Well, here we are, again — that time of year intended to allow individuals to celebrate, commemorate, relive traditions and create new ones, and in many cases, worship — collectively referred to as "the holidays." In this span of weeks we typically laugh more, eat more, spend more and do all things to excess. Which is, I guess, why we also grieve more.

If you’re like me, it’s hard to know exactly what to do when a friend is grieving deeply. I’ve tried sending flowers, even an occasional chicken pie. Is it “starve a fever, feed a cold? or the other way around?” After a funeral, especially here in the South- the answer is to feed the family…whether they are hungry or not!

I wasn’t prepared. Nope. I wasn’t prepared for grief to grab me by the throat at my granddaughter’s wedding. Before the service my surviving daughter, a family therapist, handed me some tissues. “Brace yourself, Mom,” she advised.

These days, a big part of any author's job is the sales and marketing of their book. Not only do you have to pen an interesting and relevant literary work of art, but you also have to peddle it on social media sites, and pitch it to media vendors such as radio, magazines, and TV. In short, you have to be willing to sell yourself.

My Dearest Fra,

I wish you peace when you're feeling so, so sad

I wish you memories that'll make you smile

I wish you energy that'll last throughout your day

And the support you'll need for a while

No Parent Should Outlive A Child

That's Not How Things Were Meant To Be

They're Supposed To Grow And Marry

Bring Grandchildren To Our Knee

Some Things I Just Can't Understand

Most days, we walk around half alive. It is not the living we crave, but those who have been so brutally ripped from our lives. We wish, with all that is within us that our brains would blank out. Possibly the lucky ones are those who walk around in a brain fog for an extended period.