The Darkest Night Produces The Brightest Stars

A tornado hit Ottawa last week – a rare and frightening experience for everyone there.

The pictures of the devastation were startling, the cleanup slow and hydro was challenged to get the power back on to everyone who was affected. With all that bad news, there’s still a good side to the story!

Hundreds of people in the Ottawa and Gatineau area offered their homes, food, showers and all kinds of help to those who were affected – social media sites were full of people offering assistance – one woman tweeted out her address and told anyone to drop by for food and shelter if they needed it. How heartening that despite the horrible circumstances, good people show up for each other and help.

For those of us who have lost a spouse or partner and had an emotional tornado go through our lives, we probably all remember the people who supported us and offered help in life changing events. Sometimes there’s nothing we can do about our circumstances but persevere and have faith that things will improve and be grateful for others who supported us.

Gratitude for what we have and for those people who are still part of our lives is really a key to recovery after loss – when all feels lost, there are the helpers. No matter how dark the night, there are always stars, sometimes we just need to look up to see the light – it’s always there.