Some Goodbyes Split You Wide Open
This week has been heavy. Like really heavy. The office where I returned to corporate life after having the privilege of staying home with my boys for nearly a decade has officially been sold. While I’m fortunate enough to remain with the company in a new role, my heart aches for many of my former colleagues. This whole week has felt like one long lesson in breaking open.
Change may be inevitable, but that doesn’t always make it easy. Today was my final day providing hypercare support during the transition. Walking back into that office this week felt strange in ways I didn’t fully expect. It’s a place that shaped me. A place that reminded me I was capable, intelligent, resilient, and valuable in ways I had almost forgotten after years outside the workforce. But it’s also a place I’ve outgrown. And that realization brings its own complicated mix of emotions.
Gratitude. Sadness. Relief. Pride. Grief for what was. Excitement for what’s next.
Breaking Open, One Goodbye at a Time
In the middle of all of those emotions, life handed me a moment that split me wide open in the best and hardest way all at once. You see, I had an appointment scheduled midday and needed to leave just before lunch. Before the awkward goodbyes and final conversations could really begin, my phone rang.It was my son.
My deployed son whose voice I haven’t heard in months. And suddenly nothing else mattered. Not the transition. Not the office. Not the stress. Not the uncertainty.
Just his voice.It felt like oxygen to my soul. To hear him laugh. To hear that he’s content. To hear pieces of his life on the other side of the world, even within the limits of what he can share. For a few precious moments, my mama heart got exactly what it had been craving.
And then, just as quickly, the conversation ended. And as grateful as I am for the call, for the connection, for the sound of his voice; there’s always a quiet heartbreak tucked inside those moments too. Because the reality is… I may not hear from him again for another few months. That’s the part people don’t always understand. You can be overwhelmingly grateful and deeply heartbroken at the exact same time.
So tonight, I’m allowing myself to hold both. The pride. The worry. The gratitude. The ache. The joy. The missing. Sit with that for a moment. Whatever you’re carrying right now, you’re allowed to hold all of it.I’ll tuck the worry back into the place I’ve learned to store it for now, and I’ll carry the sound of his voice with me a little while longer.
And maybe that’s what this season is teaching me most: Life is rarely one emotion at a time. Sometimes we’re grieving one chapter while being grateful for another. Sometimes we’re saying goodbye while simultaneously being reminded what matters most. Sometimes the moments that heal us also break us open a little too.
And maybe that’s just part of being human. Maybe you’re carrying your own mix of emotions tonight too. A chapter ending. A child you miss. A version of yourself you’re slowly outgrowing. A life that feels both beautiful and heavy all at once. If so, take this as your reminder that you don’t have to navigate those seasons alone.
That’s exactly why I created The Bloom. And when you’re ready to take one small step, not to fix everything, just to tend to one thing, I want to help you find where to start. If you’re feeling the weight of many things at once, take the quiz. It’ll help you identify which pillar of your life is asking for the most care right now, so you don’t have to figure it out alone.
👉 Take the quiz → Find Your Starting Place
You’re allowed to bloom, even in the heavy seasons.Especially in the heavy seasons. Breaking open isn’t the end of the story; it’s just where the light gets in.