Grief Digest Articles

Reece’s friend Jeremy was murdered when he was out of state visiting a relative. The circumstances surrounding his death are still somewhat unclear; there are no suspects. She wasn’t even informed about his death until a few days after the funeral. You might imagine that Reece’s grief fluctuated between shock, rage and profound sadness for quite some time. She tried to find out more information about his death but could find little more than the details printed in the newspaper. Jeremy’s f …

The dull pain in my heart still comes and goes,Much the way that a tide ebbs and flows.Alone, I endure this anguish and despair;There is no one who comprehends with whom I can share.In my guilt and my grief I’m completely aloneThe light of my life—my son—now is gone.Your brilliance extinguished by your own hand,An effectively lethal act—spontaneous, unplanned.In one brief moment, the decision you madeTo end your life—the ultimate price paidFor a life so full, yet somehow beyond sad,Su …

(Photo is Rudy's Mama)I cannot believe that it is almost one year to the day when I last physically held you and heard your beautiful voice, my dearest Mama. I can still imagine every curve of your face, your sweet soothing voice, that soft hair of yours. Your sweet scent is still a reminder of a classy woman of no equal.These past few days and weeks, I have noticed a change in my body - lethargic and lacking the vibrancy of life. I have come to acknowledge that it is the grief, the trauma, mani …

Death, grief, and bereavement are difficult for people of all faiths. The traditional grief and bereavement practices have less utility for Roman Catholics than for people of other faith traditions. Perhaps American Indians are most similar in their grief and bereavement practices. For Catholics, the focus is upon restoring the community and the communion of saints. Catholicism is not an ego-centered religion. The focus is less upon the individual than upon the community or group. Attendan …

Recently, we experienced a pop-up memory of Chad. We (my husband and I) were driving home and stopped at the signal lights. A shiny beige pickup truck came whizzing through the intersection of the busy street and easily caught our attention. In the bed of the pickup truck was a 3’ x 5’ American flag whirling in the breeze. Simultaneously, Gary and I had an instant pop-up memory to a long ago time, when our son Chad, did the very same thing! I haven’t seen such a display since Chad’s death, …