My mother needed us to love her until the end of Alzheimer’s disease. My grandmother took this photo of my mother, my husband, and me over a decade ago. It was Thanksgiving Day, six months after my mother’s initial diagnosis with early onset Alzheimer’s disease. And it was seven years before the end of Alzheimer’s…
The first year of grief after a loss can be the hardest. While the ache of grief never really goes away, I’ve found the pain does lessen. The fog does clear with time. During the first year of grief, you are finding your “new normal” and learning your own strength in the process. My mother…
What are your favorite funeral songs? They can be either popular songs or church hymns, or both. I’ve planned three funerals, one for my mom and one for each of her parents. So I’ve had some time to think about this. A couple of my favorites are Alan Jackson’s version of Blessed Assurance (makes me…
Your grief does not make me uncomfortable. I won’t try to fix your grief. I won’t tell you platitudes like, “They’re in a better place,” or, “At least you had x amount of time with them.” I won’t dismiss or invalidate your feelings. I won’t tell you not to cry. I won’t tell you that…
I will never stop grieving the loss of my mother to Alzheimer’s disease. I thought that when my mother died, my grief would soon be over. But I was wrong.
