November 2024

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O.K. Here it is – Holiday time! For many of us, it is a detour time! Just when we thought we were headed back to the main road, we found ourselves in the “Holiday Season.” Can I just go to sleep in a
warm comfortable place and wake up around January 3rd? Can I just detour this time of year? Well. That ain’t a bad idea…but in reality, with all the hurt and pain and memories, we can still be truly thankful.
 

Thankful for all memories. You know, memories are gifts that we have been given. Reminiscing or remembering is a natural part of the grieving process, but we need to remember in a healthy manner.
 

Most of us spent a great part of our life as a married person. Those years helped to shape us and make us the person that we are today. While we must not live in the past, we need to learn how to
integrate those memories into the new identity that we are building for ourselves.
 

As many of us go about preparing for holiday dinners, don’t we wish we had a “Recipe for Recovery.” …Just add a cup of boiling water, stir well, drink, and our grief would be over. Instant recovery! What would go into that recipe? From Compassionate Friends with some alteration.
 

     …Start with one cup of mild human kindness…all those dear friends that did not turn away when they heard of the death.
 

     …Add several good eggs; the helping people who did without being asked.
 

     …Throw in a few heaping tablespoons of reading material and WPS Support Groups.
 

     …Add the salt of the earth…wonderful new friends through WPS. We can call them “cream of the crop” because they understand and rise to the top!
 

     …Sprinkle liberally with tears, because it is OK to cry, generously sprinkle with laughter, because it is OK to laugh again. Bake in a warm oven of tender loving care. Make enough to give to others and freeze for later.
 

As the end-of-the-year holiday season approaches, we have planned events to help you remember the past while you face the festivities as a single person.
 

Holiday Grief Support, Sunday, November 3rd, and the Candlelight Memory Celebration, a special tribute to the life of our deceased spouses on Sunday, November 10th. See flyer for details.
 

Happy Thanksgiving! Hugs!

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Ruth Turner, Outreach Chairman and Certified Grief Support Facilitator