Remember what’s good

Love. A four letter word. Simple in construction, but complicated to process when it’s gone.
It’s been central to art. It’s launched a thousand ships. It’s been at the heart of Wordle – a very popular contemporary word puzzle game. It’s taken for granted by many that have it. But is the object of desire for those that long for it. I have loved. I have lost. Joy. Pain. Questions … no answers. Getting older brings wisdom to accept love’s loss. To accept unanswered questions, and left with just memories.


The ups and downs of life bring a roller-coaster of emotions. It challenges. Is it really better to have loved, and lost? Or do we tell ourselves that to give strength, so we can open our eyes to look past the greyness of a darkened sky and find the sun in hopes it can rid us of the winter of our discontent.
It’s difficult to truly realize the loss of love until you know the shared look of recognition you had with someone is gone. They gave you that feeling that makes your head light and your heart full. Memories are difficult, especially the ones that were so bright with joy that a future of pain from thinking of them was unfathombable. We never really know how tenuous the timeline of a relationship is until it reaches its end point and you’re left with a proverbial period, an ending of a chapter.
Courage and perspective is needed to carry on … to see there is a life, a possibility for something new. Another chapter.


There is love beyond what is lost. It exists with the friends we have. The family that is always there. It’s there in the neighbours around us, ready to share a conversation and a laugh. It really is everywhere. We just need to be open to it.
We’re living in a confounding and anxious time. We’ve seen the financial struggles of area businesses trying to endure to residents challenged with employment and finding affordable housing. We’ve heard the tragedies of lives lost. And yet, there is a difference of opinion about how we choose to endure this chapter. I just wish we could start a new book. Find that novel with the bright, vibrantly coloured cover and the hope of a new future. But here we are living in a pandemic without an end. Life doesn’t always provide do-overs. How we proceed is up to us all. We can lament the loss or take solace in what we still have.


Remember there is hope. This week’s Echo reminds us of the helpers and the ones that believe in love, whether it’s in the tireless efforts of the Dysart et al Fire Department to control a house fire on George Street, or how the volunteer firefighters found a wedding ring in the charred remains of the house promised to a granddaughter, the generosity of the George Street neighbours and community, who helped the family that lost their home to the fire; or how Cardiff showed warmth for Sheena Boakes and her father with donations, and how Sheena’s best friend Jocelyn Winter and her family made sure to open their doors as well as their hearts to her, and, lastly, the featured couples of Beth Johns and Norris Turner, and Mark and Sandra Bramham help to show us the way. We will always have disagreements. There will always be different perspectives. It’s clear the idea that love conquers all is best left for Hollywood and Hallmark movies. What love can give us is the strength to be open to understanding and enable us to trust in one another to care for each other.