Living for two: a way to get over your pain
Living for two can be done at any age or level of healing and for any reason. Although my adventures are now more along the lines of celebration, honoring your loved one can greatly help speed up your grieving and healing process, as you are about to see …
You may have heard of a 12-year-old boy named Aaron from Lexington Park, MD. Aaron now lives for two as a way to get over his grievance. He lost his twin brother, Eric, to brain cancer when the boys were only nine years old.
“From the womb, Aaron and Eric were inseparable,” his mother Angela told Nate Berkus during a taping of the Oprah show. “In the ultrasound we saw once, they were holding hands.” The boys did everything together and the loss of his brother sent Aaron into a debilitating depression in which he lost his will to live.
His insightful pediatrician, Dr. Corder, did not prescribe medication, as many physicians would have. Instead, he asked Aaron, “What do you like to do?” When he replied that he liked to cook, she said, “Let’s cook for your brother.” She gave Aaron $ 20 and, as his first investor, asked him for a business plan. His mother says the change was immediate. “He was grinning from ear to ear” during the car ride home. She made a shopping list and immediately began baking cookies in Eric’s honor.
His company, Dough Jangles, was officially started with the delivery of a tray of cookies to Dr. Corder’s office, with an official list of how he had spent his money.
Aaron and his mother bake the cookies and sell them. His older brother, Bryce, also receives a fee for helping. A portion of the proceeds goes to charities that helped them when Eric was ill. His brother is never far from Aaron’s thoughts while baking. “I think he would be proud of me,” he says. “I think I’d be happy if I didn’t give up.”
Wouldn’t your loved one be happy that you didn’t give up?
For me, I am convinced that I would never have experienced skydiving, or the many other adventures in my life, if my sister had not died. She gives me the courage to take risks and experience life to the fullest! When I’m not doing something adventurous, I’m still open to inspiration. Sometimes I feel like eating Snyder’s BBQ fries for no apparent reason other than because my sister loved them and I imagine she’s having a carnal desire. I celebrate her favorite color, purple, wearing it when the spirit moves me. I run through the fall leaves because that’s what we used to do and because I can, or I move with Journey because something deep down says she would love that right now. As I feel the music beating through my veins, I swear I can feel it dancing behind the beats.
What adventures would you take if you knew that you were protected from above? What dreams would you dare to dream? Think of how your life could expand if you let go of your fear and live for two!
It’s something to think about …
