I was supposed to be ready
The expectation when you lose a parent is that somehow it is to be expected and that this makes the grief more bearable and less painful. But those of us who have experienced… Continue reading
Category Archive: Death and Dying
Light up a life
We buried my mother yesterday and her funeral, as befitted this beloved woman, was beautiful, dignified, prayerful and filled with love and friendship. All these characteristics she possessed in abundance and they are… Continue reading
In the midst of life…
In the midst of life, we are in death, and nowhere is that more true than in hospice. My mother was moved to hospice care yesterday and while it is wonderful that she… Continue reading
Nothing exists except this
“Sorrow makes us all children again – destroys all differences of intellect. The wisest know nothing.” ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson Nothing exists anymore for me outside of my mother’s hospital bed. The horizons… Continue reading
Ciseach
Thanks to Katie for reminding me to turn to the writings of the Celtic poet and philosopher, John O’ Donohue; in particular his last work before his untimely death, Benedictus: A Book of Blessings, has… Continue reading
An unrequited love
It’s been a while, but I still remember those heady first days and weeks of falling in love, when the first thought in the morning, the last thought at night and all during… Continue reading
Grief is exhausting
Grief is just so exhausting. Someone described it as living in two worlds at the same time. As soon as I return from the hospital after my morning visit to see my mother, I… Continue reading
On the other side…
Today my family met with my mother’s consultant at the hospital to hear the results of her scans and what treatment he was proposing. I had steeled myself for the possibility of a… Continue reading
