We rarely talk about it, yet every one of us will face it.
The day we lose our parents is one of life’s most certain and most devastating truths.
Even knowing it’s inevitable doesn’t soften the ache when the moment comes.
As someone who teaches emotional intelligence, resilience, and forgiveness, I’ve found that this grief cuts differently: it’s not just about losing a loved one, it’s about saying goodbye to the giants who shaped our world.
“The Hardest Goodbye”
“I knew this day would come.
We all do.
It is written in the fragile thread of life
that parents go before us.
But knowing it,
and watching it—
are two very different things.
One day they are strong,
laughing in the kitchen,
scolding, guiding,
telling stories like time would never touch them.
And then,
all at once,
time comes collecting.
I see it in their hands—
the same hands that once tied my shoes,
now trembling to hold a cup.
I hear it in their voices—
once so steady,
now cracked and quiet.
I watch it in their steps—
the ones that once carried me,
now slowed,
careful,
uncertain.
And I am left standing in the doorway
with a breaking heart,
remembering them as I first knew them—
giants,
heroes,
the very center of my world.
And now—
fragile bodies,
fading light,
the slow slipping away.
Death was always coming.
I knew it.
But it doesn’t come like a thief in the night—
it comes like a shadow,
day by day,
until one day you wake,
and they are no longer here.
And in that silence,
the child inside me screams—
because no matter how old you grow,
you are never ready
to live in a world
without your parents.
So I hold on tightly
while I can.
I memorize their wrinkles,
their smiles,
the sound of their stories.
Because love never feels long enough,
and goodbyes always feel too soon.”
Author Unknown
Grief reminds us of our humanness. It doesn’t follow a timeline, and it doesn’t respond to logic. But it does invite us to pause – to hold on to the laughter, the wrinkles, the stories, the hands that once held us steady. The hardest goodbye is also the most universal. And in honoring it, we not only keep their memory alive, we remind ourselves that love is always worth the ache.
Dr. Shawne
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Related Articles:
Navigating the Emotional Terrain: Saying Goodbye to a Parent and Finding Strength Within
Embracing the Journey: Understanding That Grief Is a Natural Part of Life
