A grieving woman shares an inspiring interaction she had with a stranger on the beach

Although grief is something we all go through in life, the process is different for each person. This can feel isolating.

When a grieving woman revisited a beach that has deep meaning to her, she met a man who shared inspiring sentiments with her.

Their interaction highlighted the impact of community support when dealing with grief.

A woman on TikTok shared how trips to this beach gradually helped her approach her grieving heart with compassion.

Rachel Havekost is a mental health advocate and writer who publishes content intended to “help (people) feel less alone,” as her biographical details say. She recently published a short video of herself smiling and sitting calmly on the beach.

In the caption of her video, she described how her first love said her last words on the same beach 12 years ago, and she returns to the beach from time to time to reflect on the experience and feel connected to it.

“What didn’t I say? What didn’t we know? What, if anything, could I have done to change the course of time?” she wrote.

@rachelhavekost

Twelve years ago, my first love told me her last words on this beach. Sometimes I come back here and wonder: what didn’t I say? What didn’t we know? What, if anything, could I have done to change the course of time? Now I know that if they don’t move the grief and I can’t change the time, so trying to turn back the clock is futile. But I know that if I want, my heart will have a chance to expand instead of collapse. Tonight, instead of curling up on the couch, I put my arms wide on the hood of the car on the beach, listening to music. I smiled at every person who passed me, even if they ignored me. I was seriously considering making a sign that said “I’m lonely too, just smile.” I (and Milo) finally sat down at our favorite beach vacation spot and met a man named Jeffrey. He pointed to the sky and asked, “Can you see the first star of the night!?” To which I replied, “no, I’m trying, but I can’t see it.” There was no star. For a moment I felt sympathy. Oh no, Jeffrey sees stars. I built up my best belief and came back to him with the message, “this must come.” He smiled and continued talking about his revelations about the world until I saw a single twinkling spark overhead. “Jeffrey, is that it!?” “Yes,” he smiled. “Sometimes you have to wait for the darkness to see the light.”

♬ WILDFLOWER – Billie Eilish

Part of the grieving process usually involves reassessing how such an outcome could have been avoided, but Havekost emphasized that this will do no good because the circumstances are beyond your control.

“I now know that ‘what ifs’ don’t push the grief to the back of my mind and I can’t change time, so trying to turn back time is futile,” she said. “But I know that if I want, my heart will have a chance to expand instead of collapse.”

“Tonight, instead of curling up on the couch, I put my arms on the hood of the car on the beach, listening to music,” Havekost added.

A woman shared a touching interaction with a wise stranger who taught her an important lesson about grief.

Instead of succumbing to the inconsolable depths of sadness, Havekost decided to move beyond her loneliness and embrace her community, revisiting the beach that held memories of long ago.

Although she still felt sad and lonely, a change of environment and contact with other people experiencing their own complex lives allowed her to do so. admit that she was not alone.

She told how she smiled at everyone who passed her, hoping to spread love and kindness. While doing so, she came across another grieving man named Jeffrey, who shed his light on her.

“I met a man on the beach today. We both mourned, and he pointed to the sky to show me a star,” Havekost wrote in the text of her video. “I didn’t see it and I was frustrated. Soon the sun set and a star appeared in the black sky.

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“He smiled and said, ‘Sometimes you have to wait for the darkness to become light,’” she said.

In other words, sometimes it is through darkness that we learn to recognize and welcome light which always surrounds us.

Jeffrey brilliantly allowed Havekost to interpret this small but huge concept for herself, and his beautiful message marked her direction on her path. She was supposed to be on that beach tonight so they could share an inspiring interaction that she took home with her and shared with others.

Havekost’s experience emphasized that light cannot exist without darkness and vice versa.

Sadness is an unimaginably painful experience that each of us must face at some point in our lives. With birth and life eventually comes loss, sometimes when we least expect it. However, beauty and peace can emerge from sadness, and we cultivate this experience by rejoicing in our connection to the world and others – accepting that there is always light to experience in the face of darkness.

Sometimes in your darkest moments, the best thing you can do is surround yourself with the support and love of otherseven if they are strangers.

Allowing yourself to coexist in the intricacies of shared spaces can remind you that you are never as alone as you feel. By spreading kindness to others, you attract boundless love in return, covering your hurting heart with warmth.

Although the pain of grief will remain with you forever, we all have a choice: respond to our pain with compassion or despair. Choosing the former may not be easy, but over time it can significantly impact the trajectory of your healing by teaching you to focus on the beauty that can emerge from loss.

Francesca Duarte is a staff writer on YourTango’s news and entertainment team based in Orlando, Florida. It deals with lifestyle, human interests, adventure and spirituality.