Recently I was walking outside, enjoying my walk when I heard someone whistling. It instantly reminded me of my late dad and I told the guy who was doing the whistling that it cheered me up.

Fast forwarding and I was on the chat with some people and one showed us the cinnamon rolls he had made. They looked good, so I asked to have one send to me, specifically the one without any frosting.

What happened next was something really unexpected. He started sharing about how his dad had liked them without frosting and how this brought back memories. Next I shared my story from earlier that day and I added “sometimes you need someone to help you change perspective”. 

Before I knew it someone else started sharing about the loss of their parents too and whilst all of this was happening, I recorded a video about this whole experience, which is part I. I shared it and all of sudden I got a reaction back. He and his mother had been watching that video together and it had made them smile.

I couldn’t help recording a part II. It was so moving what had happened. The most important thing though was the message behind it all, which was about perspective. Sometimes an encounter with someone can give you a totally different perspective on things. In this case all of us got a little bit of comfort by being reminded of what each of our parents used to this.

The story isn’t over though. The one thing I tell others who have lost a loved one and how are grieving because they can no longer reach out to them, is to just sit down, close your eyes and imagine you are there again talking to the other. We often know how the other would respond, it’s just that grief blocks us from accessing that part of the brain that stores those memories. 

Do you know someone who is dealing with loss really badly? Give them some time to share their story and chances are they might feel really close to their loved ones for just a few moments.

Want to see the entire video? Go to YouTube to watch the video consisting of both part I and II.

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