An old friend from long ago asked me today if I was alone in the world now?
I think the answer depends on how you look at it. It’s true, my family consists of 2 folks well (well) into their 80’s. One is my mother and she has dementia. I also have a 1/2 cousin I consider more of a friend (a very good friend) than a cousin, and another cousin I don’t know well. All of them, other than my mother, live several states away.
Grief can be a result of many different forms of loss. However, the most common cause of grief is the loss of a loved one. According to Statista, there were over 15 million widows and widowers in the United States in 2018. While not all the people Statista surveyed were seniors, we can assume that the majority of them who claimed to be widowed were seniors.
Death is a concept that feels distanced to most of us; something that seems far away and avoidable. But, the reality is that death happens without warning. No matter how old or young you are, you will never be able to truly prepare for loss.
The thought that one day the people we share our lives with will no longer be there is impossibly deliberating. Of course, any loss is difficult to process, but the loss of your significant other is uniquely painful.
“You’re coming home with us,” I said. My husband and I and our twin grandchildren were standing by the hospital emergency entrance. Nine months ago, their mother (our daughter) died from the injuries she received in a car crash. Now their father was gone, killed in another car crash. The life I had known stopped and I was engulfed in darkness.
Heaven got much brighter on the day that I walked in
I want to tell you so much now, so where do I begin?
You worried deeply on that day that you’d forget my smile
Stonework and masonry have played an important role in how people commemorate a person’s loss for thousands of years. If you go back to Ancient Egypt, you could argue that the pyramids were perhaps the boldest memorials in history - enormous stone monuments built to honor the passing of pharaohs.
The book, 52 Lists for Happiness, was a gift from my granddaughter. When I first read the title, I questioned the author’s concept. But when I opened the book and saw that Moorea Seal had divided it into four sections—Reflect, Acknowledge, Invest, Transform—I thought she might be on to something.
Well, here we are again. I'm sure some of you are getting tired of hearing from me. That's okay, I'm here anyway. We all have gone through a lot after our child/children passed. The road we now walk is so rocky and steep, the top so far away. Some of us won't make it and I already grieve for the loss of a light soul passing away from us. More of us will keep climbing, what else can we do? We can step out on different paths to see if they suit us but this main path will always be beside us whatever direction we go.
