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How to Help a Grieving Friend from a Distance
Whether it’s physical distance, or a personal boundary that you need to set to take care of you, there may come a time when you want to help a friend that’s grieving from a distance. It can be hard to know what to say or do that will actually be helpful for your grieving friend. These past couple of weeks, I’ve been sharing on my Instagram stories that two of our closest friends lost their precious daughter. Ben and I have spent some time since her passing to support our friends through the very early stages of their grief. Our friends live about two hours away from us and we…
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Cats, Bad Weather, and Signs from Heaven
I’ve always believed, if we are open to it, that we can receive signs and symbols from Heaven. Little nudges to remind us that we’re not alone, and that everything is ok. In both the Old and New Testaments, God and Jesus use signs and symbols to teach and guide us. All throughout my life, I can look back and point out when I’ve noticed these assurances, little things that would only make sense to me. Like, finding a penny while walking into a big job interview, or seeing a red cardinal on my windowsill. It is something that is supported by my faith – that the Lord can send…
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My Word for 2024
Over the years, you may have seen this trend on social media where people choose a “word” for the coming year. This word helps them shape their vision, define their goals, and supports the overall theme that they want for that coming year. My word for 2023 was Faith. Closing out 2022, I was left bruised, and exhausted. My dad had just started chemotherapy, and my mom had just gone through surgery. I sent Madison and Ben to Tallahassee and spent all of my winter break taking care of them both. 2022 was bad enough, and I was riddled with anxiety and fear for whatever 2023 would bring. At the…
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A Milestone I’ve Been Dreading
In three and half months, I have already been through some hard milestones already since losing my dad. My dad passed away on my husband’s 31st birthday. Mother’s Day was that same weekend. Then came my sister’s birthday, and Father’s Day immediately after that. Boom, boom, boom. There are still many “firsts” to come that I’m not looking forward to – more birthdays and the holiday season. There is one milestone, though, that I have been absolutely dreading. Like, sick-to-my stomach, can’t think about it, won’t let my mind go there, dread. I’ve put it out of my mind with such finality that when I realized it was here, it…
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I Wish I Could Celebrate You
A few days ago, I was messaging with a friend of college, who lost her dad several years ago. We were talking about Father’s Day. She said to me, “I try to celebrate (my husband) and my father-in-law but I can’t give them what I want to, not yet.” Boy, did she hit the nail on the head. My sister, mom, and I always made Father’s Day a big deal for my dad. I can remember, from the time we were really little, meticulously thumbing through every Father’s Day card down in the grocery store, trying to find the exact right one. My sister and I would fight over who…
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How I told my Toddler about my Dad’s Death
One of the most gut-wrenching realities of my dad’s passing, was the overwhelming realization that my daughter won’t know him. Don’t get me wrong – my dad very much knew my daughter. In her two-and-a-half years of life, he spent as much time as he could with her. My daughter definitely knew (and still knows) her “Pop.” She talked to him and about him often, and brought him up in conversation even when he wasn’t around. Thinking about their relationship now, a very distinct memory comes to mind. In the first few weeks that I went back to work after maternity leave, my mom would pick my daughter up from…
