These blessings are specifically written for mothers and fathers that have lost children, because this is a grief that is specific to me. However, I also wrote them with medical mamas and dads in mind. Grief and pain, however they have found you, are universal. You may want to rework
This advent season, I wanted to write, but I didn’t know where to start. The last seven months have been extraordinarily hard, as I’ve waded through grief and trauma. The emotions and fears that simmered under the surface for so long, erupted all over the place. My physical body suffered,
May 1st 2017. I started the day with good energy and decided to get out of the house with my son. It was another rainy, Vancouver day. I felt a tiny bit apprehensive and felt like maybe staying close to home was a better idea. But I ignored that sensation, feeling
Mother’s Day to me means deep, agonizing pain. It doesn’t mean flowers and hollandaise brunches. Not yet, anyway. I’m just not sure how Mother’s Day will evolve over the years, because it’s tightly bound to loss. Nearly two years ago, on the day before Mother’s Day, I watched as my three
Music has carried me through the most intense and agonizing moments of my life. Sometimes all I wanted was silence in the early days of grief, but as time passed, I leaned into the melodies that brought back memories with my daughter, and new sounds that spoke to my tender
One of the most frequent questions I get asked is: what do I give my friend that just lost her baby or older child? I want to let her know I’m thinking about her and her child, but don’t want to be insensitive. So many people want to care for
Over the holiday season my heart is more tender and bruised as it mingles with the joy and merriment of the season. It’s necessary for me to stop and pause to remember my daughter. I find that forcing others to remember my daughter never really works out. It usually happens
I never wanted to be strong. But from the age of 16, when my spine was fused together with titanium, and my typical teenage problems disappeared into the bleeping of ICU monitors, I was told to be strong. I had to get out of bed the next day and learn
As we inch into the second year of my daughter’s passing, I’m finding myself at a standstill. The reality of what has happened to us hits me on a weekly basis. A photo I haven’t seen in awhile grooves new channels into my healing heart. Never again will I see
When I think back on our lives with Florence, often in and out of hospital and appointments, I remember being fed. I remember food. Another cup of coffee, an oat bar in a paper bag sitting at her feet on the starchy hospital blanket. I remember the first meal brought
I cannot pray. I don’t know how. It’s not that I don’t want to, but words fail me. They come out muffled and fake. They are stale and regurgitated from the days of my youth. I want to remember how to do this, but I cannot. I don’t know how
One of the most frequent questions I get asked is: what do
The doctor hands you a stack of papers. She’s circled and highlighted the
When we look for apps for Florence, we look for simple, clean
This post has been inspired by the countless people who brought us
These blessings are specifically written for mothers and fathers that have lost
These blessings are specifically written for mothers and fathers that have lost
This advent season, I wanted to write, but I didn’t know where
