My Mom passed. I entered grief counseling. The grief counselor spoke of entering a new normal after losing a loved one – especially a parent. How do I transition to my new normal? A motherless child.

How do I rise above trauma or a tragic event in my life to become anew? So often when one experiences a traumatic event in life – a loved one’s passing, a grim medical diagnosis, loss of job, the end of a significant relationship,  diminished finances – in that moment we may not be able to experience a sense of spiritual rejuvenation but only immobility and fear. Our fears may be too great to think of moving forward because we just do not know how. How does one revive their spirit to become anew? For me, it boiled down to FAITH.  My maternal grandmother Carrie who I affectionately called Big Mama stated on her sick bed that she would “trust God until she dies”. FAITH

My sister Faye attributed her faith in God to get her through painful cancer treatments. She subsequently succumbed to her illness, but she never wavered in her belief in God. Amazing FAITH!

I recently spoke with my Aunt Jean about the untimely tragic death of her oldest son Orlando. She stated, “I really needed to have people to talk to as much as possible about my feelings about Orlando. I prayed  and meditated which helped a lot.” I asked did having a network of Godly people also helps – there was a moment of silence.  She further commented, “you must be careful to whom you allow to hear you.” FAITH.

I ran across an article published by the Associated Press of the   February 15th, 2022, mudslide in Petropolis, Brazil. The article highlighted a man, Alex Condé.  Mr. Condé view his mission from God   to be strong for others after the horrific natural disaster. Mr. Condé’s oldest son 18-year-old Kaique was one of the 200 victims who perished in the mudslide. The funeral director stated, “there was no one as confident in God as Mr. Alex”. FAITH.

I am amongst a privileged group that despite losing my father and  sister in 2013 and 2014 – then my mother, aunt, uncle and friends in 2020 and 2021 I maintained my faith. My belief was certainly fragile, but I knew that God would see me through this challenging time in my life. FAITH.

GLOBAL PANDEMIC – An excuse or a reason?

So many people are in a state of grief as a result of the global pandemic. Their lives were turned upside down and inside out. Many persons are still finding it difficult to regroup.

I hear the global pandemic being used as the reason for so many dreams scrapped, and hope deferred. Listen who saw the pandemic coming (another blog) and the impact it had on each of our lives. Everyone experienced the pandemic – some persons lost a job, closed a business, lost a loved one to Covid19 or tested positive for Covid19, tremendous civil unrest, supply chain shortages, suicides and the list goes on and on.

Those of us who are still standing after the global pandemic yearn for things to get back to normal – well, that is just not going to happen. Everyone has to pivot. There is really no getting around it.

Things I learned from the global pandemic are:

• Dreams can come true despite a global pandemic
• People are selfish
• People are selfless
• The worst thing has happened – Mom died
• I really like Mr. Clean “Clean Freak” spray cleaner
• I recognized many smiles behind the masks people wore
• The worse thing has happened – my Mother passed
• I wished I had bought stock in ZOOM
• I like my home space
• I enjoy my own company
• I really like TV

Life is all about perspective I suppose  – How would I now like to evolve into my new normal? Seize the day, moment, hour and minute.  I will not hide any longer behind my feelings but express all my feelings in an appropriate manner. Gone are the days of saying yes to everyone but myself. I will take flight and soar like an eagle. When the airlines suggest you take care of yourself first in case of any on flight emergency and secondly others such as an accompanying child or elderly; did I not get it? Of course, there is a time to step up and participate in the care of loved ones whose health may be weakening. That of course is how the flow of our lives go. However, If I am fully immersed in the care of folk who are perfectly able to take care of their needs, I can become mired in others’ nonsense and needs not my own.

Pull yourself up by your bootstraps or put on your big girl or guy pants and walk through your amazing life.

Don’t let your story die inside you – HomePage1 – helping you find FullNESS = a life that is free – unique-loved-lean-noble-enlightened-spiritual and solvent.