In the rooms we often say “Gratitude is an action.” In remembering those who have gone on before me, I express my gratitude for those I have loved and lost. I choose to feel the gratitude that comes from grief and to feel the grief that comes from love. And I choose to love again, despite the risk. We grieve for those whom we have truly cherished. We would not grieve long for something or someone we did not cherish and value greatly.We only mourn the passing of what we have held dear. In that grief lies the gratitude that we have for the time we shared in our small space and time on this planet. When we open our hearts to love we open them to grief, knowing that one of us will leave this place before the other. The fear and knowledge of this does not keep us from living and loving completely, for this is life itself, to love and be loved. Without love our world is barren and meaningless. This we must be ever grateful for. All things on this physical plane are temporary. They are our gifts and our sustenance. We must not refuse them, The grief in losing has at its core this love. We can be grateful for the time we had and keep in our hearts the memories of what we experienced while with this person. There can be no grief that is not laced with gratitude. Embrace them both and let them be part of you. Never let either go–this is what keeps us human and able to love again.