Many people say that losing a loved one is the hardest thing to overcome. My story doesn’t really involve totally losing a loved one, but it does involve the process of letting go. People grow up and leave our lives, things change, and only with God’s help can we truly cope with our problems.

My sister has always been my role model, best friend, and the one I go to for help. She’s always been there for me and helped me through my rough times. However, a few summers ago was my last summer with her.

At the beginning of the new school year we had to go our separate ways. She graduated and went off to college and I was still stuck at home with what seemed to be no one. I felt so alone at first that I didn’t know what to do. It seemed like I had no one to talk to or share secrets with, to giggle with about the stupidest things, and sometimes just to sit there and do absolutely nothing. I felt so alone, and I didn’t know what was going to happen without my sister by my side.

The last night she was at our house, my sister and I talked like normal, but we both knew that she would be leaving the next day. We shared all the latest gossip, watched our favorite Disney movies, and tried to do just about everything we could to make it seem like a regular night. But we both knew that the next day would change our lives forever.

My sister would be starting a new chapter in her life. I would not be a part of the new things and situations she would be experiencing. I knew growing up meant moving on and experiencing new things, but I didn’t want things to change between my sister and me.

After she left, I would just sit in her bedroom wondering what to do. It all had happened so fast. One night we went to bed like usual and then when I got back from school the next day she was just plain gone. I probably wouldn’t see her for quite a few months. That night I felt so alone and vulnerable—so cut off in such a big world without my big sister to help me to avoid stumbling over my problems.

A few months later, I’ve found that, although the first few weeks were hard, I shouldn’t be upset. I know that even though she’s farther away, my sister still loves me as much as she did before, and I can still communicate with her over the phone and on the Internet. It may have taken a while, but I finally adjusted.

There are still going to be times in my life that I will feel alone. There will be times when I will need someone to be with me but they can’t be. And there will be times when people let me down. But I can always trust that God won’t ever leave me or let me down. He will be with me, through thick and thin.