Grief Journey Archives - Page 3 of 11

Isle of Skye, Scotland: Land of Windswept Fairy Tales; Home to Warrior Queens; and Healer of Broken Hearts

August 14, 2022

If there exists a land of windswept fairy tales, Skye is it. It feels like you are on the edge of the world. Fog curls around the mountains like gray cotton candy arms wrapping the hills in a hug, pink wildflowers dangle like bells, old stone bridges arch over rushing rivers, the kinds of stone bridges where ancient legends are made, legends of fairies and magical creatures who dance on the bridges at night, bridges from this world to the other world, the magic world.

How to Help Those Who Are Swimming in the Sacred Waters of Grief

July 20, 2022

I think it can be hard to know how to help those swimming in the sacred waters of grief.
In my own experience, I found that the best thing you can do is just show up. If they are home, sit with them, listen, hold them while they cry, make them laugh, (I do this by showing them how I’m practicing my skipping after hip surgery which is always a good laugh.).
It is far more helpful to show up than to say “Call me if you need anything.”
Drop off groceries, plant flowers, leave them a jar of honey or jam on their porch with a note that says “Thinking of you.”
These small acts of kindness are more powerful than you can imagine.

The Healing Properties of Dancing in the Rain

June 29, 2022

Then I thought, I wonder if Anger Gardening is a form of therapy?
If it’s not, it should be. It’s dazzling in its wildness and simplicity. I watered my soul garden with my tears and my rage, then lifted my face to the rain and felt my soul bloom into a thousand blossoms lit by fireflies.

Lighthouses: Keepers of the Flame

June 18, 2022

They’re just little bearded guys, but they are the keepers of the flame. They remind me that no matter how dark and treacherous a storm may seem, no matter how thick the fog of grief around me, when I don’t know which way to turn, I just need to keep my eyes open, watching for the light that will guide me home.

Rewoven: My Mom and Dementia

May 29, 2022

Then again, my Mom is still my Mom, whether she’s able to respond to us in way we understand or not. She is living in a spiritual tender world, a world that doesn’t make sense to me, or those of us currently anchored in the concrete world.

Lemonade Heart (Mother’s Day 2022)

May 9, 2022

It always takes me by surprise when Mother’s Day rolls around and I feel melancholy. I love being a Mom, but as a daughter, I feel sad.
I want my Mom back.

Tragedy

March 23, 2022

Unimaginable grief

Stargazing on the Rooftop with Kim

January 30, 2022

Kim and I were exhausted after our ritual, like we had taken a night ride in the velvet of darkness in a kingdom where the boundaries of space and time were tossed into the sea.

A Pocket Full of Starlight

January 22, 2022

Is it strange that I want to shrink my Mom and carry her in my pocket so I can have her with me all the time, like a pocket full of starlight that I can throw up in the sky when it seems especially dark?

Travelers: Packing Tips for Hats

December 21, 2021

Packing tip: if you are traveling with large hats, don’t pack them, wear them.
Wouldn’t it be dreamy if people started wearing large hats while traveling? Out with sweatpants and messy buns… in with large hats and beautiful travel attire!
Whenever I enter a hat shop while traveling, my fantasy world kicks into overdrive, and with each one I try on, I become different characters dropped into fantastic worlds.
I inevitably fall in love with the biggest, most ornate ones, and I’m overcome with that feeling of “My life will not be complete without you, oh darling hat!”

Category: Grief Journey