I'm on a bit of an emotional roller coaster today. My mixture of sadness, grief, and celebration of my friend's life fit a lot better in Portland with people who knew our friend and understood what had happened. Grief, sadness, and celebration are misplaced puzzle pieces now that don't quite fit back into normal life. Things feel off, and I know it will be a struggle to keep up with all my regular activities and responsibilities.
And so things will go for a bit.
The opportunity with these feelings is a chance to evaluate my self-care habits, remember what's important to me, and reshape my life (at least for the time being) so that I can fit all my puzzle pieces back together.
And it will happen.
I won't continue to write about this experience regularly because I want to refocus on the simply joys in my life. I may write about our friend or the grieving process again in the future, but for now I'll just say that I appreciate all the support I've received - it's meant the world to me and Paul.