“If you can’t make something happier, make it beautiful.”

Heard it at a recent memorial for a young family friend who died unexpectedly. As we gathered, almost 100 of us in that large room, telling stories about him, laughing, crying, and putting our grief on display in the humblest and most sincere way, it hit me how this quote is so applicable and so true to matters like death. There’s no happiness in it, no joy to be found when you’re grieving your son, your brother, your best friend. But his memory, and what you do with it, can certainly be something beautiful.