Sharing Sadness

There's something about "sharing" sadness that makes me feel so torn. One on hand, I know that understanding someone else's sadness helps that other person so much but on the other hand, I wish I could take that sadness away completely instead of having to "share" it with a loved one. It's so painful to see people suffering around me; not being able to do more than wipe someone's tears or say a few comforting words can be very frustrating...and that's exactly what I felt yesterday after we received the dreaded call informing us that Iggy's grandma had suddenly passed away. 

How sad, how terribly sad that moment was...seeing the tears stream down Iggy's face.  In that instant I wanted to suffer FOR him instead of suffering WITH him; I wanted to take his pain away and come up with something to say that would make him feel better, something that would make him see that if I could take that sadness and feel it alone, I would. 

Death is so incredibly painful, we can't make sense of it and as we start think of the void in our hearts we tend to feel overwhelmed and question our ability to "move on" without that person in our lives. I guess that's what Iggy is feeling right now; he's trying to make sense of her passing, of the idea of her absence and thinking about the memories that she leaves behind. 

I am just here...sharing his sadness, trying to make him feel better and grasping this new reality where there are no more "great-grandmas" in our family (she was the last one alive) and where life must go on with the hope that she is now in heaven resting in peace and watching us all from above. 

Today I pray for Yolanda's soul and for our family's peace and comfort.  I thank God that I was lucky enough to meet her and blessed to have seen her just a couple of months ago.  I am thankful that the girls got to enjoy her and hope that they will always cherish the time they spent together. 

Rest in Peace, abuela! You will be missed!

Iggy's last picture with Yolanda...

A "rare" moment, where all the great-grandkids are pictured together with their grandma and great-grandma! We will forever cherish this moment...