Just Another Day

I enter the tiny exam room where only a month ago, Dick first mentioned a new cough. Now the oxygen cord hangs from his nose and snakes down to the huge tank on the floor beside him. He wears his pink shorts and flowery polo shirt, even though he won’t be going to the golf course today.

He carries a book under his arm, just in case I am behind schedule, and his usually tanned skin hangs from his gaunt face with a deathly pallor. He pushes himself up from the chair and gets short of breath from the exertion. I reach for him as his balance wobbles, and he pulls me into a long, tight hug.

“I don’t have much energy these days,” he says. “Good thing I’ve gotten so forgetful; now I can read the books in my library all over again.” I laugh at his joke, as always. His wife laughs, too, like it’s the first time she’s ever heard this clever comment. They’ve been married for 57 years, and as she twirls the wedding ring on her finger, I sit down between them and begin the conversation I’ve dreaded.

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Five Years

Last week marked the five-year anniversary of my husband’s death.

How can that possibly be?

Wasn’t it just yesterday morning he brought me coffee in bed, and yesterday afternoon we argued about dirty dishes in the sink? Wasn’t it last night he gently scratched my head until I fell asleep, and I woke to him snoring beside me?

If you’ve read along with me these past few years, you’ve probably noticed my grief slowly change. I can think of Neil now without my heart feeling like a wet dishrag being squeezed and twisted. I can remember the good times without tears. The rose-colored glasses of memory have slowly returned to clear lenses that show our life together wasn’t perfect.  Even so, not a day goes by when I don’t miss him.  

What’s my advice to the Colleen of five years ago? Here are my thoughts:

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Christmas Mourning

I clearly remember our last Christmas with Neil. We spent it in the hospital without tree or decorations. Our daughters were there, and we feasted on pizza from a gas station while we snuggled on a bumpy hospital bed enjoying TV Christmas movies. We all knew what was coming, but we put aside the future in favor of the present. It was one of my favorite Christmases. We eat Christmas pizza in Neil’s honor ever since.

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Helping Teens Deal with Grief

Today’s post is shared on the website Wisdom of the Wounded, and is about helping teens deal with grief. Even if you don’t know a teenager who is mourning a death, you probably know one who is mourning something else: a lost relationship, a divorce, even bad grades. I think you’ll find these tips useful no matter what the loss.

https://wisdomofthewounded.com/2018/09/05/how-to-help-your-teen-cope-with-grief/

There’s also a beautiful graphic you can print out or share:

https://wisdomofthewounded.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/WOTW_Teen_Grief_PDF.pdf

If you have any other suggestions, please let me know. And as always, thanks for reading!

colleen