Death of a Parent

Adam – Crying and singing

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Adam talks about how crying and singing helps him cope even at the cemetary

Grief & Ice Cream

When my wife of 18 years died in 2016, I became a single father missing the love of my life, and also had to learn how to raise two girls (13-17 at the time) on my own. I remember a conversation I had with my mother-in-law and oldest daughter that began as reminiscing over a person who became a lost love to all of us. We all talked about different aspects of my wife but shortly, it transformed into a “who meant more to her” fest.

Jessica M – A Parking Lot Memorial

Jessica shares how her family gathered after her uncle died during COVID and how her family came up with a creative way of getting together in a parking lot.

KIm – Planning a funeral in the pandemic

Kim explains the ups and downs of planning a funeral during the pandemic

Antoinetta – Grieving in community with others

Antoinetta discusses how grief camp made her feel so much more happy and how she found support and that she did not feel so alone

Karyn and Aidan – Supporting each other

Karyn and Aidan talk about how they supported each other and how they coped with John being hospitalized

Mary S – Dogs

Mary talks about how special dogs are and how much they helped her grief

Weaving the Tapestry of Love

Learning to become a better person is a wonderful consequence of being in a loving relationship with someone; you’re present in ways that help them grow into their best self. It’s an organic process you flow with on a journey we map out with intention, though in reality, it remains unknowable. That is why a…

Zoreena – Passing on kindness

Zoreena talks about wakes, funerals, COVID and the importance of kindness

Keeping Records

I pulled the photos out of their envelope one at a time, turning over each one to carefully record the date, place, and people in the photo. Sometimes, I included comments. “Apple picking in Hamilton with Pop Pop, Fall, 2023. You loved the wagon ride!”. I slipped each picture into an empty pocket in my son’s photo album.

Adam – Things that are OK to do

Adam talks about things he does to cope with grief like singing and crying

Bryan – Empathy for others

Bryan talks about how losing his father to gun violence was difficult and how taking things day by day helped him get through many difficult times. Now he wants to help children who are going through something similar to what he did. Things will get better and there is always a light at the end of the tunnel