grief
Losing a family member is one of the most traumatic life events; Families must support one another to endure the five stages of grief and get through it together.
Before she was Here.
Claudine held her breath as she slid out of the room. She was extra careful not to step on the creaky floor board just across the threshold. This was her sixth night sneaking out past curfew. So far, she’d run into no problem at all, but that didn’t stop her tiny heart from pounding beneath her nightgown. Now safely out of the dormitory, Claudine moved quickly. Excitement flushed her cheeks. The rate at which she moved may have caused more of a commotion if she were someone of a larger stature, but the bobbing blonde head sat atop a child’s body. This girl was no more than 4 years old. Her bare feet padded softly over the cold and aged stones of the main hallway. This place, with its long grey shadows, was becoming familiar to her, though she wasn’t sure how long she had been Here. It was longer than someone her age could keep track of and she was beginning to forget what life was like Before. Fear pricked at her neck and water threatened her eyes. Claudine shook her head violently. She didn’t understand why she was Here but she knew she was on a mission.
By Samantha Kaszas5 years ago in Families
The Other Side
The fluorescent lights were really starting to get to him. It was a no-brainer, really...the thought that a hospital was the last place on earth one would want to find himself for days at a time.The constant flickering of the TVs, the empty, sterile hallways...the predictable footsteps of the nighttime nurses. Sometimes he would find himself emerging from a hazy dream- waking just enough to look at the clock and wonder how long he’d gone without a good night’s sleep- to be greeted by the familiar sound of those footsteps, and have his eyes assaulted by all that glaring artificial light.
By Shelby Lang5 years ago in Families
The Grace Of Miriam
My late father was a falconer, and wherever the harris hawks would fly, they would always travel back to his gauntlet and perch. Inspired, I dreamed of that very title. However, I became a life insurance salesman — a cardboard cut out and could fit into the American dream. Although I was unhappy, I forgave myself for my lackluster, and married the brightest-smiling redhead that ever graced the earth. Her aspirations flew higher than any winged creature, her spirit outgrown her environment like dandelions and her decisiveness multiplied like sweet alyssums in heat.
By Nikie Decay5 years ago in Families
Aumakua
“Mama wake up, you’re dreaming again… “I saw a white owl …” “Yes, yes mama but you’ve got to get ready for senior citizens your ride will be here in a little while!” It was the highlight of the day for my 82-year-old mom to meet with her friends, she would be missed by her centenarian friends if they did not see her smile today. “Mama, I’ve got a lot to do today, please try your best to get ready quickly”. Going on eight months now …we had established a routine that was working for the two of us. At first it was hard; we both did not plan on her living with me in Barstow. California was far from either of our plans. But here we are. I have second guessed my decision to keep her with me, but I could not let her go back to Samoa without medical support. Who was going to follow up on her cancer, her chemo treatments? My siblings were hesitant to let her stay with me, but I was always the one being the older to make all the decisions. It was decided and that was that. Occasionally she would ask me when she was going back home and I would have to explain to her “Mama, you are with me now, you’re not going back. Please do not miss home so much, we will be happy together, okay?!”
By Nyla Makaiwi Lolotai5 years ago in Families
Remembrance
I was always trying to get back to her. I dreamed of the ocean again, the cool salt breeze whipping at my face. I stood knee-deep in the ice-cold water as it rushed past me in moderate waves. She stood next to me, her hand in mine. The grip loosened, then dissolved, and I looked next to me and she was gone.
By Cate Falcon5 years ago in Families
For Everything, There is a Time
It was a warm autumn evening, crisp but not cold, dry leaves rustling in the occasional breeze gently filled our ears. In the barn the horses gentle snorts could be heard as they settled into their stalls for the night. As I looked into her deep eyes, the light of the moon softly caressed her silken hair. What wonderful company to have at such a time. We were speaking of things of all seriousness about the meaning of life and the afterlife if one at all.
By Frances De Forrest5 years ago in Families
The Rebirth of Life After Loss
To anyone seeing Annie this morning, today was an as mundane day as any other. Annie cinched up Scout, the newest addition to the barn, and her mind moseyed to a memory long forgotten. At the age of twelve, Annie and Sarah, her twin, roamed to the ranch's furthest reach. The day had just begun to dawn, and Sarah was feeling adventurous, as usual, and Annie was eager for the expedition. Riding for whole days was nothing new the Annie and Sarah, but today the time trickled, and by noon, they had made it to the creek on the border of their property.
By Jessica Nicole Williams5 years ago in Families
The Tree Man
It’s a ten-hour drive out to the family farm. I’ve thought about getting a trucker’s license, just so I can capitalize on these insanely long trips by hauling a trailer from North Carolina to Maryland. I could learn the route, ingratiate myself with the community, get some more respect on the road. I could talk to my trucker friends on the radio, and we can pull off for meth breaks. Who knows. Might be a worthwhile venture.
By Steezy Mac5 years ago in Families
Voyage to the Cabin
The old log cabin looks like a big brown boulder in the middle of nowhere, sticking out of the sea of blinding white snow and tucked away in all of these tall, white birch trees. It’s been 2 years since I’ve made the long, bumpy 41 mile drive into this mountain. I’ve been so absorbed in my own life, working to get the partner promotion at the local law firm, that I’ve missed our annual and spur of the moment “voyages” to the cabin. I’ve constantly been searching for every possible angle to win cases for the lives of the clients that I defend, that I haven’t even given it a thought as to what fighting for my own life would entail, let alone trying to actually live it. At least that was the case until 3 weeks ago when I lost her. She was so funny and the wisest person I knew and she wasn’t just kind, she was empathetic and not only calm but, peaceful. You couldn’t help but, just feel better in her presence. It was like the rest of the world and worries just faded away like an early morning fog does when the sun peaks above these very mountains. She had an answer for everything, even to the most impossible questions and she didn’t just listen, she saw you. It was as if she could see everything you’ve tried so hard to keep hidden. There were no secrets with her, she knew everything, even the dark things you didn’t dare speak aloud for fear that they’d start existing outside of your body, as if it were contagious. Thirty five years with her wasn’t nearly enough time. I should’ve taken time off, asked more questions, been more present. My grandmother was everything to me. She was healthy until, one morning she was putting in the earrings I bought her for her birthday this June, and all of a sudden she felt a pinch in her neck. She thought maybe she had slept wrong until the pain migrated through her shoulder and the heart aneurism, we had no idea about, took her life before I could make it to the hospital.
By Ashley Marjean5 years ago in Families
Visions
Sarah Rose Petersen 1/18/21 It was she who had taught me to visualize, all those years ago. Back when I would spend days, weeks even, propped up in bed or upright in a chair, grasping for each breath. The affliction of severe lung disease is a desperate one. It is a brutal and forced form of meditation. There is no option but to focus on the breath. The here. The now. Each breath is carefully orchestrated by muscles whose job it is to do things other than aid inhale or exhalation. The shoulders, the upper back, the neck. During these agonizingly long days of attack, she taught me to visualize.
By Sarah Petersen5 years ago in Families
