It's remarkable what fresh sea air + the sound of crashing waves does for our brains!

And my brain needed some love last week. 🧠🩷

After sitting in a two-day conference (almost 10 hours/day) + doing a writing intensive for a project I'll soon share with you, my brain needed the rejuvenation that only nature can bring.

It was glorious to be by the water—thanks to a conference Glenn had—and spend some time letting my brain process all of the wonderful things I had seen, experienced, + written.

In fact, let's talk about the writing for a minute… ✍🏾

I'm not quite ready so share the deets, but let's just say it's good stuff about grief.

(Are you surprised, friend? I doubt it 😏)

But as I was writing + thinking about who my words on grief might impact, something quite significant hit me: grief touches us all.

“Really, Hannah?? Isn't that obvious? We allllllll know that loss is an inevitable part of the human experience.” 🙄

Facts.

I'm not saying anything earth-shattering here, but this reality landed with me in a different way than ever before.

Listen, friend, it dawned on me that we're either…

➡️ heading into grief unknown,

😓 living a current grief unwanted,

🎒 or moving out of a grief unburdened.

Hear me out. 👂🏾

Because grief is universal, it cannot be avoided.

We're either:

1️⃣ heading straight for a grief event and don't know it yet;

2️⃣ sitting in the midst of grief and know it keenly;

3️⃣ or moving farther away from the initial grief event and further into knowing ourselves better.

And lest we think we're the only ones who sit under this reality, it's just not so.

Because grief is pervasive, it means others are touched by the same truth.

Meaning, someone you love + know is experiencing one of these three phenomena right now.

Someone you love and know, right now, is:

➡️ heading into a grief unknown,

😩 battling a grief unwanted, or

⬅️ moving out of a grief unburdened (or so I pray. There may be a future email on that thought).

Who is it, dear heart?

🤷‍♀️ Who do you know that is headed for a heartache? 🫣

🤷‍♀️ Who do you know that is battling a painful loss unwanted?

🤷‍♀️ Who do you know that has wrestled with their grief and is starting to come out the other side?

If you’ve read my blogs long enough, or if you get my Saturday Sigh emails, you know how the story goes. ⤵️

I share a personal story; I turn that story into an object lesson; and then I invite you into that object lesson so you can improve yourself + the world around you.

Well, this week things are going to be a little bit different.

This week, I'm going to invite you into a call to action.

This week, I'm going to invite you to R E A C H O U T. 📞📲 📨

Reach out to the person—or persons—who keeps popping into your mind as you read this email.

Who is it, friend?

And when is the last time you paused to check in on them or held space for their loss, pain, + experience?

Please know I'm not shaming you. We're all too busy for our own good. Especially me. So no shame here.

Instead, I'm giving you an invitation. 💌🤲🏾

Can you use this reading time to stop right now—yes, stop reading this blog—and reach out to them?

One of the BEST gifts we can give those who are currently battling grief is the gift of remembrance. 💝

When we say: “Hey, I'm thinking about you… I know it's been X amount of time, but I still see you in this…"

OOOOO—I cannot describe how deeply that touches someone's soul. 🥹✨

Remembering someone in their grief weeks, months, even years after the initial loss event is profoundly loving. 🩷

So reach out!

And as you do, know that you are setting an example in the relationship.

Because you might be heading into a grief unknown, my friend.

And while that's the last thing I want for you, believe me when I say that if it's you're season of grief, you're going to want friends who reach out + remember you in your loss weeks, months, even years after. 🫂

Reach out, darling. Reach out. 💌