Still With Us

As I walked across the stage to get my degree, I told myself “You are still with me.”

As I begin the start of a new year, I tell myself, “You are watching over me.”

As I accomplish goals, I tell myself, “You are cheering me on.”

As I go from one milestone to the next, I tell myself, “You are proud of me.”

As I go through seasons of storms, and when I struggle, I tell myself words of encouragement that you used to tell me.

I have so many memories to share with you.

I have lived fully in the time since you have been gone, I chose life.

I chose to embrace it. I chose to live each day as if it is my last, because after loosing you I learned just how precious each moment of each day truly is.

I know that I may not have tomorrow. I take time to let my loved ones know how much they mean to me.

So that when it is my time to go, there will be no doubts.

Until we meet again, I know you are still with me.

Brandi Reyna

Ms. Reyna is a creative soul with a passion for helping others. Her faith is very important to her and is reflected in her writings. She writes about her faith and the role it plays in her grieving process and how she grieves. Ms. Reyna's purpose for writing is to give voice to and shed light on unique losses. Ms.Reyna's articles focus primarily on building and living a new life after the sudden loss of her fiancé; the subsequent grief associated with sudden loss, her identification as an "unwedded widow" (a widow who was not legally married to her beloved), loss of a parent (grandparent) and creating a new life while living with loss. Ms. Reyna shares her journey to encourage others in their own faith and in their own healing journey. She hopes that by sharing her story and leading by example through her own life that her journey will show others that we can experience significant and impactful losses and still experience a full and joy-filled life after loss. Ms. Reyna holds a Master of Arts degree in Professional Studies with a specialization in Counseling.

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