Find Joy

My family and I have been hit by alot of loss lately. 
It is never easy to process it or to figure out how to live after you've lost a loved one. How to deal with knowing you'll never see that person again in this life. To cope with everything reminding you of them. To stay strong for those around you, but also to go through your own emotions. It's a struggle. 
All we can do is continue to find joy in life. Without hope and joy, we can easily find ourselves slipping into depression. I know that is not how our loved ones would want us to live. They want to be looking down on us laughing, smiling, joking, remembering them. Honoring their lives by living ours with absolute joy.
It is hard to look beyond the present after losing someone. All you want to do is go back. Back to a time where you were hugging, laughing with and talking to this person. Back to a time when life was much less bittersweet. You have to find the joy in the deepest valley. Whether it's a smile from a stranger, or a hug from your little one. Find that joy so that you don't have to be numb anymore. Let that joy be little reminders of your loved one and of all the joy you had with them. You will be pleasantly surprised at how the sweetness of your life will be redefined. Suddenly, the sink full of dishes is full tummies. The fighting between your kids is character building. The laundry piling up is clothed bodies. The whiny baby is a sweet hum in your ears. The dirty floors are treasured footprints. The craft supplies scattered on the table with the hum of Justin Bieber is a joyful baby girl. I am thankful for these reminders that I have the sweetest life. I will continue to seek joy to honor those gone before me.