This Is Not How It Ends

by Rochelle B. Weinstein

I’ve heard it said that life is about choices. Paths stretch out ahead of us—sometimes, we make conscious decisions and other times, fate intervenes and chooses for us.

Those afflicted only see what they want to see.

There comes that moment when you’re holding someone and the pieces of you just fit. Words are useless. The parts of you string together—souls touch through gentle fabric—and when you separate, you both know there’s a lingering strand that forever connects.

“When life throws a curveball, you have a decision. You can go on being angry and empty, or you can move toward peace. It’s living or dying. Choose the path that makes you feel alive.”

“When you love someone,” he began, “nothing should keep you apart.”

It won’t change what happened, but it might change what’s ahead.”

Abandonment leaves a painful mark. It inks you for life, if you let it, making you believe you’re not worthy, leaving you distrustful of wishes and dreams, when they only disappoint.

Life throws shit at all of us, and it’s how we deal with it that defines who we are.”