Grief Echoes

By: Dr. Ana Mena

"Grief is the echo of love. Honor it." - Heather J. Harris

She was sitting in her recliner in the living room, as she often did before her health began to fail. That Friday afternoon, in my mother’s house, I kissed her on the cheek and said, “Mama Chepa, I’m leaving now. I’ll see you on Sunday, okay?”

She nodded and said, “Sí, hija”—“Yes, daughter.”

That’s always how she saw me, and how I saw her. My grandmother was a second mother to me.

Sunday came, but I didn’t see her. She passed away Saturday evening while I was away volunteering with my children.

I had made it almost 40 years without losing someone that close to me. That’s why the grief felt so heavy—so overwhelming that comfort seemed out of reach. Some moments in life are simply too heavy to carry.

Grief is love’s echo. It’s proof that someone touched our lives deeply enough to leave a sound long after they are gone.

With time, I realized that healing doesn’t come from time alone, but from allowing ourselves to feel, to remember, and to stay connected in new ways. Love doesn’t disappear—it transforms. It lives on in our memories, in the lessons we carry forward, and in the quiet moments when we feel their presence in our hearts.

Though loss changes us, it also reminds us of something deeper: that the bonds we form are not easily broken. In some way, they continue—beyond what we can see or fully understand.

What began as being loved by her has grown into something more. The love she gave me now shapes how I show up for others—how I care, how I listen, how I give. In that way, her influence continues, not just in memory, but in action.

Who has shaped your life in a meaningful way?

In what ways can your life honor them this week?