The best thing to hold onto in life is each other. Audrey Hepburn

Sea otters hold paws while sleeping
to ensure they don’t slip apart.

Beavers are monogamous, mate for life,
building bonds together branch by branch.

Short-finned pilot whales live together in the ocean
mourning their dead just like we do.

One orca named Tahlequah carried her dead calf for 17 days,
traveling more than a thousand miles.

Her pod stayed close,
slowing their pace, sharing their food,

helping her retrieve the body when it began to sink
ensuring she didn’t go alone.

We make grief too complicated, I think.
Focusing on finding the right thing to say,

instead of realizing love means simply holding on,
wading in, reaching out to pull someone back to shore.

It’s hard to remain buoyant without help,
to stop yourself from sinking.

We were born to swim together,
our paws entwined, our people close.

Grief can be so lonely.
How much farther we can get
when we hold hands and stick together.