A journey through the storm

One of the insights I have been gifted this year is that it is possible to hold both sorrow and joy simultaneously. Darkness and light, sweet and sour, laughter and tears. It doesn’t have to be ‘either/or’, it can be ‘and’.

This has been proven out this year. For this year, I have been through a whirlwind, a Cat 5 hurricane of emotions, each twist and turn leaving a lasting mark. I have lost more than I ever imagined possible, and yet, I have also gained so much more than I expected.

The tears I shed seemed endless, but they were balanced by moments of laughter that, at times, felt like the light breaking through dark clouds.

There were stretches when sorrow enveloped me, heavy and suffocating, threatening to pull me under. The pain was excruciating, at times so sharp I wondered if I could endure it.

But in the midst of that despair, I found myself unexpectedly grateful for the small, fleeting moments of peace, for the lessons that pain taught me. And through it all, brief moments of joy also entered my life—moments of such profound happiness, they felt like a rebirth.

There were so many blessings, countless and too many to name. They showed up in the most unexpected forms—sometimes as a kind word, sometimes as a meal brought to my door, other times as a quiet moment of self-reflection that gave me the strength to keep going.

Despite the internal turmoil, I did not break. I stood firm. I endured. I survived.

I am still here, and perhaps, that’s the most important thing of all. In the face of everything, I have hope. Hope for healing. Hope for new beginnings. Hope for the possibility of joy, even on the other side of pain.

And for that, I am deeply, humbly grateful.

Love you all