Category Archives: Coping

6 Things About My New Normal

Grief literature is filled with the concept of the “new normal”. It is usually portrayed as the goal for people grappling to rebuild their lives after a traumatic event. The idea is, in a situation which appears so surreal – the destruction of your … Continue reading

Posted in Coping, Daily Ramblings, Grief, Jake Colman, Observations, Progress, Sadness | Tagged , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Another Double Whammy

Wednesday was Jake’s 2nd yahrtzeit, the anniversary of his passing in the Hebrew calendar. As I have written, the Jewish calendar is lunisolar and the dates drift around with respect to the Gregorian calendar we all use; the two dates rarely align … Continue reading

Posted in Ceremony, Coping, Friends and Family, Grief, Honoring Jake, Jake Colman, Sadness, Support | Tagged , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

December 31, 2015

The following post is from last year at this time. That joyous, pineapple martini New Year’s Eve seems so far away, like a fragment of a dream remembered upon awakening. Two years ago we sat in our home, the first night … Continue reading

Posted in Coping, Friends and Family, Grief, Honoring Jake, Memory, Sadness | Tagged , , , , , | 5 Comments

December 28, 2015

Yesterday marked the second anniversary of Jake’s passing. Last year on this day, I wrote a long post about the first year, and what lessons I learned. I don’t have much new to report this year. My cousin is here … Continue reading

Posted in Coping, Food, Friends and Family, Honoring Jake, Jake Colman, Observations, Photography, Progress | Tagged , , , , , | 7 Comments

Thanksgiving 2015

I want to reach out to all of those who may have an empty chair at their Thanksgiving table this year. A chair once occupied by a loving son or daughter. For them, this is a difficult time of year, … Continue reading

Posted in Ceremony, Coping, Friends and Family, Healing, Honoring Jake, Jake's Spirit, Memory, Support | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

Everything Doesn’t Happen for a Reason

This excellent essay has been making the rounds. It is well written and anyone who is grieving knows it is true. To imply that there is some higher reason for our tragedies does not lessen our pain or make it … Continue reading

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The Waves of Grief

If you have ever been swamped by the waves, here is one person’s reply as to how to manage them. In the case of a parent who has lost a child, those waves are a thousand feet tall, and you … Continue reading

Posted in Blog, Coping, Grief, Other Media, Sadness | 2 Comments

August 19, 2015

August 19, 1989 was Jake’s birthday. In years past, when Jake was young, we would have had a wonderful party, our home filled with friends and family. We had some epic parties. Taking over parks, playing laser tag, (remember laser tag?), … Continue reading

Posted in Ceremony, Coping, Grief, Honoring Jake, Jake Colman, Jake's Spirit, Memory, Sadness | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

How Losing Someone Stays With You

Sharing a short article from another blog. Losing a child is a permanent thing. The loss is forever. The grief is forever. The sadness is forever. There is no getting ‘over’ it. We hear a lot about the “new normal”. … Continue reading

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A High Functioning Bereaved Parent

This article from the New York times sheds light on what it is like to live with the loss of a child. He describes the days where the curtain of normalcy parts to reveal the shattered landscape we carry inside … Continue reading

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