Managing Loss: Grieving, Widening, Evolving

Key points

The loss of a loved one stirs up a multitude of intense feelings.

Grief can lead to our world feeling very small at first, but this can shift over time.

The notions of stretching, widening, and evolving can be applied to grieving.

“Just stretch my shoes.” These were among the final words my mother-in-law, Maureen, said to me when she was dying. She seemed to sense that she was near the end, though none of us could really believe it. Her sudden-onset illness was a shock to all of us, but seemingly not so much to her.

On that last Saturday night in her hospital room, Maureen explained to me about how she wanted things to go for the family when she was gone. She spoke of dividing up items for her family members and deciding on a reputable donation organization for her clothing