Grief: The Ordinary Moments

Hindsight is always 20/20. When our loved ones are no longer with us, there are so many things we find ourselves missing. We often Monday-morning quarterback our lives, questioning everything. We get knee-deep in the coulda-shoulda-woulda’s. Why didn’t we take that big trip? Did they know how much we loved and appreciated them?

Did we tell them enough?

One of the hardest but most beautiful lessons grief teaches us is that it’s the ordinary moments that carry the deepest significance. It’s not always the grand adventures or monumental celebrations we miss most—it’s the everyday, seemingly simple moments that carve the deepest places in our hearts.

If we take an honest look at our lives, most of us were simply doing the best we could, living each day as it came—working, raising families, keeping a home, nurturing relationships. We weren’t taking our loved ones for granted; we were living.

When I think of my daughter, it’s not the big trips that come first to mind. It’s seeing her name light up my phone screen with the daily phone calls about everything and nothing. It’s cooking meals together, Sunday family dinners, the spontaneous shopping trips, and mother-daughter mani-pedi dates with her.

How many of you can relate?

Hold your memories close. Treasure each one. Spend time with the people you love while you still can. Take lots of photos, even on the ordinary days—especially on the ordinary days. Because one day, it’s not the big vacations or milestone events you’ll long for most; it’s the everyday moments, the small things, that will echo the loudest in your heart.