My own journey with loss and grief started at a very young age when I lost my parrot, Pepe. Pepe was my secret keeper, my safe place to be who I really was; when Pepe died after 6 years with me I had no idea how to grieve him. I remember crying for hours, trying to make sense of my loss. After that, I experienced another major loss at 10 years old; my family relocated to another country for a sabbatical year. Relocating meant to live our own house, community, country, and identity; it meant learning a new language, making new friends, and learning a new way of living. As the year passed, I found myself very soon saying goodbye to all whom I learned to love and to my new life. I remember the intense heartbreak I felt as I said goodbye to my friend Lilac. She became my sister by choice; our connection was genuine and pure. Leaving her was unbearable. Once again, I didn't know what to do with my pain. I suffer silently for a long time. During my teenage years, I had very similar losses, finding myself struggling to find a way to understand and process the overwhelming emotions I was experiencing. During my Masters's Degree, one of my most meaningful professors died unexpectedly, awakening in me a pain that was pushed down for years. A few later, my mother-in-law died after battling cancer for 5 years. I remember her funeral today as if it happened a few months ago. I can still remember the intensity of feeling brokenhearted, my heart pounding so fast, and my vision blurry. I found myself feeling lost, a very familiar pain, without the skills to hold it and know what to do with it. After that, I experienced other losses, and I accompanied friends and clients while they grieved a loved one. Having matured personally and professionally, gave me a better understanding of grief and grieving. However, nothing prepared me for the pain and feelings that losing my dad had awakened in me. This time I have been able to attend to and process my grief differently. Today, after attending David Kessler's certification to become a Grief Educator, I have the language and the understanding of the different types of grief, the difference between grieving and mourning, and the tools to support me and others in grief. Today I understand that grief must be witnessed, not changed or fixed, not minimized. People in grief are not broken; we are in pain, loving, and missing forever what and whom we lost. One of the most important things I have learned is that grief does not have a timeline; grief will show up on different days and times during our life. Today I know that grief will be part of my life until my last breath on this planet. I will miss my dad forever; I will honor and celebrate our lives forever, since it's the most beautiful choice I can make, not just for me but also for him.