The Show Must Go On: Learning to Live After Loss

We’ve all heard the saying, “The show must go on.” It’s often used to express

resilience----the idea that no matter what happens, life keeps moving forward. But

when you’ve suffered a loss, those words can sound almost impossible. How do we

go on when our hearts are broken? When the person who once filled our days with

love and laughter is no longer here?

After my husband David passed, I remember waking up some mornings and

wondering how I would face the day. The routines that once felt comfortable----

making coffee, preparing dinner---now felt empty. Life was still happening all

around me, but I felt as though I was standing still. The show was indeed going on,

but I wasn’t sure I wanted a part in it.

What I’ve come to learn over time is that “going on” doesn’t mean pretending

everything is fine. It doesn’t mean rushing past the pain or forcing yourself to

move on before you’re ready. Instead, it means allowing yourself to live with grief,

to carry it with you as you slowly rediscover the small pieces of life that still bring

meaning and comfort.

For me, that began in the kitchen. Cooking had always been the way I expressed

love----for David, for family, for friends. After his passing, I found that preparing

even a simple meal helped me reconnect to something steady. The act of chopping

vegetables, stirring a pot with a savory soup, grounded me in the present. Food

became a bridge between what was and what still is----a quiet reminder that

nourishment, in all forms, helps us to survive.

Continuing on after loss looks different for everyone. For some, it’s finding solace

in nature, journaling, or connecting with others who understand. For others, it’s

allowing tears to fall freely one day and finding laughter the next. What matters is

giving yourself permission to live at your own pace.

The truth is that the show doesn’t go on as before. It changes----just as we do. The

scenes look different, the music softer. But there are still moments of beauty to be

found, still acts worth showing up for.

We keep going not because we’ve forgotten, but because love asks us to. The love

we shared doesn’t end---it transforms. It becomes the quiet strength that helps us

rise each morning, take that next breath, and face the day with courage and

tenderness.

So yes, the show must go on---but now, it does so with a heart forever changed. We

carry those we’ve lost with us in every step, every memory, every meal, shared.

Life continues----gently, imperfectly, beautifully, ---one day at a time.

As I wrote in Recipes for Healing,” Greif doesn’t ask us to move on---it invites us

to move with it, step by step, meal by meal, memory by memory.”

And in that movement---slow, tender, and real---we find our way forward.

Take good care my friends