When we suffer a tragic loss, the best way to move on is to find meaningful something to fill the void. I can’t wait for that part if the grieving process.

With the nice weather a week or so ago, I decided we needed to cook out on the grill. After all, we could run around outside all day. What good is that without the smell of meat wafting through the air?

So I picked up some chicken from the store and got the fire started. These days, that takes a little work because the igniter in my gas grill – which is at least a decade old – doesn’t really work anymore.

I have to turn on the gas and slide one of those long, thin lighter things into the hole by where the propane is released. Naturally, I lean back as far as I can to make sure I don’t lose any valuable hair.

The fire started, and I threw the chicken on the grill. After a little while, I noticed something strange. The fire didn’t seem to spread naturally and was coming up above the grill rack and heating things up a little more than I wanted.

After a minute or two of investigation, I realized the little metal thingy (I think that is the technical term) which spread the flame evenly had come dislodged so that the flame came up one side completely unfettered.

We looked closer and noticed that not only had it shifted, but rust had seemed to take over part of it. For a moment, I got sad because I didn’t want anything bad to happen to the grill. Then I realized the wonderful silver lining.

I could go grill shopping.

I do few things better in this world than lusting over grills at a store. I can stand there for hours and compare the various racks and accouterments that come with the modern gas grill. I can pretend I understand why the number of BTUs matters when I am only usually cooking for the three of us. And don’t even get me started on my ideas for the use of side burners.

For years I have wasted this skill because my frugality kept me from getting a new grill. I had a perfectly good unit at home so I just browsed.

Now I get to do the real deal. I can truly use my imagination as I stroke my chin and decide which one I will look best standing behind on a hot summer day with a cold beer in one hand and a pair of tongs in the other.

I’ll still get one of the least expensive models since I don’t really need something with more than a few burners and really have no use for multiple side burners. But I can still pretend that I will eventually buy those things.

That all plays a role in the process I need to go through to come to grips with the expiration of my old grill. I have cooked a lot of chicken and too many burgers to count on that old soldier. But now it’s time has come to make room for another grill.

It’s all part of the circle of life. A juicy, meaty, smoky circle of life.