For my birthday one year, my mom gave me all of her writings from 1960 to what was present day. In 1973, my dad had undergone open heart surgery, and they had been told he maybe had 8 years to live. Having trouble processing what was their new reality, she was assigned to write a…
Tag: grief
Somewhere Between
Somewhere between the first anniversary of your death and the second anniversary of celebrating your birthday without you – I have moved into a better space. The astonishment of feeling guilty for not missing you is not something for which I had prepared, nor was the feeling of overwhelming nostalgia for you as I sat…
THE GREATEST GIFT MY MOTHER EVER GAVE ME
The greatest gift my mother ever gave me was to comfort me while I openly grieved her death. As I write this, it sounds so horribly morbid. You must understand this is what a young girl does after her family unit has been turned upside down. My father dying was tragic, but my brothers’ moving…
THE REBIRTH OF GRIEF
In June of 1992, my life changed forever. My previous date of a life altering event was when my father passed away in February of 1980. At the age of 15, between my sophomore and junior year of high school, I attended a summer camp called Anytown, USA. Anytown, USA was sponsored by the National…
arlisann 