Mindi Schaefer

People who carry grief and know it will love fiercely because they know what’s at stake.

You will never be yourself again. You will be a new version. Your old you had a mom.

Front row at a funeral shifts your perspective on life and death. Family must trump work. Period. You will be remembered and missed by your family.

Grief is a living thing that you can’t out run as it will wait.

Grieving is forever. There is no end date. You simply learn to work through it. Grief is a journey. Grief never goes away, but you learn to walk beside it.

Live fully in the face of your loss because that’s what your loved one would want.

True friendship is real. No matter near or far and no matter how many years, true and real friendship lasts forever.

You are stronger than you think. You have no choice. It can’t break you though it may try.

Protect your family fiercely. Keep the bond together and strong always. You will need each other. A promise I made to my mom.

My gratitude was always deep, now I feel more grateful for what I had, what I have, and what I will have.

There is power in positivity. Sometimes you have to be. Heck, fake it til you make it. It does help.

The joy of photos is amazing. It has such healing powers. I say photography everything! Everywhere! Everyone!

Determination to not let pain rule my life is important. I have to work through it, work with it, and keep pushing.

On this date, I thought I was going to die. I literally thought I was having a heart attack. I had let myself get into this toxic, unhealthy, and terrible situation. One never begins to question choices and decisions until this moment.

A combination of burnout, stress, lack of balance, absent boundaries, unhealthy habits, and pure toxicity from others led me to this point. I can blame others who contributed to this situation, but I know … this was me. I can own my “stuff.”

So that day I stood behind my door, hands braced against the door, and thinking “my God, is this it? Is this how this ends?” “Everything I had done, everything I gave, everything … and this is it!”

This day changed my life to say the least. I made fundamental shifts putting my mental, emotional, and physical health as a priority. It was the best decision EVER! So much since this day has happened and perhaps this day was needed to prepare me for the tragic and sudden loss of my mom just months later.

So today I’m physically healthier than ever (still a work in progress of course), my life balance is in place and unwavering (this was not easy to reclaim but I did), and my family sits shotgun in the ride of life which I am beyond grateful for.

It takes something drastic (or real $hitty happening), but it didn’t break me by any means! 🙌🏻 Quite the opposite! 😉 A swing and a miss! 😂

I love being a paralegal and leader. I have a passion for both. 🩷

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