There are not enough words capable of alleviating a soul when a loved one departs, but we can learn to see death from a different perspective. We fear what we don’t know, but having faith that life continues after this will bring us peace. We are souls clothed in a temporary body with an expiration date. The dead are not dead; they are fellow travelers who have an earlier departure flight home. We should celebrate the departure more than the arrival; nevertheless, the wrong belief that only this material world exists convinces us to believe death is the end when it is just the beginning. Neither death nor disease is a punishment from God, but the Law of life. Trees do not suffer when they let go of their leaves; they are part of nature and the cycles of life. God usually rewards us with someone or something new that arrives to fill the void left when someone leaves. Our loved ones are not replaceable; however, God never leaves us heartbroken, and if we look closely, within the experience of letting go, there is always a gift if we can learn to see it through the curtain of grief.
The best way to honor a departed being is to live our life fully and in the now. To avoid the anguish and suffering, let them know how you feel about them while they are still here. There will be no regrets or tears of sorrow. It is never too late. The beings that have died can always hear a pardon, with the mediation of God at any time.
Feeling sadness is something natural and temporary that eventually heals. Although the sense of loss of a loved one never goes away, suffering indefinitely and burying ourselves with the one who has left goes against the nature of love and life. The most considerable pain is thinking that we could have avoided it. Our time will come. Some mistakenly believe that pain and anguish will keep the being who has departed by our side. In a certain way, this is true, but in the negative, since our attachment can delay them in their journey and burden their soul. Our sadness will not be able to change what happened. Likewise, sometimes suffering comes from thinking that something we could have done to avoid death or delay it.
Today remember the beings who left with love. Light some candles, talk about their stories, write a letter asking or giving forgiveness, or express with a thought what was not said while alive. Consider starting a project in his/her name. Your good actions on earth affect everyone in your family, living or dead. They listen to you; they are not far away and are only behind a veil.
Candles, flowers, or a dinner shared with friends and family remembering the one who left is perfect. Also, remember that prayer lifts the soul.
Prayer to God is like a beacon sent to heaven, which always responds to us with a balm of peace to calm the soul — it is inexplicable, but it happens, ask God.
Today give thanks for the time spent with that loved one who left, being that he has lived a little or a long time, time is a gift, and when it is short, sometimes it is valued more, so thank those who are by our side. Life is fleeting like the flame of candles. That is why it is essential to living Today because life is a gift. Death, after all, is the beginning of eternal life with God. Eternal is not a long time, but a state where there is no longer time, as Saint Augustine would say.
Letting go of those who have left and living fully in the present is the best gift. We can no longer give them material things, but our peace and joy, along with our prayers for their soul, are the best gift and the only thing you can give to someone who has departed.
Death is only the life that we receive after this life. What we call death is a new life that begins after the veil has lifted.