Even though this autumn has seemed as if it will never end, it will. As seasons change, so do our lives. Change can bring about fear of the unknown, or it can bring about joyful anticipation of the next chapter. Even though change always brings loss in some way, it also opens the door for the next adventure and opportunity.

I have been very blessed to have many wonderful friends and close family. During the last few weeks, two of my dearest friends have endured the loss of two immediate family members. How tragic and yet how blessed they were to have had the close and loving relationships with their loved-ones.

Losing someone we love hurts. Nothing can replace the happiness and fulfillment that we receive from someone whom we love. We are all unique individuals and the relationships that we share cannot be replaced -- ever. After we lose someone, we adapt to the new and changed life, but we never forget those loved ones.

And slowly, as we progress through the hours and minutes without them, something new emerges in our life. Perhaps we develop a new friendship or we use the extra time to volunteer for someone who needs assistance. Perhaps we put our emotions to pen and paper and write a song or a poem as a memorial. And we find, as we progress throughout the next chapter of our life, that we have found another love - be it person, place or thing.

And once again, our hearts become vulnerable to the loss that accompanies change. But shall we close ourselves off to avoid the inevitable pain of loss and change? We should not. If we try to avoid all of the pain that change brings, we lose the joy that makes our lives worthwhile.

We must never forget that life is full of surprises everyday. From one minute to the next, life can change one-hundred and eighty degrees. And change will come. We can try to avoid it; we can cry because of it; or we can meet it head-on and make the most of the beauty that is left in the wake of its path. As winter follows autumn, so loss follows change.

In the very wise and often quoted words of Alfred Lord Tennyson, "'Tis better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all."

As my dear friends have taught me, today and always, live your life to the fullest. May you live carefully but love with reckless abandon!

Susan Grossman is a certified personal trainer and group exercise instructor who has recently left a full-time corporate position to pursue her dream of self-employment and helping others with their weight loss and fitness goals. She has spent many years in martial arts training and has overcome her own struggles with weight loss. Visit her website to learn more: http://www.warsawssecret.com.