I'm Maggie Smith, and this is the slowdown.

It happens when you least expect it.

Grief knocks you down like a rogue wave.

You're going about your day, and you hear a song that reminds you of someone you lost.

Or you see a stranger in a crowd that looks so much like the person, you're startled. Or maybe you

see a show or even a commercial you used to laugh about with the person. Or you take a bite of a meal

that reminds you of them,

or your social media memory shows you a past moment of happiness with the person.

And there it is, the pain of grief.

We know holidays and anniversaries will be difficult.

Mother's Day after you lose your mom.

Birthdays, after your loved one is gone.

Thanksgiving with the family around the table and some beloved's missing.

We know this pain.

But grief isn't something we can schedule. It's not reserved for certain days or times. Grief sneaks up on us in the smaller moments. Or maybe it doesn't sneak up on us at all

because it's been with us all along. It may feel like a

rogue wave breaking over us, knocking us down, leaving us gasping. But really, it's the water we swim in,

day in and day out. That may sound like a dark, depressing thought, but I don't think of it

that way. Grief is with us all the time, because love is with us all the time. Grief touches

every part of our lives, because love touches every part of our lives.

The more you love someone, the more you grieve their absence.

Today's poem finds the speaker in the grief and love of her daily life.

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