When it feels impossible to let go, as though you are gripping the pain by the throat and pulling it closer, please know that there is almost always another reason. There is almost always an ulterior motive. What you are losing is not just a companion, a flame, or a friend; it is also a sense of purpose, a sense of certainty, a sense of knowing what's next. What you are simultaneously mourning is your former idea of what life would be. If you don't build a new life in its place, please do not be surprised if the idea of the person you once knew and loved fills and consumes the emptiness. from the book The Life That’s Waiting by Brianna Wiest