Category Archives: Grief

Andy

It’s a cold and blustery day, here in Edmonton. My front porch is full of bedding plants and the cushions to a couch. The plants will get put in the ground on Sunday, the couch will leave Saturday am. It’s … Continue reading

Posted in Grief | 1 Comment

Mind // Body Dualism

In the third year of my undergrad degree, I took a philosophy course which was mostly on epistemology (how we know what we know). We spent rather a lot of time on Mind // Body dualism. The thought experiment goes … Continue reading

Posted in Grief, The language of families | 3 Comments

Yellowstone River

The first time I crossed the Yellowstone River it was on the way to a wedding where I met Andy and Christie. I think it was about 2003. Maybe in 2002. I can’t remember, this is what old age is. … Continue reading

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Public and Private

For the most part, you build a sort of scar tissue. On Monday morning, you exhale. Mother’s day is not for me. The only thing Mother’s day does for broken children,  for the bereaved mother and the barren woman is … Continue reading

Posted in Baby Loss, Grief | 4 Comments

And So I Lied

She wasn’t prying. I’m in a medical situation, getting a drug, and she had to ask about my past medical history. Pre-eclampsia, with long-term minor kidney damage and very mild hypertension, the fact they gave me a ton of blood, … Continue reading

Posted in Baby Loss, Grief | 4 Comments

Go home to your families

I was sitting at Starbucks, trying to answer some emails from my family (they get short shift) when Owen texted me. **** I have listened to the Vinyl Cafe for oh, at least 20 years. Long before the age of … Continue reading

Posted in Grief | 2 Comments

A Year and A Day

I saw my mother alive, awake, talking a year ago yesterday. That was the last time. When I saw her in December she was gone in mind, if not in body. I was around to watch the body go. I … Continue reading

Posted in Grief, The language of families | 2 Comments

Spring Thaw

(For context, I realize that October is National Pregnancy and Infant Loss Month, and the day is observed on October 15. I have had very mixed feelings about the social media comments I have seen and have struggled to articulate … Continue reading

Posted in Baby Loss, Grief | 2 Comments

Balancing Roads, Clouds, Balls and Boxes

When Gabriel died, someone gave me the image of grief as a road trip. You drive for several hours, maybe you get half way and have to turn around or stop for a while. This image sort of worked, except … Continue reading

Posted in Grief, Grief Work | 1 Comment

“I am not sure what the end will look like”

I had dinner with a dear friend, someone I love very much, while I was in Vancouver last week. She has been dealt a series of blows. Horrific, unfair and unreasonable blows, and she is struggling to recover. Indeed, she … Continue reading

Posted in Grief | 1 Comment