclesiastes 3: 1-8
7. “This is what grief is. A hole ripped through the very fabric of your being. The hole eventually heals along the jagged edges that remain. It may even shrink in size. But that hole will always be there. A piece of you always missing.For where there is deep grief, there was great love. Don’t be ashamed of your grief. Don’t judge it. Don’t suppress it. Don’t rush it. Rather, acknowledge it. Lean into it. Listen to it. Feel it. Sit with it. Sit with the pain. And remember the love. This is where the healing will begin.” Light of Rumi

My takeaway

It’s my privilege to work with people who are facing all sorts of challenges in their professional and personal lives.

And there are moments when the collision of life and despair stop you in your tracks.

Life does remind you that you will move on, as James Patterson so beautifully writes.

The weird, weird thing about devastating loss is that life actually goes on. When you're faced with a tragedy, a loss so huge that you have no idea how you can live through it, somehow, the world keeps turning, the seconds keep ticking.

Thank you for your understanding.

May you be well.