The life of the dead is placed in the memory of the living.
-Marcus Tullius Cicero
When a loved one dies, there is a belief that we cannot talk about that person or day-dream about what s/he would think about something in our present reality. By not acknowledging the dead, moving through grief becomes harder because we act as though that person never existed. However, our lost loved ones leave impressions on us, voices that resonate with us throughout our day and the rest of our lives. The dead are never truly dead as long as we recognize and can enjoy the pieces of them that lives within us.
We carry the examples and the values of our lost loved ones with us every day. We behave in ways that they have shown us, we pursue dreams that they have supported. We are reminders of their existence and we can (and should) speak of our loved ones regularly. Our loved ones continue to live through the stories we tell in our families and through the memories we share with those who have never met them.
We have a responsibility to remember where we come from and honor what has inspired us by remembering our lost loved ones and sharing their lives with others.
A.N.Carroll 