September 11, 2025
Loss is a strange thing. It sneaks up on us when we least expect it, and sometimes it arrives like a tidal wave we saw coming but still weren’t ready for. The Thought of the Day reminds us that grief and disappointment were never meant to be carried alone. The load doesn’t get lighter because someone else shows up, but it does become bearable.
When I think about this, I picture the everyday moments. Like when my kids try to carry all the grocery bags at once, because apparently making two trips is a crime. They’ll wobble down the sidewalk like they’re in a strongman competition until, inevitably, one bag rips and apples scatter everywhere. That’s loss in miniature. They insist they can handle it, until suddenly, they can’t. And that’s usually when I step in.
It’s the same for us as adults. We insist we’re fine, we pretend we don’t need help, we try to soldier through silently. But when we let someone else walk beside us, when we admit “this hurts” or “I can’t do this alone,” something shifts. The pain doesn’t disappear, but it changes shape. It becomes less suffocating.
And it’s not just about grief in the big sense, funerals and heartbreak and empty chairs at dinner tables. It’s also about the smaller losses: the opportunity you missed, the promise you broke, the dream that didn’t pan out. These, too, weigh on us. And these, too, are lighter when someone else acknowledges them with us.
So maybe today is about asking yourself: Who am I walking beside? And who is walking beside me? Because even if you don’t feel like you need it right now, the truth is we all do.
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