Saturday morning, November 12, the day my husband transitioned, I wrote in my journal: Steve made it through the night, sleeping more peacefully than he has, perhaps because of the anti-agitation medicine they gave him. I thought he might transition during the night (11-11-11), so I kept watch and only slept from 4-6 am. One of the many things I’ve been thinking about was my statement to a couple people in the last few months that the men I love leave—my dad seemed to travel a lot when I was small which felt like he was leaving me, several bosses I really cared about left through job changes, my first husband left through suicide, my son left through marriage, and now Steve.  My angels showed me that everyone in everyone’s life passes through for a season of experience and learning, no matter how brief or long, and everyone leaves. Nothing has gone wrong, and all judgment of good, bad, right, or wrong misses the big picture of all being perfect for our soul growth, including the perfect experience and the perfect amount of time together.  We like to hold on to familiar things, so when those pass on or discontinue for some reason we tell ourselves stories of sorrow and great loss.  Are we mourning the loss of the person and the relationship?  Yes. Are we mourning the loss of the comfort and the known quantity?  Yes. Are we mourning our hopes for what might have been? Yes, all of these. It is human nature, or learned behavior, to do so. What if we could contemplate every relationship, make a list of what we loved, what we learned, and what we had the opportunity to heal, and then let go with gratitude for the experience and for the other person being willing to play with us?