The Grief of Transitions
Oh when the great wheel of life turns, who can stand against it.
–Sufi poet
Grief takes many faces: death, breakup, health, financial, trust, and even joyful transitions.
My son graduated from high school two years ago, and in May of this year my daughter will also graduate. The transition from being a mom who has opted to be all in, to a mom that now needs to parent in a totally different way, has brought up some major grief. Midlife crisis –or awakening, as I like to call it– is real and life changing.
Life has so many transitions. And part of our healing path is to face the grief and joy that come with them.
When we choose to stay present in the discomfort of our transitions, rather than turn away, self-medicate, or try to “fix” it through forces outside ourselves, loss and grief can become an awakening to sacred space. Our broken heart can open to deeper love and intimacy with Spirit and with compassion for all humanity.
Loss and grief are a state of being that carry energy, which you can tap into to create life. Just like positive events like marriage and birth, we use the energy of these newly acquired states of being to transform our lives and use that energy of grieving to transform and deepen our well of love inside.
The cycles of change, death and rebirth, are not something we get over. They’re not the flu. They’re where the healing lies.
Grief can be a crucible for alchemical transmutation.
–Mirabai Starr
There's wisdom in our transitions, as hard as they may be. During this time of children leaving my home, I have awakened to deeper boundaries, more self care, and a depth of self trust that I haven’t been able to give to myself because I lacked the time and space.
Embracing the grief of transitions as a radical agent of change gives us an opportunity to deepen our love: for self, for the other. Instead of the stagnation and despair that so often accompanies acceptance, embracing death through our journey allows us to bloom and grow into a new and better version of ourselves.
Grief, no matter what type, has issued a challenge to us. We can grow now or stay in despair.
This time on Earth is a period of rebirth; there are bound to be labor pains. We can’t go back to where we were, but we can move through this wheel of life that our grief is inviting us to open to. Here is where the healing is and here is where the magic is: owning our feelings to awaken to who we are post-transition.
The grief of transition has an energy and teachings that can make your life more meaningful, bring you to a place of soul purpose and service like no other upset in life. You didn’t ask for this, but what will you do now with this grief in your life?