There is a time for everything,

and a season for every activity under the heavens:

a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build, a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance, a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing, a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away, a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak, a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace. Ecclesiastes 3:1 – 8

I never gave much thought to the concept that there are seasons in our lives. The way I viewed life was either it was going right – meaning the way I wanted it to – or it was going wrong. I never examined the idea that there are certain times – seasons – in our lives when we are supposed to endure and experience certain things in order to help us grow. I am in a season of loss right now. I have lost relationships, lost my father, and have lost material possessions. There have been times when all of this loss has felt overwhelming. However, I am beginning to realize that within this season of loss there are other seasons.

It certainly has been a time for me to uproot. When I came to mom and dads to stay for good the only possessions I had were what I could fit in to dad’s car. It has been a time for weeping and mourning. However, it has also been a time for laughter and a time for embracing. As painful as it has been, I have learned that it is also time to give up on certain relationships for a while. At the same time, it has been a time for mending some relationships. It has definitely been a time for love and it has also been a time for hate. I hate the way certain people in my life are behaving, and I hate how they treat me. It was not until the other day that I realized that even though I am in the midst of all of this, life still goes on. My sadness, my mourning, and my weeping will not stop that from happening.

It took my mom’s dog to show me that life goes on. Su Ling has been in the midst of her own grief. She has missed dad and her big sister, Mei Ling, immensely. Su Ling always had a special relationship with Mei Ling, and as Mei Ling got older that relationship seemed to intensify. One way that this special relationship manifested itself was in how Su Ling seemed to know that Mei Ling had a difficult time hearing and seeing. If we could not find Mei Ling anywhere it was useless for us to call her by name since she could not hear us; however, Su Ling had a way of helping us find Mei Ling. All we had to do was say, “Where’s Mei Ling?”, and Su Ling would start searching for her. She was very intent in her endeavors to find Mei Ling. Once Su Ling found Mei Ling, she would get excited and start barking. It was a very special bark that she only used after she had found her big sister. In addition to barking, she would often use her body to gently guide Mei Ling to where we were. Obviously, with Mei Ling being gone, we have not seen Sue Ling do that in quite some time. However, that changed the other day.

I knew my dog, Minnie, and Su Ling had been spending quite a bit of time together, but I did not realize how close they had become. The other day, I could not find Minnie anywhere in the house. I assumed that she would be in mom’s bedroom curled up with Su Ling. I stuck my head into mom’s room and asked her if she knew where Minnie was. Su Ling heard me ask about Minnie and began to follow me while I searched. I eventually found Minnie outside lying in the sun. I did not realize that Su Ling had actually been earnestly looking for Minnie. The next thing I know, I heard Su Ling’s special bark and saw her herding Minnie to where I was. She was doing the exact same thing for Minnie that she used to do for Mei Ling. I know she has not forgotten about Mei Ling; however, she has found a way to move past her loss and become close to another creature. She has not allowed her sadness to interfere with life.

I know that there have been plenty of times in this season of loss that I am experiencing, when I have allowed my grief to interfere with life. I find it very interesting that it took a little dog to remind me that life goes on, and I cannot allow myself to get bogged down by my feelings of sadness. It allowed me to see that within this season of loss there is also a season of healing.