My Loss

Loss, Squared

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One moment, I was planning a long-awaited trip to East Africa. The next, I was facing down two life-or-death decisions.

Revisiting the Track after My Father’s Death

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I'd abandoned the 440-yard loop long ago. Returning to it allowed me to begin grieving my father's death.

Coming to Terms

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The simple phrase suggests contracts and litigation. For me, it's a complex, daily practice in grieving my son's death from Tay-Sachs.

Leaning In, My Way

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I dove into back into work after my daughter was born. As a motherless mother, I soon realized I'd made the wrong choice.

Back in the Saddle Again

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My teenaged son stored his bike after a friend's fatal riding accident. One year on, I still wanted to hold onto him tight but was also ready for him to move forward.

Stuck in My Throat

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I don’t have many regrets. But not thanking the man so influential in my early adulthood is a big one.

Picture Imperfect

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The day after a dear friend's death, I captured on camera my first 24 hours without her.

Beyond Surface Treatments: 6 Trite-Free Tribute Tattoos

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Our "Mourning, Noon & Night" columnist is back with more examples of memorial ink that avoid stale grief motifs.

A Night With ‘The Dead Dads Club’

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A new show at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater draws comedy from grief.

Store Credit

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In the aftermath of my husband's death, my friends bought me potted plants. I promptly returned them — unable to contemplate caring for another living thing. Fourteen years on, what would it mean to use my credit at the florist?

Recital Envy

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At my daughters' concerts and school performances, I see all the happy grandparents, snapping photos and bearing flowers. That's when I feel my own mother's loss most acutely.

Divorce as Primer

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I became a divorcée at 29. Months later, my mother suddenly died. The isolation I felt after my marriage ended gave me the tools to deal with her loss.

Land of Enchantment

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After my ex-boyfriend's death, would returning to our New Mexico — where we had shared a life — unleash my grief?

Facebook's legacy contact

My Facebook Page, After Me

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After years of blunders, the company finally hit the mark when it comes to death and loss by letting users choose what their networks can see after they die, and who can manage them.

The Half Life of Love

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Our first real date was on Valentine’s Day 10 years ago. Many times in the five years since my partner died, I’ve flashed back to that day when we became, officially, more than just friends.

A Day for Lovers, Without Mine

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On my first Valentine’s Day without Evelyn, I spent hours paging through old photographs. Those pictures speak to our love and her resolve, but they don’t tell the whole story.

No Man’s Land

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Between the time we decided to stop treatment and the time my baby son died, I felt desperately alone — pulled between my ‘cancer family’ still fighting to save their children and the bereaved families on the other side of this battle.

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Missing Dad on Super Bowl Sunday

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I could care less about football, but my late father loved it. And on the weekend of the big game, I feel his absence acutely.

The Voicemail Afterlife

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My grandma called daily and, I sometimes sent her to voicemail — rationalizing that I was just too busy to pick up. In the wake of her death, I cherish those recordings.

Looking Up at El Capitan

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Dying while doing what we love is how we’d all like to go out. But as I watched my friends risk everything for the thrill of the climb, I felt compelled to remind them of the difference between challenge and folly.

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