Normalizing Grief

Cemetery is packed.
Lots of cars, watering cans and laughter…
A few sibling reunions.
Every year they give out carnations, symbols of deep affection and admiration. 🌺

I lit an incense, cleaned up and left.
I have loud rap songs to play for my son and dances to dance. I will leave everyone to a peaceful day at the gardens where love lives loudly. 😊

Happy Mother’s Day to everyone who can have it be that.🫂

Thank you to for the right words when I had none. 🙏🏽

💜

Cemetery is packed.
Lots of cars, watering cans and laughter…
A few sibling reunions.
Every year they give out carnations, symbols of deep affection and admiration. 🌺

I lit an incense, cleaned up and left.
I have loud rap songs to play for my son and dances to dance. I will leave everyone to a peaceful day at the gardens where love lives loudly. 😊

Happy Mother’s Day to everyone who can have it be that.🫂

💜

Yesterday Grief and I to went to the spa.
I was going to go alone, well deserved me time, I didn’t notice when she snuck in the car.
She announced herself during Rassoul. As the room filled with steam she put her hand on my shoulder. At first she was gentle, through the cleansing ritual and the walk. Like a storm, she gathered strength during the Discovery aufgus. The towel dance, the song, the herbs added layers. Sweat and tears rolled down my face.

She roared at the fire, full strength on display, but I was alone with the eucalyptus and no one else heard her but me.

She followed me from pool to pool. By lunch she mellowed, her tantrum spent, smugly satisfied she got my well deserved, undivided attention.
She spent the rest of the day curled beside me, familiar and warm reminding me of the love that still is.

💜

Yesterday Grief and I to went to the spa.
I was going to go alone, well deserved me time, I didn’t notice when she snuck in the car.
She announced herself during Rassoul. As the room filled with steam she put her hand on my shoulder. At first she was gentle, through the cleansing ritual and the walk. Like a storm, she gathered strength during the Discovery aufgus. The towel dance, the song, the herbs added layers. Sweat and tears rolled down my face.

She roared at the fire, full strength on display, but I was alone with the eucalyptus and no one else heard her but me.

She followed me from pool to pool. By lunch she mellowed, her tantrum spent, smugly satisfied she got my well deserved, undivided attention.
She spent the rest of the day curled beside me, familiar and warm reminding me of the love that still is. 💜

I’m feeling grateful today and excited to share some news.
This work in grief support has become so much more than a mission for me. It’s a community we’re building together, one where we lift each other up and make space for healing as well as grieving.
A big part of what keeps me going is knowing I’m carrying forward the kind of work my Troy would have been doing with his child and youth studies. Honouring him through this work, and creating something that supports others, means so much to me.
As we continue growing this vision, support in any form; sharing this post, donating, or simply cheering us on is deeply appreciated.
I’m proud of what we’re creating, and even more proud of the community that continues to grow around it.

Donate to Grief Support & Education Conference, organized by Melanie and Erica As grieving mother’s ourselves, we strongly agree that a conference dedicated … Melanie and Erica needs your support for Grief Support & Education Conference

On this Bereaved Mother’s Day, may you feel the quiet truth of your motherhood. The love that never fades, the bond that never breaks, and the strength that has carried you through the unthinkable.

Your child’s light lives in you, always!

In this community, your grief is not too heavy, too complicated, or too much.
Here, you are held with compassion.
Here, your story matters.

Normalizing Grief is a space where you can breathe, feel, remember, and grieve at your own pace, surrounded by others who understand the depth of love behind your pain.

We walk this path together
❤️&💜

Strange truths about death.
Relatives are often the first to fold.

(Unless you had a Covid funeral and then there was no reunion. Just a death.)