Loss is so hard and can feel like the end of the world. My family and I had to put down our 18 year old dog, one we’ve had since he was 10 weeks old, just a week ago. It feels impossible to navigate. I too, can not afford to lose what’s important to me, like my relationships and education, because of this storm. The only way I could think to navigate it was to leave it. I packed up my most used belongings and went to stay elsewhere, somewhere that didn’t remind me every second of the best friend and sibling I had just lost. I felt guilt for leaving my family behind, they weren’t able to escape this like I was. But the environment had a group affect. Just when I would stop thinking about this loss for a moment, I’d wander into another room of the house and find someone who was upset. Our emotions were contagious, and we were hurting for not just ourselves, but each other.

All loss isn’t the same, and I believe that’s why it’s hard to navigate. Sometimes I wonder, why can’t I stop crying over my dog, when I barely shed more than 3 tears over my grandpa that passed a few months ago? Losing my grandpa made me think that loss didn’t affect me anymore, I had become numb to it. And that made this storm feel even colder.

But emotions, even the hard ones, the ones that make you just want to scream, are good. Because at least you’re feeling something. At least you’ve gotten through another day.