Through the death of my sponsor I came to realize that I had spent a great deal of my life avoiding grief and loss. He left me with one message: "If you're so afraid of loss that you never gain, what's the point?" In the midst of our loss(es), we can dishonor the gains of our privilege of knowing the person(s). The gifts of your sponsor are within you now - use them to honor all that he/she shared with you.
The pain of loss does not lessen with the knowledge of the gains but it makes it more bearable for now. God be with you.