Thoughts on Love, Loss and Grief

Love, Loss, Grief and Acceptance

“The most beautiful people we have known are those who have known defeat, known suffering, known struggle, known loss, and have found their way out of the depths. These persons have an appreciation, a sensitivity, and an understanding of life that fills them with compassion, gentleness, and a deep loving concern. Beautiful people do not just happen.” Elisabeth Kübler-Ross

When we lose good people that were close to us the loss / pain is almost incomprehensible to self and in explanation to others.

I lost my mother in March 2017 and it took me quite some time to process and properly grieve this loss.

Today I cherish her life and am thankful for the legacy she left with her good values, gratitude and unconditional love.

The same can be said of my friend, Joseph Inns, who passed away in April 2021. A true giant among men...

Grieving The Loss of Joseph Inns

The Mental Health and Motivation journaling has assisted me in many ways for coming to terms with the two significant personal losses I have experienced during 2020 / 2021 - my girlfriend at the time and my friend, Joseph. The second loss of Joseph was the most poignant. The writing and publication on this public domain also provided definite content, context and reference to my sense of self in dealing with the aftermath of the abusive and toxic relationship towards the end of 2020.

Late December 2019 I have had the privilege to be joined by both of them at Intaka Island - a popular nature reserve (for bird photographers) in Cape Town. This was one of the proudest moments of my entire life - introducing my girlfriend to my best friend at a venue where we all shared a common interest - nature photography. Little did I know that just over a year from our special morning that both these significant individuals would be lost from my physical life, forever. Coming to terms with the disappointment of this double loss and associated trauma drifted me, at times, into a whirlpool of emotions I have never experienced before.

When you lose someone (death or otherwise) that was severely compromised in the application of basic values, healthy emotions and expectations the 'wound' can take a long time to heal. If you lose somebody in love, in my opinion, the mourning and healing is a sad, but a 'healthy' grieving process.

Losing someone out of fear and disappointment (due to abuse, continuous emotional disconnect and / or trauma bond) the healing process could be riddled with post-relationship anxiety and stress.

There is no legacy, there is no 'statue' in the mind for emotional perpetrators. I had to learn new ways to deal with my thoughts and now I am grateful for letting someone go that I thought I would never forgive for the verbal, physical and psychological abuse incurred.

Although I was scared of her physical or verbal attacks on me, I was more fearful that I would lose her. My emotion on the attacks was of disappointment and I believed that the situation would improve. A classic example how cognitive dissonance controlled my mind.

The essence of self-preservation were the months that I had to visit the darkened soul, with no torch to search / no artificial light to face the ultimate bedrock of sheer vulnerability. It was deep down to unconditionally learn more about the rawness of a dejected self - in honesty and fairness of who I was, want to be, will be, can / could be... without judgement, prejudice and / or fear.

From Fearful Loss to Acceptance 

After completing my My Lessons / Achievements from an Abusive Relationship article I felt a great sense of closure and relief. The core of my true self, through time, introspection and learning, was being restored by facing up to the acceptance of a failed relationship that once consumed not only my mind, but every fiber of my rational and emotional being.

Acceptance is an essential realization of being at peace with the true self - the same self that was once simultaneously immersed in the cognitive dissonance of loving and the fear of leaving someone that neither respected nor trusted my integrity, goodwill and / or values. 

© Vernon Chalmers

More About Love, Loss and Grief

"Love, loss, and grief are deeply intertwined experiences that touch everyone at some point in life. 

Here are some thoughts and reflections on these profound emotions:

Love and Grief:

• Grief is often described as the price we pay for love. When we lose someone we deeply care about, the intensity of our grief reflects the depth of our love. As Earl A. Grollman said, "Grief is love not wanting to let go" 1.

The Process of Grieving:

• Grieving is a unique and personal journey. It doesn’t follow a set timeline and can come in waves. John Irving poignantly noted, "When someone you love dies, you don’t lose her all at once; you lose her in pieces over a long time" 2.

Healing and Remembering:

• While the pain of loss may never fully disappear, it can transform over time. Anne Lamott beautifully expressed this by saying, "You will lose someone you can’t live without, and your heart will be badly broken, and the bad news is that you never completely get over the loss of your beloved. But this is also the good news. They live forever in your broken heart that doesn’t seal back up" 2.

Finding Comfort:

• In the midst of grief, finding small comforts can be crucial. Elizabeth Berrien reminds us that "A feeling of pleasure or solace can be so hard to find when you are in the depths of your grief. Sometimes it’s the little things that help you get through the day" 2.

The Universality of Grief:

• Grief is a universal experience, yet it feels intensely personal. C.S. Lewis captured this sentiment well: "No one ever told me that grief felt so like fear" 1.

These reflections highlight that while grief is a painful process, it is also a testament to the love we have for those we’ve lost." (Microsoft Copilot 2024)

Acceptance, Healing and Rebuilding after Grief and Loss