I’ve come to the conclusion that everything that happens to us in life is a lesson. All the loss, the heartache, the betrayal, the boredom, the feeling of loneliness, the struggle to figure out your purpose, it comes along with being human. Just like there are times in life where things feel new and exciting. We experience many moments, perhaps even periods of happiness, of belonging and being around people who love and accept us for ourselves. And then unexpectedly, someone we love passes away, or a friend or family member disappoints us, sometimes it even breaks our heart. But we heal and hopefully we learn. If we don’t learn the first time, life takes us on a path of repeating the same mistakes over and over again until we do learn. Sometimes you don’t even notice that you are repeating the same negative patterns and when you finally do, it is like an awakening.

I’ve learned that no amount of tears will bring back a loved one that has passed away. The only thing we can do is to live our best life without them. We honor their memory in that way. They never really leave us, they are always in our hearts, but we do have to move on. Everyone has a different timeline for grieving and we have to also respect and accept that. Everyone has their own process and journey through the dark, empty hallways of grief.

I’ve learned that although I love my family, my friends and people in general, I don’t care to have disingenuous relationships.

I’ve learned to accept and love myself for who I am. I’ve learned that certain traditions that were the fabric of my family no longer serve me, but that there are others that will always be apart of me. I’ve learned that I have deep faith in a higher power and the ability to achieve anything I set my mind on. I’ve learned that sometimes things that hurt you the most teach you the greatest Life lessons.

Spend some time self-reflecting, what is it that you have learned during your most difficult times?