How many heartbreaks
can a human endure? There is the popular saying, “That which does not kill us makes us stronger “is negotiable. I am a little bit more philosophical
about this.
This is not complicated; it is so simple it is
beautiful. Let me start with a quote
from Mother Teresa that I have had on my bedroom wall for years. I might add I could not understand it, but
knew one day I would. She says, “ I have found the paradox that if you love
until it hurts, there can be no more hurt only more love.”
It is Thursday, my day to visit a 92-year-old man as his hospice volunteer My visit is a labor of love that I have treasured for the past 15 years. To me, there is no greater service than to visit him, love him, and keep him company in his last days.
There are people who enter our lives and impact us in a profound way, and recently there was a beautiful young man with light green eyes, and a brilliant smile, who entered my life for only a short time but made such an impact on me. He came into my life through a class I was teaching about death and dying at a local high school.
During the holidays we may
be going about our daily schedules and suddenly, seemingly out of nowhere,
sadness stirs inside us with a tremendous sense of loneliness. Vivid memories
of a person or event resurface, acute feelings of loss around missing a family member or dear friend that has passed away or is far from us weigh heavy in our hearts. It can cause us to
lose our focus and feel like we are imploding at one of the busiest times of
the year. When this happens to a client, a student, or even to me, I have one
very surprising recommendation-
Within minutes I knew our day was about to change, as we came upon crowds of people lining the streets, focused on something with hands to their foreheads, fingers to their lips—the body language we use when we are wondering or are confused about something. I heard comments like, “He hit the car. They pulled out in front of him,” and, “He was on a motorcycle.”




Loving myself and everyone
else the best I can, everyday, is number one on my bucket list. I cross it off
every night before I go to sleep and I add it back on every morning when I wake
up. I’ll let you in on a lovely secret that I have been learning from the dying
and from those who have had near death experiences.




Almost everyone is looking
for love, but most of us do everything we can to avoid death, so it makes sense
that we seldom put the two words together.




Death is an event many people fear, but seeing it through the eyes of the heart you just may find a sense of freedom and perhaps even welcome it whenever that day comes. Educate yourself on a subject that is most feared, embrace it without even the tiniest bit of resistance. The death zone is an incredibly holy place that we will all bravely step into some day.