Standing in the checkout line, I overheard the young cashier tell a customer that she was soon going home, which would thrill her three-year-old son. Earlier that morning, her little boy begged her not to leave. She said, “I asked him, ‘Do you want Christmas to come or not?’ He said yes. So I told him, ‘Then I have to… Read More
When Christina was a teenager, her mother and several younger siblings died in a car accident. During the first week after her mom died, Christina and her remaining siblings would go through their mom’s closet and smell the familiar perfume on her clothes. Christina recalled, “She was a nurse and worked evenings so she had a robe that she always… Read More
Forcing her feet to step out of the car, Susan dried her eyes before walking into the country dance hall. No one there knew that the reason she wanted to dance was also why her tears fell so easily. Her love for dancing started with the house dances from her childhood. Susan beamed, “I was not any older than five… Read More
One time when away from my office for four weeks, I failed to have anyone water the plants. When I came back, the plants were brown, shriveled up, and almost dead. I did not know if I could bring them back to their former vibrant selves, but I had to try. Having a tender heart for living things on the… Read More
Do you have that one person still on your Christmas gift list for whom you have no idea what to buy? And if you are like me, after you choose something, you include a gift receipt anyway. It is challenging enough to pick out gifts, but what do you give someone who is grieving? How do you celebrate the season… Read More
Today is the fifth anniversary of when my father-in-law, Don Schweingruber, died. I think of him often and know he’d have a lot of wisdom to share with us all during these chaotic times. We shared many conversations about life and death. I treasure those moments. As I reflect on his life, I wanted to share an earlier podcast I… Read More
When my children were little, they did not want to put their faces under water. During swimming lessons, I watched as their wonderful coach gently worked with them to get more comfortable. First they blew bubbles and then gradually put their heads further in the water. It took a long time, over several lessons, before they were able to bob… Read More
Do you tell others to find closure? Or do you think something is wrong with you because there seems to be no closure after a loss? Stop worrying about closure. We don’t need closure to heal. Closure continues to be a popular concept in our culture. However, it is just a word we’ve made up to talk about loss. Sadly,… Read More
