The other side of the coffee table

Grief is a funny thing, really. Sad, yes, but funny nonetheless. It is such a universal emotion, and yet it can make someone feel so alone and isolated, as if no one in the world has ever shared in the experience, despite the fact that most of us have. It has an air about it, as if it ought to be left alone, despite the fact that people who are grieving often benefit from gentle company. We tend to think of grief as a heavy weight, a burden, a thing that exists only in the absence of something else, but that isn't true at all. Grief is not the absence of joy, it is its own solid element, its own unique presence, and it plays a huge role in who we are and how we live our lives. I think peopl