It is important to enjoy the completion of every cycle–
to remember all that you’ve learned, to savour the feeling of accomplishment.
Truly, now is the time to stand at the summit, and to feel good about who you are, about all that you’ve done.

It hasn’t always been easy.
But you’ve braved every challenge;
you’ve allowed yourself to be touched, and to transform.
You’ve seen the world through a thousand pairs of eyes.
You’ve joined hands with a hundred different partners,
and when the time was right, you let them go.

And there is gratitude for each one of those people.
And there is a fundamental comfort in who you are, now,
in your ability to be resilient and to stand the test of time.

And what remains with you most, at the end of all of these experiences, is love–
love for who you were, for who you are,
for everyone that you’ve been, for everyone that you’ve met.

You see now how we are all in this game of life together —
each of us learning as we go along.
You see now that all suffering is transitory,
and all pain is accidental,
and every experience offers you yet another chance
to open to love.

Truly, that is why we are here:
To each experience life as an individual,
and yet to remember that we are connected to the Whole,
that we are never shut off from the flow of love.

And because of all that you have learned,
because of this trust that you cultivated,
you are ready to begin again:
to open your arms wide,
and to surrender to Rebirth–
once again being embraced by, and embodying,
the arms of love.