Quotes to comfort the bereaved

Knowing what to say or do for a person who is going through a loss is difficult for all of us. It doesn’t matter whether we have ourselves experienced it--every loss leaves us in grief and no idea what to say.

When it comes to comfort a bereaved friend or family, there is no specific thing we can do. In some cases, we need not do anything and just be there for them. Even so, if you find yourself looking for something to say, a quote can go a long way. Here is a list of some you can consider.

About Loss

• “What we have once enjoyed we can never lose. All that we love deeply becomes a part of us.” – Helen Keller
• “A great soul serves everyone all the time. A great soul never dies. It brings us together again and again.” – Maya Angelou
• “Unable are the loved to die, for love is immortality.” – Emily Dickinson
• “Like a bird singing in the rain, let grateful memories survive in time of sorrow.” – Robert Louis Stevenson
• “What is lovely never dies, but passes into another loveliness, Star-dust or sea-foam, Flower or winged air.” – Thomas Bailey Aldrich
• “To live in hearts we leave behind is not to die.” – Thomas Campbell
• “The song is ended, but the memory lingers on.” – Irving Berlin
• "There are some who bring a light so great to the world that even after they have gone the light remains."

Offering Your Support

• "There is nothing I can say to take away your hurt but you have my shoulder to cry on and my loving hugs. Know that I will be here for you when you need me."
• "Maybe I can't stop the downpour, but I will always join you for a walk in the rain."
• "Thinking of you at this time of sorrow, with a wish for strength as you face tomorrow."
• “Today and always, may loving memories bring you peace, comfort, and strength.”
• “If you don’t a smile, I’ll give you one of mine.”
• “I will walk with you through the dark until you see the light.” — Ankush Paul

Assurance in Grief

• "It's okay. It's okay to miss them. It's okay to cry. It's okay to laugh. It's okay to breathe deeply. It's okay to smile when you think of them. It's okay to function. It's okay to be angry. It's okay to be thankful. It's okay to love again. It's okay to remember. It's okay to hope. It's okay, to be honest. It's okay to trust again. It's okay. It's okay. It's okay." — Scribbles & Crumbs
• "Healing takes time and you are doing the best you can and that is perfect."
• "I know now that we never get over great losses; we absorb them, and they carve us into different, often kinder, creatures."
• "The reality is that you will grieve forever. You will not 'get over' the loss of a loved one; you will learn to live with it. You will heal and you will rebuild yourself around the loss you have suffered. You will be whole again but you will never be the same. Nor should you be the same nor would you want to." — Elisabeth Kubler-Ross​
• “Only people who are capable of loving strongly can also suffer great sorrow, but this same necessity of loving serves to counteract their grief and heals them.” — Leo Tolstoy
• “Some of us think holding on makes us strong, but sometimes it is letting go.” — Hermann Hesse

Ultimately, it is less about the words that you say, but the comfort and love you offer. Words cannot possibly express all that we wish to say, but our presence can be the best approximate.