Where the heck did summer go? Wasn’t it just a little while ago I planted my spring flowers? Some of those same flowers bloomed and are now spent.

Time happens. Days slip into weeks and seasons materialize mysteriously without our consent. With each new season, we change. We get out our warmer clothes. We shift our focus towards warmer beverages. We look away from backyard barbeques towards indoor gatherings or movie night.

Things change. We adapt. We change. Yet, sometimes things change that bring us up short. Friendships and kinships that brought us joy shift and now cause distress. We struggle to decide to let go or to hang on. Let go because things are not serving us any more or hang on because of what has been in the past. No one but you knows the best course of action . . . And sometimes, that knowing feels blocked from our view.

Phil and I now consider the life of a big old smoke tree in the back yard. We live in an older house and this tree held its ground for as long as our family has owned this place. (My brother owned it and sold it to the folks, andMom sold it to us after Dad passed.) This smoke tree exhibits more dead branches than living ones. It’s time for it to go. This saddens me, and yet, it’s time. Grieving the loss, I envision a new tree or a new shrub in its place.

Are you letting go of something or someone? Even letting go of old habits that no longer serve brings up issues of grief. Old habits got us by. Old habits allowed us to survive. In was, old habits become old friends that no longer fit in our lives.

Letting go feels hard because we experience loss and grief. Yet, beyond the letting go awaits a vision of something better, brighter—something new. A new dream, hope, or situation to bless our ever unfolding life.

In grieving a loss, notice it. Honor it. It served a purpose while it existed in your life. In your mind’s eye, see this person, place, or thing floating away in a beautiful bubble. As this floats out of view, shift your inner vision towards the horizon. Something new floats into view. Can you can see it clearly? No? Either way, honor the awakening vision and be at peace. Good finds its way to you now. Receive this new blessing with joy and delight!