A few weeks ago the word was KEEP but I was out of town and never got a chance to write. This weeks word is VISIT and the topic I wanted to write about for KEEP works for VISIT.
After several years of grief counseling I decided I needed to visit you. In that scary place that I avoided for so long. Mainly because it required travel. Travel up to that place we once lived. A place I hadn’t been since my grandmother passed away. A place full of so many memories – good, bad, and sad.
That place was the cemetery. It was a cold and snowy day. It was a hard day full of tears and grief.
I was glad I went. I had been wanting to go for awhile. I felt I needed to go there after the years of talking about it and processing it better. The thing about grief is it’s a life long process. You are always processing grief. Whether it was 2 years ago or 20 years ago.
The wonderful lady in the floral shop next to the cemetery beautified these flowers for us and threw in some free items as well. Even if she did it out of sympathy because I was crying.
There will be days where you will be sad. And there will be days where you will be happy. There will be tears and laughter. Stories to tell. Talking about it is hard but it’s also healing and good to share their story with others for they are no longer here to tell.
We all have a story to share. Whether it be good, bad, or boring. It belongs to us and the world needs to hear it. And when one passes away their story doesn’t just end it continues by the people that are left behind.
I once heard a man speak about death and he says he knows he’s had a good life if people are laughing at my funeral. I can firmly say that was the case for my dad. And it continues. I continue to ask my mom and other people about him. I have asked them to share their stories with me. At first it was hard and scary but now I’m grateful for all those stories that people have shared with me.
To realize how wonderful he was. How many people he has impacted. I am in contact with many of his former students who still 20 years later talk about him on his facebook page and share stories.
One student is a screen writer/song writer and wrote this beautiful song for me last year and wants to someday write a musical about him/a teacher and I really hope that becomes a reality because I would LOVE to go and see it.
Mmm. Hard thing to do, but healing, I bet. I made a journey like that myself, just recently. It’s amazing what happens when you step into a familiar place and remember… and realise how much you’ve changed, and how much you haven’t. Thanks for sharing your experiences so honestly here.