When my husband died, because he was so famous and known for not being a believer, many people would come up to me-it still sometimes happens-and ask me if Carl changed at the end and converted to a belief in an afterlife. They also frequently ask me if I think I will see him again. Carl faced his death with unflagging courage and never sought refuge in illusions. The tragedy was that we knew we would never see each other again. I don't ever expect to be reunited with Carl. But, the great thing is that when we were together, for nearly twenty years, we lived with a vivid appreciation of how brief and precious life is. We never trivialized the meaning of death by pretending it was anything other than a final parting.
Every single moment that we were alive and we were together was miraculous, not miraculous in the sense of inexplicable or supernatural. We knew we were beneficiaries of chance. . . . That pure chance could be so generous and so kind. . . . That we could find each other, as Carl wrote so beautifully in Cosmos, you know, in the vastness of space and the immensity of time. . . . That we could be together for twenty years.
That is something which sustains me and it’s much more meaningful. . . . The way he treated me and the way I treated him, the way we took care of each other and our family, while he lived. That is so much more important than the idea I will see him someday.
I don't think I'll ever see Carl again. But I saw him. We saw each other. We found each other in the cosmos, and that was wonderful.
- Ann Druyan
And then, suddenly, you came. Like a whisper in the wind, like a forgotten melody finding its song again.
Everything changed. The weight I carried, the emptiness I had made peace with, it all faded in your presence. I felt alive, as if my soul had been waiting lifetimes just to find yours again.
When I saw you for the first time, I knew. Not in the way the world defines knowing, but in the way the stars recognize the night, in the way the ocean aches for the shore. You and I have always been together, since the time began.
Everything that happened to me led me to you.
Everything that happened to you led you to me.
Every moment, every joy, every sorrow, it was all a path, guiding us toward each other.
Everything is interconnected.
Every choice, every tear, every silent prayer was shaping this moment, bringing us here.
And this time, I will hold on to you. Because I know now, some souls are meant to be together. Not for a moment. Not for a lifetime. But forever.
~ Chamod Senevirathne
✨🙌🏾💫
Solitude is sacred. It’s also how you take your power back, ground your nervous system, and reset your energy. Spend a few moments in sacred solitude tonight, tomorrow, or over the next few days.
A life filled with purpose and meaning likely does not show up well on Instagram. It may in fact look boring to most, but if it nourishes your soul that’s all that matters.