Watching the sunrise over the clouds in Hawai‘i was easily the richest I’ve ever felt. As silly as it may sound, that sunrise healed something in me, which I desperately needed. All the grief poems talk about seeing your loved ones in the sunrises and sunsets, in the stars, and the beauty of nature. And I thought it was a nice thought, but I never felt it until this one. Erin was always my biggest supporter, she was always the first person to cheer me on—she clapped so loud I never noticed the ones who didn’t. And there was something about this moment in my life and in my career, that I saw her applauding me through the sunrise. My trip to Hawai’i was an emotional one…I’d just been laid off from my dream job, and then was asked to come back for this project. This project was the most I’ve ever been paid for content creation, and on top of that I got to bring my partner all expenses paid to paradise and experience so many incredible things. I flew in a helicopter over the Hana Rainforest, saw massive waterfalls, snorkeled with sea turtles, and watched this sunrise in Haleakala National Park. This whole trip was a reminder of how unbelievably lucky I am to have the life I’ve worked so hard for. And it was also a reminder that even though life can be heartbreaking and unfair, there is also so much beauty to take in. Erin will always be my best friend, but for now we will just have to communicate in different ways. Instead of multi-hour long phone calls, we have sunrises and sunsets, and dolphins, and shooting stars, and rainbows, and clouds. It’s never enough, but it’s something.
#griefjourney #friendloss #hawaiitravel #visithawaii