Tag: Grief
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Veer
It’s a little foggy as to when I determined to start practicing laughing like my Aunt Vera, though I was certain at the time I must attempt to give it substantial effort. It was just the best. I coveted her ways. So practice I did. But you don’t need to tell anyone . . .…
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Dera Lee and the Fish Knife
Of all the stories I could tell you about a mother on this 25th anniversary of her sudden death, I will choose it to be about the fish fillet knife she carried for protection. You’ll have to wait though, because there’s a prologue. You’ve heard folks talk about “karma” and the concept of “what goes…
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Beulah Land and Betty Lou
My blessed mother-in-law started talking about her funeral somewhere in the neighborhood of 30 years ago so we “kids” became accustomed to nodding and smiling and “mmhmming” when that inevitable topic came up. Now we’re all sitting around on couches holding cups of cold coffee staring blankly at each other wondering what to do because…
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The Death of Roy
My friend Roy died of cancer when I was 14. He was 16. There was a funeral at the United Methodist Church and all of us teens who were in the youth group with him sat together and cried in varying degrees, dealing with wretched emotions as our young years both allowed and forced us…
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Disoriented
The last couple of weeks remind me of the day I got into someone else’s car and tried to start it. The ignition was in the wrong place. The seat wasn’t adjusted to the way I always had it set. Someone had changed the color of the upholstery and it smelled funny in there. When…
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And They Were Sore Afraid
The following is a discussion of a topic suggested by a reader. In no way do I consider myself an expert in this arena nor am I a counselor. These words come only from experience and from what I know of God. Fear gets me right in the gut. The actual gut. The where’s-the-nearest-bathroom gut.…
Beyond Lashley Lane 