There’s a harsh inevitability with life that we often feel like we are impervious to—until it happens. We are going to lose the people we love, but we wear a cloak of protection from loss. We remove ourselves from it, keep it separate. It’s seemingly far removed, and it won’t happen for a very long time. Why worry about it now? It’s a common story. It keeps us disconnected, but deep down we know it’s unavoidable. Most of us will lose our parents in our lifetimes. It’s a stern reminder of our impermanence. We are given one short and sweet life-- and an ending where the book is closed, slowly or all at once. It can be the chapter we fear the most. As the years tick on and I get older, I’ve tried to prepare myself for it—the loss of a parent.

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