Where am I headed? The word journey is a funny word. It seems to speak of both time and distance. How far does one travel on the path of grief? Where exactly are we “going”? From 2021 to the present, my journey loosely followed this trajectory: –Year One was a fog; I went […]
Widowed Community
A Love Letter to Widowed People
in Riverside and Beyond Michele Neff Hernandez, SSI, and Marlene Huerta Frazer, Widow Goals, Inland Empire Do you ever have a “plan” that’s perfect and then you find that LIFE has it’s own plan? I sure do. When volunteering to host a screening for Camp Widow, I had a vision in my mind that […]
CAMP WIDOW the Documentary: “A love letter to resilience.”
This Monday presents the Awareness Observance of International Widow’s Day and also most fittingly the national debut of the documentary, CAMP WIDOW. I reached out to Michele Neff Hernandez, the CEO of Soaring Spirits International and the creator of the Camp Widow program to learn more about this groundbreaking project that followed a long and […]
On Sunflowers
A Medicine for Joy? part one of a three-part meditation on joy Ah Sun-flower! weary of time, Who countest the steps of the Sun: Seeking after that sweet golden clime Where the travellers journey is done. Where the Youth pined away with desire, And the pale Virgin shrouded in snow: Arise from their graves […]
A Poet’s Wisdom
death’s sting is in my heart and mind and memories When I think of death, and of late the idea has come with alarming frequency, I seem at peace with the idea that a day will dawn when I will no longer be among those living in this valley of strange humors. I […]
Resting in Peace
Our Own Way We wish for our person to rest in peace—what about us? Are there moments of peace that we create for ourselves? Grief follows us like a shadow. No matter where we turn it can show up. Up close and personal. First thing in the morning, as we stretch from the night’s […]
A 2012 Facebook Post . . .
. . . how I’m doing on that list. Some 13 years past, the Facebook posts saved as “memories” are interesting to read. My Grandmother passed away at 83 on Holy Saturday. My Aunt Cissie passed away at 99 on Good Friday (April 6, 2012 at 5am). That leaves Easter Sunday for me at 105…when […]
The Season of Time
What is time, anyway? Time is how we measure and make sense of change. At its core, time is a concept we use to track the sequence and duration of events. It’s how we understand that one thing happens before or after another and how long things last. -Chatgpt Time is both strict and magical. […]
The Liminal Space
Of Loss I’m writing today from a disoriented space of transition. A liminal space. It is said that grief is such a place. The location of disorientation today is loss. It is a practical loss; yet, still a condition worthy of discussion for those in grief. Prior to losing Dan, I would have criticized myself […]
Thinking of Those
Arriving in Edmonds Tomorrow Remembering Camp Widow Denver Gives Me Hope. I am packing and remembering. I’m recalling a tender conversation with a woman under the stairwell. She drove 18 hours to see if Camp Widow could help her manage the grief. What can possibly help when our person is gone? When facing a […]
Squad Goals
A week ago, I was wrapping up a long weekend with my widow squad. Ten of us, who over the last 4 years, built a bond at Camp Widow San Diego. The Camp Widow format change was our catalyst to adjust how we show up for each other. For us, Camp had begun to serve […]
Three Reasons
Why It Works A few of us drove to Palm Springs this week to view Camp Widow: The Documentary at the AmDoc Filmfest. In spite of the fact that two of us have been to camp several times, we both cried during the film. Our companion, who has never been to camp, went home after […]