Category: Creative Grief Writing

Processing Grief

I started taking a course on grief and photography by “What’s Your Grief.” One of the things that have been very hard to resume since my dad died was using my camera. Most pictures I have taken have been with my phone, which is okay, but it’s not the same. The two women who run…… Continue reading Processing Grief

Ghosts of Memories

Grandpa and Mike Ghosts are not scary specters but the presence of those we love who are no longer with us. I could feel them when I sat on the screened-in porch of the house I grew up in. The lower three sides were red brick, with the upper part screened in. During the time…… Continue reading Ghosts of Memories

Secondary Losses

Grief is complicated because it is not only the death of the person you love but also the secondary losses that come with death. Nothing prepares you for the excruciating pain that accompanies death. However, it’s the unexpected secondary losses that nobody really talks about. They include changes to finances, friendships, family relationships, identity, and…… Continue reading Secondary Losses

I’m Thinking…

A Moment of Joy From the Spring, 2022 I bought “Writing Down the Bones Deck” cards by Natalie Goldberg so I would have writing prompts when needed. Writing is a therapeutic way to express my feelings, especially when they are overwhelming. So this is the first prompt. What I’m thinking of is that it’s a…… Continue reading I’m Thinking…

Adjusting to the Unexpected

This year has been a reminder of how fragile life is and that you can’t take anything for granted. Having lived through the death of both my parents and then catching COVID a month after my dad died was overwhelming. Little did I know that two weeks after recovering from COVID, I would have to…… Continue reading Adjusting to the Unexpected

Grief Landscape

One of the prompts that I had in Writing You Grief was to write how your landscape had changed. When I was a child, I would watch scary movies that always seemed to have quicksand in them. I was always terrified of falling into quicksand, though I didn’t live in an area where there was…… Continue reading Grief Landscape

Grief Interrupters

The other day I walked into the garage because I had an appointment. As the garage door was going up, water was dripping from it. There was water on the floor and a strange hissing sound that I couldn’t place. As I walked around the car, I saw water spraying out of two holes in…… Continue reading Grief Interrupters

Because You Loved Me

My parents and husband are the three most influential people who shaped the woman I am today. Each of them lives on in me today as I wander the world without them. So I chose to write about how each of them continues to shine through the person I am today. Mom, the world can…… Continue reading Because You Loved Me

I Remember…

Some of the prompts I’ve had in “Writing Your Grief” have been challenging. This one was to pick a simple object and let your mind run with it. The first problem was picking an article. There were suggestions, but none of them resonated with me. For several days, I would look at the prompt, then…… Continue reading I Remember…

Living in Two Worlds

“The trick, if there is one, is to maintain both: wonder and sadness, curiosity and grief. Joy and the absence of joy. Overcome by neither, open to both.” I’m using this quote from “Writing Your Grief” as a jumping-off point to write on melancholy because I’ve learned to live in a world of both/and.  Grief…… Continue reading Living in Two Worlds