01/28/2026
Kevin’s January 2026 Reflection
The Quest: I was very active in theater while in college, and I had the awesome opportunity to play the role of Sancho Panza in the musical, Man of La Mancha. It was a blast. I got to follow a crazed knight on his glorious quest, no matter how hopeless, no matter how far. Our losses have put us all on a quest of sorts. It’s a quest to find ourselves again in the rubble of sorrow and grief. It is a quest to find meaning and purpose again, to find happiness and joy, to find serenity, fulfillment, and contentment. All of this may seem quite unattainable, but the fact is: It is all attainable. I know that sometimes it may feel like we are fighting windmills. In the beginning of loss, we have little choice but to endure the necessary raw emotions as we try to slowly clear our way through the questions with no answers and raw suffering before we can even begin to arrive at a place of healing and relief. It has been my observation over these past 30 years that most grievers eventually come to a place when they realize they actually have a choice; a choice about how to feel, how to move forward, how to begin again. It comes at different times for everyone. On his quest, the confused, brave knight, Don Quixote, sang of an impossible dream, but he did not let the impossibility stop him from continuing his quest. His story shows that it is on the quest that things really happen. Grief will bring us to some very scary, dark places. We already know it is a roller-coaster ride of emotions, but it is not a ride to nowhere. Each part of our quest has its own questions, struggles and issues, all of which are stepping stones toward healing. Unfortunately, each rock and pebble must be stepped upon to get to the next. Each step and each stone can be extremely painful, but they can also possibly teach us something or help us to get to the next part of our journey. And because it is so painful, we often don’t want to step anywhere or learn anything, we just want the pain to go away. However, LOVE cannot be turned off like a light switch, and love is the source of this pain. Remember, grief is love that doesn’t know where to go. More than anything, we need to love ourselves right now and be patient with this quest and each stone along the way. As we continue our quests, sometimes bearing with unbearable sorrow, let’s try to run where the brave dare not go -to face our grief, and to give ourselves permission to mourn, knowing it is not in vain. It is a quest, after all, for our hearts to be peaceful and calm once again. Stephy’s Place Reflection Kevin Keelen
