Joy and grief can live together…

This picture brings me both feelings of great joy and grief all at once. I had recently suffered a severe multiple sclerosis relapse. It had been weeks since I’d been able to participate in the Farmer’s Market with my daughters, which was something we actively participated in every Saturday. It was difficult and painful for me to get there. I was slow and needed my cane – but I made it! The joy that this small act brought my girls was everything to me. I felt light for the first time in months. The bliss of ignorance is seen in this photograph. Little did we know, that only days later our lives would be completely upended. It’s in that space where I feel the grief. Time is such a gift, in that the sting of the grief isn’t quite so overwhelming anymore. It’s still there, but less so. It was not very long ago that I wasn’t even able to look at this photo and now, it makes me smile. Yes, time is a gift. Allowing space for grief within the joy is also a gift ~ a gift I am so very grateful for.