I have figured out one of the most painful things about losing someone close to you.

It’s the sharing of your life with them that will never happen again.  The invitations to parties that you will never send to them.  The phone calls to share the events of an outrageous day that you will never make to them.  The advice on how to deal with Mom and Dad that you will never get from them.

We share our lives with each other, some to a greater extent than others.  I shared my life with my brother, who died 18 weeks ago on this Wednesday.  I lost someone with whom I shared my life, and now I share my life less.   It hurts to share your life less.

So, I’ve recently started reaching out to people around me, people with whom I’ve coexisted but with whom I’ve rarely shared much of my life.  I am reaching out to new people in an attempt to try to compensate for the fact that I don’t share my life with my brother anymore.  It’s been a different experience for me, to want to be around people that I usually don’t desire to be around.

Maybe, it’s just that I’ve come to realize how important people are.  When will they be gone, and I’ll have one less person to share my life with?

So, if you’re reading this, which I’m fairly certain that no one is, cherish the people that you share your life with.  Extend your sharing to others around you, so that they might serve to fill in the holes created by the deaths of the people closest to you.

And, pray that God will continue to provide you with loved ones with whom you may share the road.