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.
Rachel is on a cloud
Rachel’s little, limp and precious body lay on the floor. Did she shoot the gun so hard she fell down, she wonders? Did she really just shoot her daddy? Rachel’s body feels weird, like when she is in the swimming pool and feels like she doesn’t weigh anything. She goes to scratch her back and feels something like a bug or a bird or something. Its wings! She has fairy wings! But wait, she looks down and sees herself lying on the floor. Are those angel wings? Did she fall asleep and is having a dream? As she looks down again she sees her daddy picking her up from the hardwood floor. She sees her body and the reddest blood on the floor. She sees her daddy’s shirt with red blood, her blood, as his tears splatter onto the blood turning it a pinkish color. But, but, but this isn’t what she meant or planned! She was going to shoot her daddy because he had been bad. What happened to what she planned? Daddy, or John is what everyone calls him, is just sitting in his chair holding her tiny body.
By Melonie S Shelton5 years ago in Families
Why Won't You Understand?
A typical week would begin with a Sunday. In many families it is normal for Sunday church service but in my home we had a Sunday routine. Once I had brushed my teeth and taken a bath, "Here is $20 for the french bread, cheese, turkey, and newspaper," said mom. I was sent to the corner Bodega also known in NYC as the corner grocery store. After returning from the store we would have a cup of coffee and eat. This was my favorate part of a Sunday. When breakfast was done we would prepare for a 8 hour service at the Pentecostal church. Typically this would be a morning bible class followed by lunch and service.
By Lisette Camacho5 years ago in Families
A Memoir of Loss
September 26th, 2020 On the 17th I performed my Boromama’s (maternal uncle) first death anniversary ritual. Seeing his photo and performing his death anniversary ritual felt odd. I sat in the same place where he used to when he would perform the monthly rituals after my maternal grandmother’s death. I used to stand beside him, watching as he performed the rituals while the priest recited the mantras. Not once during those times did I think that I would have to sit in the same place and perform the rituals for him someday. It never occurred to me. I never imagined his death. Then again, I did not imagine my grandmother’s death either.
By Gourav Bhattacharya5 years ago in Families
Daddy's Little Girl
Sitting here, feeling as if my wings have been clipped, I wonder what is going on. It has been almost four months and it still feels as if it was just yesterday. This is something I never thought I would have to go through, and even though I thought I was prepared, turns out I could never be ready for the flood of emotion that comes with this. Every single day I have to do it without you, my heart breaks just that much more. I never saw myself doing this, and let alone with a half-hearted smile on my face. But here I am.
By Britney Marie5 years ago in Families
The World Is Yours
"The World Is Yours" I have never shied away from hard work. I came from a working-class blue collar family and my mother and father instilled a great work ethic for us, as we saw our parents work hard to raise their children - sometimes holding down more than one job at a time.
By Thomas G Robinson5 years ago in Families
Pieces of a Fragmented Mind
When I close my eyes and concentrate, I can feel myself slipping back to that hot summer day. I can feel the coarse sand between my toes and I can smell the salty waves of Virginia Beach’s coastline. I remember only being a little over 3 feet tall and ridiculously skinny, so tiny I would literally blow away if the wind's gusts were too strong. I remember the sun being so bright that I could barely look up at all without my eyes stinging and tears streaming down my face...
By Capri Anderson5 years ago in Families
Empathy vs. Judgement
Empathy is so important to human life. Judgement not so much. There is so much judgment in the world, especially on online articles. These articles can be from anywhere in the world, and because we are anonymous online, most of us become keyboard warriors. These keyboard warriors can fight for the right reasons, or they can fight for the wrong reasons. The ones that fight for the wrong reasons are usually trolls. Judgement on online articles attracts both type of warriors. They also attract one more: the everyday browser. These browsers have the option to think with empathy or judgement. They have the tendency to judge someone based on one article. This is wrong, in many instances. I know what its like to be on the receiving end of that misplaced judgement.
By Anastasia Barth5 years ago in Families
An April Kind of Day
Her day had been a definite eight out of ten on the bad scale of long and taxing ones. To begin with, it started way too early; even earlier than her usual four am workday alarm. It had started with a phone call from the nursing home around three thirty from a familiar and panicked voice on the other end complaining that “the nurses aren’t giving me my medicines and they won’t give me any coffee.” As the seasoned nursing professor sat up in bed and listened to her mother, there was no being worked up in emotions, as she had run interference many times before. The difficult part was calming and appeasing her cherished, yet very stubborn parent. The staff would listen and follow any suggestions she would give them, not only because they knew her so well, but because she had been a clinical coach in college to many of them. Her mother would get a cup of coffee.Having put that small fire out, coffee didn’t sound like such a bad idea. Besides, her cat was insisting on being fed and the two dogs needed to go outside. She remembered she would need to dry her uniform to make sure it was fluffed out of any wrinkles. “Ah, another day,” she thought, as her morning routines began. By this time her mind had fast-forwarded to the plans she had for her students at the clinical facility where they were training.
By Shirley Belk5 years ago in Families
