Grief is like the ocean...

We are only on this earth for a short time, so make the most of it. Be brave and strong in the face of danger, have the courage to do something a little different and be honest. We take each day as it comes, but as life passes us by we tend to forget to tell the people we care about how much they mean to us, or how much we love them. We are not invincible, so don't pretend nothing can ever stop you, nevertheless don't act rashly or hide in a hobbit hole the rest of your life. Enjoy life's idiosyncrasies, wear sunscreen, dance...

I said in one of my earlier blogs "grief is like the ocean, its bigger and deeper than all of us...we always hope there is more to believe in..." At the end of the day, we grow up and realise death is apart of life, we cherish the memories, be there for one another and give support to those who need it. As young children death is scary, unfair even and we don't understand the subtleties of existence. This fear tends to settle as each day goes on, then eventually, an acceptance overcomes the mind and we accept the fate we ultimately come to. It's sad and we hurt but time heals all wounds.

My dads mum passed away yesterday about half an hour before I spoke to him. I was on a lunch break at work. After hearing the news i was shocked, saddened and hurt. I didn't want to eat, then as you can imagine i couldn't focus, i was teary and not with it, so i headed home at about 2. I cleaned, and cleaned the house so it was sparkling, bathed Jenna, had her inside with me and just couldn't wait for the boy to get to my house. I needed a hug from him. Today was much better. I saw dad, we went through some of her stuff and had lunch together and found a range of photos she had of my brothers and i as kids. I also found an old picture of 'Te Hau Takeri Wharepapa' - my great, great, great grandfather, gave it to dad and he hung it on the wall. Considering my nan has just passed away we couldn't help but go through a list of people who have died recently: Andy Irons, James Freud, we discussed the topic of coincidence in life: the mining incident in New Zealand where there was the story of the 17 year old boy who was meant to have his first day the day after it happened, however he begged and begged to be let down. He was so eager and keen, little did he know that that would be the last day he saw the light.

Death is a sentence we ultimately face as our end, yet we must not fear death, we must live our lives, well, with freedom and spend quality time with loved ones.

Love you nan, R.I.P xx

“If death meant just leaving the stage long enough to change costume and come back as a new character...Would you slow down? Or speed up?”