writegirl, your post remined me of selling my parent's home. Even though they were still alive, we could no longer celebrate the way we once had as a family.

The older we get, the more we face loss of many kinds. I believe how we handle loss has a lot to do with our happiness as we grow older. We need to turn those losses around and look at them as new beginnings with different opportunities.

I share in wishing everyone strength in the midst of loss. It's all so fresh since suddenly losing my mother-in-law 10 days ago. I find peace in knowing she is finally at perfect peace and will be for all eternity. Her memories live on in all those whose lives she touched.