Recently my husband's uncle passed away after a long illness. We knew that he was nearing his end, and were sad to hear the news. Others in our midst are knowingly nearing their last days too. While I've lost many loved ones throughout my life, some of these individuals nearing death now are much closer to me. I've been reading about what end of life is like and the best ways to deal with it.
It is amazing how the human spirit works. When you are young and someone close, but not too close, dies, it's not too difficult to move on. The same is true when family members of those you love die--while you feel sad for the loss, it is not like losing one of your own family members. It's good that we don't feel all loss the same because if we did, it would be difficult to live as joyfully as we do.
Loss during a pandemic seems greater to me as well since we are restricted from so much during these times, and we're even restricted from the ways we generally acknowledge loss and suffering. Like most people, I can't wait for pandemic days to end, and the vaccine makes me hopeful.
So what to do in the face of loss--as the articles say and what we naturally want to do, the best we can do is to be as loving as possible. To find ways to bring people peace and joy is a good aim during the tough days when someone is nearing the end of life.
So as we ready ourselves for what may be a soon passing of a loved one, it's important to focus on the good at hand--the little things we can do to spread joy, enjoy the season, and celebrate the holidays with cheer. Onward.