FEATURED STORIES
Recent Stories
Introduction: After my husband died, I realized I had no idea what he wanted for his funeral. We had a lovely ceremony, but I couldn’t help but wonder if it was what he would have wanted. So, a year or so after his death, I sat down to plan my own funeral. Now, it’s all […]
Continue ReadingCompanioning is about walking alongside; it is not about leading or being led. “The most familiar models of who we are—doctor and patient, ‘helper’ and ‘helped’—often turn out to be major obstacles to the expression of our caring instincts; they limit the full measure of what we have to offer one another… True compassion arises […]
Continue ReadingCompanioning is about bearing witness to the struggle of others; it is not about judging or directing these struggles. by Alan D. Wolfelt, Ph.D. “Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act caring, all of which have the potential to turn […]
Continue ReadingOn mourning the same sibling twice: The story of my Sue and me By Louise McOrmond- Plummer Dedicated to my beloved sister Suzanne Gardner 08/01/1960 ~ 11/09\2022 In 2008, my mother told me that I had a sister who was born in 1960, and relinquished for adoption, and who had sought out her birth family. I knew […]
Continue ReadingLearning to Have Fun Again After a Loss It’s hard to imagine life ever being “normal” again after a loss of someone you love. You might feel stuck, or as though you can’t move forward or go on without them. While it’s essential to work through the stages of grief on your own timeline, one […]
Continue Readingby Melissa Calvert A ritual is a ceremony of meaning, a continued observance of ceremonies which are repeated routinely are known as rituals. Rituals can either be done in an isolated manner or by gathering lots of people; it varies from person to person. Rituals are held to mark important events in one’s life, for […]
Continue ReadingCompanioning is about listening with the heart; it is not about analyzing with the head. by Alan D. Wolfelt, Ph.D. “Listen and attend with the ear of your heart.” -Saint Benedict Scientific analyses about grief and therapeutic theories surrounding interventions often result in caregivers overlooking the sacred art of listening with the heart. In fact, […]
Continue ReadingCompanioning is about honoring the spirit; it is not about focusing on the intellect. by Alan D. Wolfelt, Ph.D. “The ultimate cure, as many ancient and modern psychologies of depth have asserted, comes from love and not from logic.” Thomas Moore To be torn apart and to then become whole again we need more than […]
Continue ReadingThis was written as a letter to Dr. Neimeyer. We decided to print it as an AfterTalk Pandemic Weekly because many people adopted pets or lost beloved pets during the Pandemic, and this might resonate for them–the editors. Dear Dr. Neimeyer, I am not writing to ask a question, but rather to share my grief. […]
Continue ReadingA Bronzeville Mother Loiters In Mississippi. Meanwhile, A Mississippi Mother Burns Bacon – Poem by Gwendolyn Brooks The murder of Emmett Till in 1955, and the subsequent acquittal of his murderers and public viewings of Till’s mutilated body, stirred the American consciousness and provoked outrage across the country. In 1960, Gwendolyn Brooks published her own […]
Continue Reading