The last bottle of champagne | Day 165 of my 2023 Journal

On the last day we spent with my sister's family in Sweden, we shared the last bottle of champagne from my mother, whom we all lost four years ago. My sister and I lost our mother; our children lost their grandmother; the men in the house lost their mother-in-law.

We made a simple toast to her. This is how we cope with grief by now. A simple toast. To our mother.

It meant a lot. The little smile. The sigh.

The bottle was the final one from our mother's home, and my sister's husband had been kind enough to remember to bring it. When the two families spend time together, it is precious time. There is nothing exciting to say about the things we did, the boardgames, the drawings, the Swedish children’s television from the seventies, the investigation of ancient technology in the house, the little walk, yet another dip in the lake, the cooking and cleaning, working with the dogs, the conversations, the gaming.

It is not a Great Adventure.

Except it is.

It is the Greatest Adventure of them all.

It is love in real life.

Living in deep connection with someone, several someones, who means the world. Loved ones. Precious ones. My love for my sister's family is as deep as the one I hold for my own, and every single little interaction we get to have is like another pearl in a shrine in my heart.

The time we get to share. Even the losses we share.

Sharing a bottle of champagne in the midst of what looks like an ordinarily chaotic day with ten people and three dogs in one house looks like close to nothing.

On the contrary, it is everything.

Love and light

Cecilie Conrad

Thank you for reading
I would love to hear from you. Listen to your thoughts and reflections - or praise :) It is often emotional to share our life like this, and we get very happy when we get feedback from you. So feel free to share a comment below 😋