Summer Comes Anyway

Summer Comes Anyway: Finding Moments of Warmth While Protecting Our Hearts

The start of summer used to bring a rush of excitement—longer days, bare feet in the grass, backyard BBQs, and vacations we’d count down to. Maybe it still does, in some ways. But when you’ve lost a child, even the sunshine can feel a little too bright.

Summer comes anyway.

No matter how our hearts feel, the calendar keeps moving forward. And suddenly we’re facing the season of togetherness, memory-making, and family traditions... with someone missing. It can feel like the rest of the world is sprinting into summer while we’re just trying to remember how to breathe in this heat.

You’re not alone.

For the BRAVE-hearted among us—the ones living life after loss—summer brings a unique kind of ache. Family reunions. Fireworks. Beach days. Poolside laughter. All of them beautiful, yes. But all of them invitations to a kind of life that looks different now.

So what do we do? We protect our hearts and let in the light.

Grief doesn't ask us to avoid life. It asks us to carry love while we live it. And summer, with all its warmth, actually offers small, sacred ways we can gently tend to our healing.

Here are a few things we’ve learned:

1. Let Nature Hold You

The breeze. The sun on your shoulders. The sound of birds in the morning. Nature doesn’t ask questions. It doesn’t offer platitudes. It just is. And sometimes that’s the exact kind of presence we need.

Take slow walks. Sit by water. Lay in the grass. Let creation speak to the ache that words can’t reach.

2. Say No Without Explaining

You don’t owe your attendance to every family gathering or summer party. If something doesn’t feel right, protect your peace. Give yourself permission to choose what supports your heart right now.

And if you do go, it’s okay to leave early. Or step away. Or cry behind your sunglasses. All of it is valid.

3. Create Your Own Rituals

Make room for your child in the season. A candle at the picnic table. Their name written in the sand. A butterfly release. A walk in their honor.

Including them doesn’t ruin the moment—it makes it real. It reminds the world they existed and are still deeply loved.

4. Let the Laughter In—Without Guilt

Grief and joy aren’t enemies. They coexist. If you catch yourself smiling, dancing, even belly-laughing—let it come. Let it breathe. Your heart is wide enough to hold it all.

Summer doesn’t have to be all pain, just like it doesn’t have to be all smiles.

5. Reach for Your BRAVE Community

This is the season where you may need others who get it. Find the ones who won’t flinch when you say their name. Who won’t rush you to feel better. Who will sit beside you in the sun and the shade.

We’re here. Always.

We invite you to join us for BRAVE Moves—our monthly grief wellness gathering designed just for bereaved moms. Through gentle movement, guided reflection, and community, we create space to process your grief while honoring your body and your child.

Join the BRAVE Moves community today!

👉 https://bereavedtogether.org/brave-moves

This summer, may you feel the warmth and the ache. May you know that joy isn’t betrayal, and boundaries aren’t weakness. And may you take each day as it comes—heart open, spirit guarded, love intact.

Together, we BRAVE the season.

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