Personal Essays

The Museum of ‘Before’

By and

My mother's Facebook profile has become a small souvenir of life (and her) before she got sick.

Bereavement Group Dropout

By

Around a table full of widow-baked cookies, I absorbed the most profound of all death clichés, and I was done.

My BFF Makes ‘Your Mom’ Jokes About My Dead Mom — and I Love Her for It

By

And I love her for it.

Our Christmas Décor Became a Metaphor for My Grief

By

What is the protocol for embroidering a Christmas story that stops abruptly in the second chapter?

The Hummingbirds Who Lightened My Grief

By

When my daughter died, I hated the sun for rising without her. I wept as the world turned green and flowers burst open. But the backyard birds were a different story.

Unpacking That Last Box — Once and For All

By

After my boyfriend died, I clung to his things as a way to stay close to him. Eventually, I realized I didn’t need to.

I Forgot the Anniversary of My Mom’s Death

By

But there's one deathiversary that I can never put behind me.

Mizuko Kuyo: Japan’s Powerful Pregnancy Loss Ritual

By

At a Buddhist temple far from home, this ceremony provided me solace.

The Lie We Tell Ourselves About Mental Health

By

My mom's suicide taught me that there is no clear line dividing those who are of sound mind from those who are not.

Mom’s Memory Was My ‘Something Blue’

By

How I incorporated my late mother into my wedding celebration. Plus, great tips for memorializing a loved one at your nuptials.    

Why I Love IKEA

By

Shopping there is my wildly commercialized way of keeping my Swedish grandmother’s legacy alive. (Plus, family recipes for Swedish ginger snaps and coffee cake.)

Missing the Goodbye

By

For immigrant families like mine, loss can mean mourning from a great distance.

This Funeral Changed How I Feel About Weddings

By

Many clergy will admit they would rather perform a funeral than a wedding. I used to be one of them.

Desperately Seeking the Funeral Director With a Matinee Idol Name

By

Four years after my grandmother’s death, I was determined to track down — and thank — the mortuary staffer whose kindness (and name) I will never forget.

Rebecca Odes for Modern Loss

DNA and Middle C

By

My son's resemblance to my father was always striking. But after my dad died, it took on new meaning.

Father's Day listicle

Random Acts of Dadness

By

From rejecting perfectly good restaurant food to donating to worthy causes, I'm spending the first Father's Day after my dad's death trying to emulate his character.

My Father Is My Grief Mentor

By

Dad raised me on his own after Mom died. So when I, too, lost my spouse young, he showed me how to find happiness again.

Meet the Widex

By

Eight years after we divorced, my sons’ father was dead — and I went from the ex to something more complicated.

What My Dad’s Suicide Taught Me About Resilience  

By

A wellness coach offers practical advice for finding your center amid complicated grief.

‘I Have Some Very Bad News’

By

Tasked with making and fielding calls to let people know Dad had died felt like collateral damage.

1 … 9 10 11 12 13 … 22