I Can See the Thestrals

If you are a Harry Potter fan, you may remember the thestrals which pull the carriages full of students from the Hogwarts express to the school. Most of the students think the carriages are magic, and move on their own, but students who have seen death can see the invisible thestral creatures pulling the carriages.

That's how I have been feeling this week, as I have had to return to work. Everyone has been so friendly and helpful, but it seems that people are divided into two groups. The first is made up of people who care about you, but have never been through the death of someone very close to them. They don't know what to say or what to do, so they don't look at you. They don't mean to, but they make you feel like you may have the plague. They don't want your fate to be theirs, and they don't want to see your pain.

The second group is made up of people who know just exactly how wretched it is. They have been through it themselves and know that you are feeling like you have a black hole in your chest instead of a heart. They reach out with hugs, and words, and love, and action. They look you in the eyes when they say, "It absolutely sucks, doesn't it?" And when you look back, you see your own pain mirrored in their eyes. And you know they can see the thestrals too.