Just Tulips
Dedicated to: My Mom Last week in my chaplaincy internship, we were asked to select a photo from a spread on the table, and write a story. Afterward, we each shared with the group and discussed how the story reflects our theology […]
Loss of a Parent
To Hold Death in One’s Hand
Today, I found a bird on my porch. It must have flown into the window and suffered enough damage to not wake up again. A fitting day with death, I thought, just days before I depart on my journey toward chaplaincy. […]
Spreading Ashes: A Poem
As we delve into a series on the world of grief rituals, I wanted to begin by offering this poem that was written by a dear friend, Lauri Stock, after a weekend spent spreading her mother’s ashes with her family and mother’s […]
The Art of Grieving
photo courtesy of www.tnhtour.org A year and a half after my mom passed, I attended a 7-day meditation retreat at Deer Park Monastery in Escondido, CA with Buddhist teacher Thich Nhat Hanh (or “Thay”, as many affectionately call him, which is […]
Continuation
I wrote this last week on my Dad’s 63rd birthday. 5/20/14 It’s a beautiful Spring evening in the Pacific Northwest. Sunshine is penetrating my skin, eased by a gentle breeze. Bird songs fill the air. I’m grateful to breathe in this […]
Motherless Day
Tonight I am enjoying a quiet night in with my sleeping niece while my sister enjoys a (rare) evening out with a friend. It’s Mother’s Day Eve, our third since our mom passed — and the second since my sister became a mother. […]
Six Steps for Saying Goodbye to Stuff
Saying Goodbye to Stuff: Six Steps for Letting Go After Loss Sorting through our loved one’s belongings can feel daunting and overwhelming, not to mention emotional. We often find ourselves clinging to their material items because we no longer have […]
Nature Heals (Part 3 of 4): The Desert
This is part three of a 4-part series: Healing with Nature. If you missed the first two, check out Part 1 of 4: The Forest, The Trees and Part 2 of 4: The Falling Leaves. — A month and a half after […]
Letter to My Mother
I wrote this letter to my mother in my journal while sitting on the above rock. It had been a month and a half since she passed, and I took a solo trip to Joshua Tree National Park. Dear Mom, […]
Nature Heals (Part 2 of 4):
Falling Leaves “Nature Heals” is a four-part series exploring how the forest, ocean, and mountains can help develop a deeper understanding of peace through grief… Last weekend, my sister and I dove into the last of my parents’ personal “stuff” – […]
