Five years ago today… Five years ago, at 7:30 a.m., I hugged my daughter and told her to drive safely. “Ok Mom. See you at lunch time!” Five years ago, at 11:00 a.m., two DPS officers came to my work with “something important to talk to me about, regarding my daughter.” Five years ago, at …
Tag Archive: loss
Jun 08
Graduation, Memorial Day connect in mixed emotions
Two very special dates occurred recently – graduation of the class of 2012 on Friday (May 25), and Memorial Day last Monday (May 28) – one a joyous celebration of accomplishment, the other a heartfelt tribute to tremendous loss. I attended graduation last Friday; once again a proud mother watched her daughter cross the stage …
Mar 06
Another mother grieves
Our little town – and the world – has suffered the loss of another remarkable young lady, and another mother has joined the most horrible club on earth: the club of grieving parents. I am so very sorry for this woman whom I have never met. She lives in my town. Her daughter was friends …
Dec 29
Christmas and grief – expressing the inexpressible
Written at Christmas, 2010 ‘Spilling over’ is bound to happen. The Christmas season has arrived, and with it all the emotions entangled therein. I have always loved Christmas. Since I was a small child and watched my mother carefully trim the fresh tree that my father had cut the day before. Christmas is …
Nov 09
Grief and the loss of friendships
Pamela Cytrynbaum, author, blogger, lecturer at Northwestern University, and companion in grief, found my blog and found what I had to say interesting. She has asked me to answer a few questions and plans to share them with her readers at http://family.lifegoesstrong.com. Question: What happens when people pull away from a grieving person. How do …
Oct 24
Loss creates permanent, irrevocable damage
I awoke for no apparent reason shortly before midnight last night and fought those wee-hour demons for nearly three hours. Why is it, while fighting for sleep, all the small, inconsequential things in life take on such gargantuan proportions? The tiny, nit-picking things that, when the light of morning arrives, are so unimportant and forgettable. …
Oct 07
Raw grief and the struggle to accept
Two months you’ve been gone from this world. … The anger that everyone talks about, that all the books and counselors say is “normal” after a loss, has nowhere to go in me. I have no place to focus this anger, so it stays inside, winding me ever tighter. I find myself short-tempered, waspish, mean-spirited. …
Sep 08
Lyrics of Life: thoughts of a daughter losing her mother
This is a guest post from a good friend who recently lost her mother. See her writings at FanStory.com under the pseudonym ‘allinmyhead.’ Lyrics of Life by Lynn Nicholas The spray from the garden hose plays across the stand of Louisiana Iris. I close my eyes and make believe that the rhythmic splash is falling …
Sep 01
Examining what it means to grieve
I go through my life now quite differently from before. I am a changed creature since the death of my daughter. On a regular, frequent basis, I find I need to examine what it means to grieve. Days, weeks go by and I am “fine.” Then one day my feelings well up, unfocused and un-namable, …
Aug 11
Writing as therapy for grief
Pamela Cytrynbaum, author, blogger, lecturer at Northwestern University, and companion in grief (she lost her beloved brother two years ago), found my blog and found what I had to say interesting. She has asked me to answer a few questions and is sharing them with her readers at lifegoesstrong.com. This was my answer to her …
