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If I am not helping my neighbor, then why am I here?
I saw this sign on the wall of my doctor’s office as I waited for him to enter the examination room. I asked him about it, and he told me his 8-year-old granddaughter gave it to him a few years ago. Of course, she loves her grandpa and wants others to know what a wonderful…
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Gratitude
It is a simple word defined as a strong feeling of appreciation to someone or something for what the person has done to help you. It was not the first word that came to my mind four years ago when my wife spent the last 45 days of her life at a nearby hospital. We…
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Spring Ahead to Move Forward
Spring Ahead to Move Forward A few weeks ago, in the United States, we followed the tradition we didevery spring: we pushed our clocks ahead by one hour. It allows more sunlighteach day and marks the entrance of another season: Spring. For some of us wholive in the northeast, it means the end of our…
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Don’t Stop Living Because I Died.
In about two months, I will approach the fourth anniversary of my wife’s death. As I reflect on her passing again, I am reminded of a conversation she and I had about six months before she died. I remember one night feeling so low that I said to my wife I want to go with…
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There is No Timeline for Grief
I was sitting in an airport the other evening waiting for my flight home. I had a wonderful visit with my children and grandchildren and thought about the fun and laughs we shared for several days. As it often happens, a story about grief will pop up on my phone as I write about it…
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What Can Help Me to Heal?
We have heard it said by many experts there is no correct path on how to deal with grief. Every person’s journey is different, and the roads we travel will be filled with twists and turns. As our founder Herb Knoll has stated many times sitting on the couch will never help us to heal.…
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Learn to Live in Joy, Not the Pain and Sadness.
Someone recently asked me: “What’s the most difficult part of losing your spouse”? I said: “How much time do you have”? as my answer will be long. In the interest of brevity, however, I said after the early dark days, weeks, and months, I started to see some signs of hope. I put into place…
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Grief cannot be fixed, but you can adapt to a new way of living.
I had the pleasure of speaking to a grief support group in New York City just before Christmas, and I offered them some ways to deal with grief during the holidays. Several of the participants in the group asked me if grief ever goes away. I used the sage words offered by the late Kennedy…
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Moving forward, but remember to glance back.
In another week, we will start another year. 2024 is just around the corner. The holidays will be over, and it’s time to focus on the opportunities of a new year. My mantra when I entered the world of grief has always been to keep moving forward and to know I can’t stop the birds…
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It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year unless you are Dealing with Loss
Step into your car, turn the radio on, and I almost guarantee every station is playing holiday music. Walk into a grocery store, a shopping mall, Home Depot, fast food places, and most banks or even the post office, and you will hear holiday songs filling the air. I chose the Andy Williams song for…
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