Judging how people should or should not grieve is a hot topic this week. And a huge life lesson. One news show even had a tag line that read "Grief on Trial"... this discussion is heating up because of the father in Georgia who "forgot" his baby in the backseat of his car while he went to work. Okay, so it has unfortunately happened nearly 40 times in the past year in our country people leaving kids in hot cars. I cannot figure out how someone forgets that their baby is in t

When I used to help facilitate grief workshops for children and teens one of the first questions on our registration form asked if the child attendee had ever experienced the death of a pet. Some parents were startled or perturbed by this question. One mom corned me at check-in and wanted to know what the deal was since her child was there because his or her grandparent had died...an actual person NOT a dog or cat. She actually said that last part with a snarl. I tried to ex

You may think that you are healed especially years after a loss... but you can go off the rails and have your grief return bearing down on you again like a runaway steam engine when you have reminders of your loved one's death. I am sorry to tell you that your grief can return when you experience additional losses, during holidays, birthdays, anniversaries, when you hear a song on the radio or see a certain plant or flower. Some things you cannot prepare for such as what hap