Aftermath: Pets I Have Known (Grieving Futures)
Dealing with the pets after my parents died was just the beginning of my realization that grief was not just something that hit me at night, in the dark under the covers: it reached out into every mundane aspect of my life.
Changes on the Horizon
Rather than letting AYoLD slide into being a general “improve your life!” blog, of which there are about 127 million already on the web, I’m going to rebrand this blog to deal specifically with grief, caretaking, and survivorship issues.
Totems
As mourners, we are often told by well-meaning friends and family to “let it go” or “move on,” but as advice it is lacking in specifics. What do we let go of? Memories? Things? Emotions? In that ambiguity I decided I was a failure for clinging to Choco.
Hello world!
Welcome to WordPress. This is your first post. Edit or delete it, then start blogging!
New column at Open to Hope
I’m fortunate that Open to Hope has offered to let me write for them. It’s a “pro bono” gig, as they say, and that’s fine. It’s just opening myself up to a wider audience, in hopes that what I have to say helps other people.
Grieving Futures, part #5 – Myths and History
I reference things no one else alive was there for, events for which I am the only survivor, times and places that I and no one else can remember. This is not simply the disappearance of one cherished relationship from my time frame — it is the majority of my entire childhood. It is gone, and all I am now is all I have ever been and all I will ever be.
Caretaking is Surreal
So when someone says they have to be caretaker, even for a brief period of time, I remember those days when The Miserable Tolerance ruled my world, and I hope for better for them.
Grieving Futures, part #4
My father had suffered a major stroke that same year on Father’s Day, whenever it was in June. So while my mother entered her declining final four months, my father’s health nosedived with a significant impact on his quality of life.
Tripping through Hell Month
You know it’s going to be rough when your therapist keeps describing the current month as “Hell month.” Because it is, it totally is.
Mourning Every Day
I think I don’t want this blog labeled solely as a blog for mourners, but at the same time I want it to be a safe place for mourners to visit and feel like they are in a place of mutual understanding and sympathy…
Grieving Futures, post #3
This is part one of the first chapter, “Circumstances”, in which I give some background on my story and what happened with my parents. I discuss in graphic detail their illnesses and deaths, so heed that warning.
Tragedy changes us; Patience tempers us; Fortitude keeps us going.
Lessons in grief, crisis, and recovery from 30 years of life as an adult orphan from a GenX woman who has resentfully struggled every step of the way.
