Here's a judgement we don't often talk about regarding grief. It's just another painful part we experience on this journey. So, I'll talk about it. This judgement is often from other grievers. That surprises some. So many of us believe those of us who know grief most intimately would automatically understand another person’s pain. Sometimes we do. Sometimes we are the safest people you’ll ever meet. But sometimes grief creates something else. It creates rules, invisible ones

There’s something cruel about wedding anniversaries after your partner dies. People still call it your anniversary, but it isn’t really. Not anymore. It’s a should have been. Fuck, I hate that. This year would have been 46 years. But it’s not. It’s been four anniversaries without him. Four years of trying to figure out what this day even is now. At first, the anniversaries felt sharp and panicked. I remember sitting on the deck waiting for a sign from him because he promised

There is a version of grief that many people learn to perform. The “I’m okay.” The “I’m staying strong.” The polite smile. The quick answer. The version that makes other people comfortable. But grief was never meant to fit neatly into a socially acceptable box. Real grief is layered. Messy. Confusing. Tender. Angry. Beautiful. Lonely. Loving. Sometimes all within the same hour. And when we spend too much time filtering our grief to protect others, avoid judgment, or try to ap

There’s something about texting that can make a stranger feel familiar… fast. The good morning messages. The late-night conversations. The way someone seems to get you through a screen. And before you know it, you feel connected. But here’s the truth we don’t always want to look at: You can feel connected to someone you don’t actually know. Because texting is built on fragments. Pieces of personality. Carefully chosen words. Timing that can be controlled. And what we often d

The word unfiltered has a bit of a reputation. People hear it and think rude. Blunt. Unaware. Someone who says whatever comes to mind without caring how it lands. So when the word came to me, I hesitated. I looked for other options. Softer ones. Words people might receive more easily. Authentic. Genuine. Aligned. They’re all beautiful words. But the longer I searched for something more palatable, the more I realized I was doing the exact thing I was trying to write about. Fil

I'm sitting in the back of an Uber on my way to an appointment that took a full year to get. A routine medical thing, nothing life-threatening… but it’s at the university hospital. That hospital. And the moment we turned onto the road that leads to it, my body reacted before my mind even caught up. I begin my time travel. One minute I’m watching the city move past the window. The next, I’m three years back in time. December 29th, 2022. The drive we took with John. The one Ra

Christmas changes after loss. Not because the holiday itself is different, but because we are. Because the seat that should never be empty is empty. Because the traditions we once loved now hold echoes of someone we can’t bring back. Joy feels complicated, and grief well, grief cares about holidays, trees, or twinkle lights too. It will show up. This is my third Christmas without him, and if there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that each year truly does carry its own story.

Understanding the Final Stages of Life. What I've learned from the dying. One of the hardest truths I’ve learned, both as a wife and as an End of Life Doula, is that as people approach the end of life, their capacity for connection begins to fade. It’s not because they love us any less. It’s not because we’ve done something wrong. It’s because they are slowly turning inward, preparing to leave. For family and friends, this can be deeply painful. We might feel rejected or conf

This journey as a widow is one that has many twists and turns. My heart has always been one to share the adventures this change has...

Little girls come into the world full of fire. They laugh with their whole bodies, speak their minds without hesitation, talk loud and...

We don’t outgrow the need for a hug. Not as children, not as adults, and certainly not in grief. Hugs are one of the most human things we...

I’ve never been someone who made a big deal about my birthdays. It’s not that I didn’t care I just never really needed the spotlight. To...

As sisters through the years we used to joke about moving in together someday. Two sisters, growing old side by side, long gray hair and...

By Kathie Powell They say "grief is just love with nowhere to go". It’s meant to be comforting, I suppose. And in the early days, when I...

The Ordinary Becomes Sacred Tuesdays used to be just Tuesdays. A day like any other, caught between Monday’s groan and the slow coast...

Grief is one of the heart’s natural responses to loss. When we grieve, we give ourselves permission to feel the truth of the pain of our...

Remember each one of our experiences is different. This is my current experience after completing 2 years of life without John. For me...

This memory isn’t the most flattering of me, but it’s an honest one—a glimpse into our lives together and the incredible man I shared so...

So, we’ve somehow got through Christmas—or dodged it altogether (because honestly, why not?). And just when we thought we could take a...

The holidays have a way of amplifying our grief. It’s not that we don't miss our loved ones during the rest of the year, but as the world...