...preferably applied to when the loss isn't death. Because death isn't this easy or straightforward to think about. As I have learned this year. It's made me a little loco to be honest.
But anyway. The loss I'm talking about is when you've had someone in your life, someone who has changed you, made you a better person, someone you adored or admired, someone who really impacted the way you think, the way you act, the way you are. Someone you really look up to and who you are devastated has left your life, whether by choice, or otherwise.
I have been lucky enough to have had a few of these people. And I always struggle when they no longer are regulars in my life anymore. They leave a hole noone else can fill. To clarify, I'm not talking romantic love here. Just those good sorts of people you never want to let go. They can be a relative-by-marriage, a teacher, a colleague, a family friend, a friend, anyone really.
Now to the nitty gritty. How to think about losing them.
Don't be sad they are gone, be happy they were ever in your life in the first place.
Be grateful you got the chance to meet them, to know them, to have them influence your life in ways you didn't know were possible.
Don't mourn that they feature less in your life from now on, recognise instead how blessed you are that they came into your life in the first place.
This is what I try to do, and it always makes me feel better. I've had people leave my life for all sorts of reasons, moving to a different country, changing jobs, or just losing touch. And while it is sad, if you know me, you know I'm perpetually optimistic (even when I don't feel like it on the inside).
I can't help it.
