After the murder of our son, our only child, everything seemed as dark as a black cloth draped over us. Going through the motions of living seemed useless, faith seemed useless, the light in our lives was out.
Over time, after the protective shock wears off, one learns to cope with the reality. But is "coping" all there is to life now? Dealing with anniversaries and holidays is bad enough, but what of every-day life? The little reminders of the child we loved and raised, the child who became a wonderful young adult, the promise of a future together? And now you ask "what future"? Do you hide away all the reminders? Or can you still find some joy in them? It is said that people deal with grief in different ways, but it cannot just be ignored.

When grief counseling doesn't serve to answer those questions, where do we turn? When religion holds only more questions, where do we turn? What we need is guidance from several sources: from our own beliefs, reading about others' experiences, and opening our minds to so many possibilities. And best of all, some of that guidance may come from those loved ones we thought we had "lost".

And gradually that solid black cloth becomes a translucent veil. Not all is clear, but there are glimpses of a new faith beginning, of the joys still left for us, a guide for living the rest of our lives, and a tiny light flickers again.

We may still grieve, but the Love remains...that tiny flickering light doesn't go out. Because that light is Love and Hope. I wanted this story to show that Love and Hope.