When my girls Melissa and Amanda were young they lost their grampa. At an age where they did not understand death, it was up to me why we couldn't see him any more.
Knowing that children are visual I took them out at night and told them to look up at the stars...I explained that before you're born we are all stars in the sky. When we are here on earth our star is inside our hearts. And when our time here is over, we go back up to the sky to be with all the other stars.
We found grampa's star that night, told him we loved him and wished him a good night.

I have told that story to many young moms, trying to cope with the same issue. Many have passed on the story.

When we lost my sister to cancer, we all when outside that night to find taunte Nickie's star......It was cloudy but when we told her we loved her and wished her a good night..the clouds parted and one star came out. In tears I told the girls, that was her way of letting us know she was ok, and that she's not really gone..