“When someone is grieving, that shift matters more than we want to admit.”

March 2025, the author and her husband's very last photo together.

The author and Rich on their wedding day in August of 1988 in Highland Park, Illinois.

The last time the author and Rich voted together, before taking a walk at Lake Michigan.

Kim Brandt is a writer, yoga therapist and Pilates instructor whose work explores grief, healing and human connection. After losing her husband to colorectal cancer in April of 2025, she began writing about caregiving, love, and life after loss. She lives in Illinois, where she is building a wellness community focused on resilience and repurposing life’s transitions.

This article originally appeared on HuffPost in April 2026.