Atheism is the only belief that doesn’t fall apart when you look at it too closely. —Julia Sweeney

20 years ago, I lost my religion while going through an intense period of disenfranchised grief. It was impossible for me to conjure (perfect word for this, btw) comfort even with fervent prayer. I came to realize that the universe was indifferent to my trauma and wasn’t going to carry me through it. God wasn’t listening, caring or helping because God didn’t exist.

That revelation was a beautiful thing. God didn’t cause my loss as part of some plan, or single me out as needing punishment or lessons, or have some greater need than I did for the person I was grieving. Accepting that I was on my own was a huge relief. It was empowering. I eventually transformed my grief into helping others going through similar trauma. Because we humans truly are alone in a cosmic sense, we need to be there for each other. Helping others healed me in a way that prayers and belief never could have.

Atheism is wonderfully positive. Atheism means life is finite and therefore precious. I don’t talk about atheism much because I just don’t need to. I don’t need to convince myself of something that’s so obvious. I don’t need others to share this worldview in order for me to hang onto it. I don’t need to be preached at in order to remind myself that atheism is reality.

It just is.