Dear Sisters
When I started Grief and Me, I didn’t really know what would come of it. I just knew there had to be women out there like me….women who didn’t want to walk into a church building or community center and be handed the word “widow.” It felt so final, so awful. Honestly, I hated the word. I hated that I had to identify with this new life I never chose.

So instead of sitting in that hate, I decided to create something out of the awfulness called death. What has grown from that decision is something sacred: a sisterhood. I love you ladies with my whole heart. We know the sorrow, the depth of love, and the searching for what was.

A few months ago, a woman reached out to me on Instagram. She said, “I haven’t lost my husband yet, but he is currently dying from cancer.” She told me she had watched my videos and found comfort in them. Then she whispered the words we all know too well: “I don’t know how I will go on if he dies.”

It was like an echo in my soul. That phrase lingered.

We talked by phone soon after, and she said, “I see your strength, and I don’t think I’ll be as strong.” I told her what I’ll tell you: strength is overrated. What you’re really seeing is time. I have simply been walking this road a little longer. Sometimes with hope. Sometimes numb. Sometimes with a heaviness I can’t even explain.

After that call, I checked in with her often, asking about her James. She would share updates as his cancer progressed. Just a few days ago, James died. She sent me her words of deep sorrow, and my heart ached because I knew exactly…and not exactly…..what she was feeling. We share the depths of grief, but each of us has a different love story, and that love story shapes the way our grief shows up in this moment.

I share this with you because it reminds me again: this community matters. Your story matters. The way you carry both the ache and the love is uniquely yours, but you are not walking alone.

When you think of your love story….the way it began, the little moments only you two shared….what part of that story can you hold close today, not as pain, but as a quiet reminder of the love that will always be yours?

As I think of my new friend who is now stepping into life without her James, I’m reminded of the courage it takes to face a day you never wanted. She is waking up in a world that feels foreign, a world that is missing her other half. And yet….just like you, just like me…..she is still breathing, still carrying both love and loss in the same heart.
So if today feels unbearable, take one breath and let it remind you: you are not walking this road alone. Your story of love matters. Your grief matters. You matter.

✨ Place your hand over your heart, close your eyes for a moment, and whisper to yourself:

“I am still here. My love is still here. And step by step, I will carry both.”

I hope beyond hope that you feel supported in this group and that you feel the love from my heart towards you.

Sending you big hugs today!!

Ps…We will NOT be meeting this week. I am flying out to visit a dear friend this weekend. Pray for safe travels for me!

PPS.. I have been working on my NEW course called
“A New Way to Stand: A Widow’s Guide to Moving With, Not Moving On”. Several of you have expressed a desire to be on the wait list. We will be starting this course Come October 6th. If you want to be on the wait list please let me know in the email. I have a few of you already on this list! You will get a very discounted price for this course since you are here in the community already.

Gina~