The Gain Of Loss

This track shares an insight about how the people in our lives—whether they stay or go—shape who we become. Even after someone is no longer with us, they can live on through the music we love, the wisdom we remember, or the choices we make. Realizing this has helped me see loss with more beauty, and it’s reminded me how incredible it is that we’re all living collages of the people and experiences that have touched us.

Transcript

I've come to realize that we carry pieces of other people inside of us.

Not just memories or lessons,

But actual parts of their essence that become part of who we are.

For example,

Someone I knew loved reggae music,

And through them,

I fell in love with it too.

Now,

Whenever I listen to reggae,

I feel like a piece of that person lives on in me.

It's not just about liking the same thing.

It's that something that they loved became something I now love too.

There was another time when someone told me that in negotiations,

The person with the money has the power.

Later on,

I was in a situation where I felt powerless,

Until I remembered that I was the buyer.

I was the one with the money,

So I was the one with the power.

And in that moment,

It was like that person's voice echoed through me.

So,

In a way,

The people we've known don't just pass through our lives.

They live on in the things that we remember,

The choices we make,

And even the music we listen to.

Other people help shape us.

And sometimes,

When we least expect it,

They rise up inside of us and help us live better and make different choices.

Experiencing loss in life is something that used to crush me.

It would be devastating to my life.

When I lost something or someone I loved,

It would take me out for months,

Even years.

But lately,

Something in me is changing.

I'm starting to see that maybe I didn't just lose someone or something.

Maybe I also gained something.

Because if I picked up a part of them along the way,

Like a way of thinking,

A song,

Or a phrase,

Then they're not really gone.

They live on inside of me,

In ways I didn't always notice.

So yes,

I may have lost something physically,

But something more internal remained.

And that shift in perspective,

It's been a key for me.

People always say,

You can't change the situation,

But you can change the way you see it.

I never fully understood that until now.

I used to think that meant just putting a positive spin on something painful,

Or using toxic positivity to outsmart a hardship.

But this is different.

It's not about denying the grief.

It's about also honoring what remains.

It doesn't take away the grief of loss,

But it gives it a beautiful purpose.