I have decided that Grief is like a monster I would see in a horror movie that at times threatens to swallow me whole. As the shock of my husband’s passing wears off, the holidays approach, and the realization of him truly being gone sets in there are times Grief is my constant companion. Lurking with his stinky breath right over my shoulder. Feeding on my tears and sadness.
I recently read an article on grief by Steve Wentworth and he describes how you can feel like you are standing on the precipice of a bottomless chasm and nothing can fill the void. What he suggests is rather than focusing on the loss, focus on memories of happy times with your loved one. So that is what I am going to do.
Here is one memory I came up with. The first year we were married I decided it would be great fun to cut down our own Christmas tree. To say my husband was not handy is an understatement but he agreed to go. It was a cold frosty winter’s day in Buffalo and we set out to a local Christmas tree farm. My husband was carrying a small hatchet and was as usual not dressed properly. He had not boots on, a light jacket and that was about it. I found the perfect tree and my husband gazed skeptically at it thinking it may be too big. I immediately replied it was just the right size and he pointed out to me that these trees look smaller when surrounded by 12′ trees. I insisted this was the one I wanted and he chopped it down with his hatchet. Now mind you I am saying hatchet not axe or saw so this took quite a bit of time. I can picture him now swinging it wildly and swearing at the same time. He finally chopped it down, tied it to the top of the car and home we went. We carried it up to the apartment and it barely fit through the door. There was no way it could stand straight up as it was way too tall. “Yes I was right.” my husband grumbled and pulled out his trusty hatchet. He shaved a good 2′ off the tree and up it went. One of the things we did not notice out in the forest was that my perfect tree had a decided kink in the trunk. The next challenge was getting it straight in the stand. The swearing continued and we finally got it up right. As I type this I find myself chuckling. My husband promised this was the Last year he was cutting down any tree and indeed it was.
This week on The Night Shift, 12/6 at 7:00 PM Eastern we will talk about happy times spent with our departed loved ones. Share stories that bring a laugh or two. Join us in the Facebook chat room https://www.facebook.com/groups/183716975330317/ or right here on our w4cy chat. Mini readings with the card of the week as well! Miss the live broadcast don’t forget to check out the podcast on iHeart radio. http://www.iheart.com/show/27472847/
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