When Ignoring the Holidays Is Not an Option
As the Holidays approach, excitement and anticipation come with it. But not for everyone. For those grieving it can come with dread and sadness. So many times we hear “it’s okay to ignore the Holidays” and while that is certainly true, not everyone can allow the days to pass without acknowledgement. For some, there are […]
Hard Choices for Loving People & Light in the Shadows by Hank Dunn
Hank Dunn, MDiv, is an ordained healthcare chaplain who, during his career of over 30 years, has helped countless patients and their families navigate healthcare decisions during serious illness. He has gathered insights from these patients and compiled them into two easy-to-read books. Hard Choices for Loving People is a compassionate guide for helping patients and […]
10 Lessons I’ve Learned About Living from the Dying By Diane Button
“As a death doula, I often say that sitting at the bedside of the dying is one of the greatest privileges of my life. Their final wishes, tears, joys, and wisdom have given me the tools for living a meaningful life. In fact, the dying have been my greatest teachers.” Diane R. Button is […]
The Sharing Place
Death can shatter a family. And when that family includes children, it can be even harder. It can be a challenge to know how to begin to help those young hearts heal. In Salt Lake City, Utah, the Sharing Place provides a safe space for kids and their families to come together, to know they are not […]
How to Be Helpful When Someone Dies (Besides Bringing Food)
When we hear that someone has died, we think of ways to help and one of those things is to drop off food at the home of the grieving family. The idea is to nourish the mourners to whom the last thing they are thinking of is food. But also knowing that many people are dropping by and rather than burden the […]
Recipe for Remembering: Lunn Family Beef Bourguignon
Johanna Lunn’s father, Jim, died when she was young. Years later, facing a crisis in her life, she wished for her father’s advice. So she decided to invite his memory to dinner. In her short animated film, Dinner With Dad, Johanna talks about this ritual of remembrance. She made an old favourite, the Lunn Family […]
Recipe for Remembering: Ukrainian Pyrohy (Perogies)
For Amy Soloway (Solowij), being in the kitchen with her mother, Eveleen is a cherished memory. It was filled with laughter, lessons and of course, good food. Her mother embraced the Ukrainian culture of her husband, passing on recipes and traditions and memories. Making food and my mother has always been synonymous for me. […]
Recipe For Remembering: Nana’s Banana Bread
My earliest memories are of my Grandmother, Fairy Belle. She was very present in our lives and for a time, lived with us. I remember coming home from school and watching Another World and All My Children (or as she called them, her “stories”). But mostly I remember her in the kitchen. My love of […]
Swedish Death Cleaning: What is it and why should you start now?
Spring cleaning has become almost a biological ritual. The winter has gone, the windows are open and we suddenly want to give the house a freshening up. We wash, we dust, we sort. Some things are tossed or re-homed. But what if we cleaned, not with the birth of a new season in mind, but use our own death as motivation instead.
Celebrating Easter After the Death of a Mother
Holidays can be difficult when you are missing and grieving someone. But it seems a bit harder when it’s your mom. Usually it is our mothers who organize family dinners and events, so when she’s gone, how do we approach the holiday without her? The folks at Cake have a website of resources and tools to help with grief and end of life and general “navigating mortality”.