Later Will Be Greater

Never have we experienced such great change. In lock-down we find ourselves socially isolated, unable to spend time with the friends and family that we love.

What we are witnessing seem hard to believe. Planes are grounded, celebrations postponed and huge annual festivals cancelled. And so many things that we have been looking forwards seem to have vanished into thin air leaving little trace of their existence.

My heart went out to those doing GCSE’s and A Levels. Learning that there would be no exams this year my initial thought was “they must be happy”. But it soon become clear that many were devastated. “It feels like I’ve been working all these years for nothing” one teenager said. Another was sobbing because they felt that they had been robbed of their last school year and the prom which they had been so looking forward to.

It’s understandable that many feel a sense of loss right now. And many may feel lost. It may feel as if we are missing out, or if others are missing out. Our hearts may ache for what could have been. They may ache for what we want. Our hearts communicate with us in many ways, pain being one of these ways. When we feel pain it’s a reminder of what is truly important when everything else has been taken away.

I was thinking about this last week when I opened my emails to find a message from a herbalist and lovely friend of mine Deanne Greenwood. Following a reference to her not being able to see a loved one living abroad due to the current situation, she ended her message with “later will be greater”.

Those words warmed my heart when I saw them. And I knew that it was an important message to spread. Commenting on their back in an email back to Deanne she informed me of their origin:

“Later will be greater’ was something a Jamaican boyfriend (and poet) of mine, many years ago, would always say, whenever we were apart/couldn’t see each other for a while. (Best said in a Jamaican accent!)”

We can choose to focus on what we have lost or what could have been. Or we can choose to focus on the feelings that we know we will experience when we come through this.

Imagine hugging your loved ones again? I’m sure tears of happiness will be pouring down many a face.

Imagine uniting with friends for celebration. Can you even imagine the joy that we will experience having been reminded of the importance of these relationships?

Imagine being at a party or a festival and looking around in awe, perhaps truly appreciating life and what we are able to experience?

The truth is, later will be greater. Everything that we have missed will be even better than before. We will find ourselves expressing a deeper sense of gratitude. And we will be happier than before as we realise that all that cannot be taken away is all that we need.

I’m sure that you will agree that there has never been a better time to absorb and use this simple and profoundly powerful statement. And you can help. I share the Deanne’s final response in her email:

“Feel free to spread the word, the thought, the love”.

Please help us to spread the word, the thought and the love by sharing this post. Or why not create your own and use #laterwillbegreater. Together we can make a difference xxx