Different cultures have different beliefs on death and dying. When my mom died in 1999, my friend told me to read The Tibetan book on living and dying. I was In such a state of loss and grief that it took over a decade for me to have a more detached view of losing a loved one.

Several of my best friends had lost their mom’s before I did, and it has been decades since they have been gone. They were as close to theirs as I was to mine. You take a little time off and then go back to work. But you live the loss inside. I have one friend who wasn't even close to her mom, didn't even like her. Since she passed away about 6 months ago, my friend has really felt the loss more than she would have thought. She spent 2 weeks in bed. Loss is tough.

Very recently my sister lost her cat, who was 22 years old. She died of old age. My sister woke up one morning and she was dead. I liked to sleep on my sister’s couch so her cat could sleep in my hair and purr all night long. I believe it kept her alive for a little bit longer. Chrissy had given her food and shelter for 11 years. Even though we knew she was on her last leg, it is hard to feel the loss.

My sister has to put her second cat down this week. I love them as an aunt does and I will miss them terribly. The other night my sister gave a shower for a girl she knows who is pregnant and the next morning her cat died. My other sister was pregnant with her son when our mom died. It's hard to understand sometimes when you are a very emotional person. I was thinking of a song we knew as kids…To everything, turn, turn, turn; There is a season, and a time for every purpose, under heaven. Once we get through the grief and loss, we can remember that.