A month after losing my stepmom, I went to a bluegrass festival and made myself a promise: look for joy wherever it showed up. Finding joy in the little things didn't erase the grief. It gave me stepping stones across it.

I spent one 24-hour span crying tears of grief and tears of joy — for my Dad's 80th birthday and a loved one's health scare. Here's what that taught me about coping with emotions instead of resisting them.