That chair was one of the first things we bought when we purchased our first house. Two twenty-somethings moving into their first place and trying to figure out together how to furnish our home with so many dreams ahead of us.

It felt strange to find myself crying over that chair because I rarely feel grief about that situation anymore. I’ve healed and moved forward and I know the life I have now and the life that is ahead of me is so much happier and fulfilling than the life I had before my marriage ended.

However, some triggers are still there, but they are less about the relationship that was lost and more about the dreams that died with that loss.

It’s hard to lose a dream, maybe even harder than losing a person.

I continue to dream (and fulfill) new dreams, but I know I’m not the only one who really cared about a vision I had for the future and still sometimes feels sad to know it’s gone.

Maybe you were not here for that part of my story. I’ve been through some things that really hurt but I kept going. I just wanted you to know I know how that feels in case you only see my smiling photos and don’t know I’ve been in that dark place, too.

If you’re hurting, I encourage you to keep going. Those hard times will get further and further apart and you’ll be amazed at the life that opens up before you once the most intense grief is past. It’s worth it to keep going! It will still hurt sometimes, but it will also get better! I promise.