Today is Easter 2010. Yesterday while carting through the crowded aisles at Safeway I was enveloped in that all too familiar feeling, the sense of loss. Fourteen months ago my mom died of lung cancer. At two months shy of her 80th birthday she was still the driving family force, and with an amazing show of courage and a sense of moving on to a new adventure, she left us.

As we each continue to recover from “life without Evelyn in it” I am struck by the personal growth that happens in life during the most challenging of times and circumstances. I had a friend while living in Alaska who’s mantra became, “What doesn’t kill us, makes us stronger.” He wasn’t much older than me, but had experienced great loss, and yet managed to maintain an attitude of hope and humor.

I’m seeing, that no matter what age we are, life is a continual renewal of learning and searching for our own sense of purpose and meaning. I feel a renewed sense of excitement and hope today.