I had lunch with a friend yesterday who really gets me. She’s taken my hand many times over the past year, figuratively and literally, and walked with me through what she and I call “the fire.” She’s the person who taught me that, when we’re facing the loss of a loved one (or any loss, … More Walking Through the Fire
I thought it would be Mother’s Day. That’s the day I thought I’d miss her the most, the day I’d be mostly acutely aware of the void, the gaping hole, in my world. Eight months after saying goodbye, I am feeling stronger in general. But I brace myself when I see one of “those days” … More A Motherly Kind of Love
Leaning back in the uncomfortable arm chair, I was mesmerized by the magnolia’s silhouette in the silvery, pre-dawn moonlight. A lovely distraction on the other side of the window, breaking up what had been a long, hard night that would most certainly segue into a long, hard day. She had been there for the better … More Magnolia in the Moonlight
At some point in my early childhood, in my pretty, happy bedroom with the shaggy yellow carpeting, there was a Charlie Brown trash can with the exclamation, “Good Grief” bubbled over that big, round head. Of course I knew Charlie Brown, and I’d heard him lament in many Charlie Brown specials, but never did I … More Grief is Not a Four Letter Word
I try to guard my heart. I take seriously the business of protecting the wounded center of my very being. Each morning I wrap it in pillowy softness to shield it from over-exposure or vulnerability to further damage. It’s already been broken and I work hard to keep the break from splintering into tiny, jagged … More How Do You Protect a Grieving Heart?
New Year’s Eve for our family is usually a pretty low-key affair. This year Darren and I enjoyed an early dinner with a couple of friends then a movie, planning to be home early, then to watch the ball drop. It seemed to be a plan for a perfect evening. That is until our chosen … More Wild Hope
A couple of years ago, while running the Whiskey Flat Trail Run in the mountains near the Kern River, I took my first (please let it be my last) serious fall while running. Like it tends to do during a fall, time slowed down and I felt like I was watching from above. I can … More Scar Sisters
