SURVIVING THE DEATH OF YOUR SPOUSE - Insights from SIPS OF SUSTENANCE (Part 8)
Yesterday was my birthday—the fourth since Bobby died. I wonder if I will ever think of any special day or event without somehow tying it to his absence. More than three years since his death, I still feel a gaping hole in my life. The pain is finally less intense and all-consuming, but it still comes in waves, often when I least expect it. I’m learning to live with the ebb and flow of grief, accepting that life will never be the same. When a wave threatens, I’ve discovered the best way to wait it out is to focus on my blessings, not what I no longer have.
...I am thankful for 37 years of marriage, knowing that many couples find their time cut short in far less time.
...I am thankful for wonderful memories we shared—trips across the U.S. and abroad; ocean sunrises and sunset; laughter as we watched our sheepdogs run like deer, circling our yard; sitting on our dock, dangling our feet in Watts Bar Lake; having a chilled glass of Reisling in the cool of the evening, talking about the day just ending; and on and on.
...I am thankful our love grew stronger over the years, through good times and bad.
...I am thankful for the little rituals we shared—like our words of love at bedtime and the singsong chant we said together when we heard a train whistle.
...I am thankful I felt secure in Bobby’s love, knowing he believed in me and supported me without question or condition.
In the words of our favorite song, I’ll love Bobby "‘til the twelfth of never, and that’s a long, long time." I wish we had had more time together here, but I find comfort in the hope of being reunited with him when my life on this earth ends.
“In my confusion, I choose hope over despair, believing that someday, from another dimension, I will look back and see the time apart was short. With that conviction, all shall be well.” These were the words I wrote for the final page of SIPS OF SUSTENANCE, Grieving the Loss of Your Spouse. With them, I also end this series of blogs about that book.
(My next series of blogs will focus on stories from my latest book, FACES OF GRIEF, released July 12 by Wakestone Press.)
...I am thankful for 37 years of marriage, knowing that many couples find their time cut short in far less time.
...I am thankful for wonderful memories we shared—trips across the U.S. and abroad; ocean sunrises and sunset; laughter as we watched our sheepdogs run like deer, circling our yard; sitting on our dock, dangling our feet in Watts Bar Lake; having a chilled glass of Reisling in the cool of the evening, talking about the day just ending; and on and on.
...I am thankful our love grew stronger over the years, through good times and bad.
...I am thankful for the little rituals we shared—like our words of love at bedtime and the singsong chant we said together when we heard a train whistle.
...I am thankful I felt secure in Bobby’s love, knowing he believed in me and supported me without question or condition.
In the words of our favorite song, I’ll love Bobby "‘til the twelfth of never, and that’s a long, long time." I wish we had had more time together here, but I find comfort in the hope of being reunited with him when my life on this earth ends.
“In my confusion, I choose hope over despair, believing that someday, from another dimension, I will look back and see the time apart was short. With that conviction, all shall be well.” These were the words I wrote for the final page of SIPS OF SUSTENANCE, Grieving the Loss of Your Spouse. With them, I also end this series of blogs about that book.
(My next series of blogs will focus on stories from my latest book, FACES OF GRIEF, released July 12 by Wakestone Press.)
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