Friendship

Don’t Talk About How ‘It Gets Better’

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This is what I wish my friends knew when my parents died.

A Therapist Says Goodbye

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We are not ‘friends’ with those we treat. But many of our patients make a very deep and lasting impression on us.

Traveling the World With My Daughter’s Ashes in Tow

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In Ireland, alongside an empathic stranger, I watched Rachel's cremains scatter with the wind. 

Meet My ‘Dead Mom Friends’ 

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I’ve found kinship (but no judgment or pity) among my friends — and even acquaintances — who have also experienced a loss of a parent. 

How I Make Real Mom Friends After My Baby’s Death

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Bitching about parenthood anchors me to the present — and tests the waters for true connection.

Take a Chance On Me

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Two days after my mom’s funeral, her friend Velma told me she had a surprise for me — and OMG, did she ever.  

The Lights and Lessons of Toro Nagashi, the Japanese Candle Boat Ceremony

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I missed a lifelong friend’s funeral. But I honored him all the same.

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

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And I love her for it.

11 People You Meet in Hell

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Minimizers, vultures, happy morons, competitors at the Sad Olympics and other people you’re bound to encounter on your grief journey.

That Would Have Been a Great Story

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My high school boyfriend and I lost our respective spouses just months apart — and reconnected over our grief. I would like to be able to say that we fell back in love and lived happily ever after. Something else unfolded.

The Widow's Yoga Tribe_Modern Loss

A Widow and her Galentines

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After my husband died, I stumbled about looking for my tribe. Counterintuitive to my nature, I found it in yoga class.

Dead in Real Life, Alive on Twitter

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How a post-mortem scrapbook project kept teaching me about my friend.

Ned and I

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I'm 36. One of my best friends is 84. I try to live in the moment, knowing our relationship might be a fleeting one.

Why I Like Funerals More Than Weddings

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"Four Weddings and a Funeral"? I'd rather watch "Four Funerals and a Wedding."

Grief Bacon: Don’t Make Them Eat Cake

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Endless comfort food can be the opposite of comforting to someone dealing with loss. Here are 5 gifts to show you care –without the added sugar.

The Words We Couldn’t Say

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As my daughter grew inside of me, my best friend's pregnancy ended in stillbirth. Comforting her felt impossible.

Living a Year as if It Were My Last

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As my childhood friend was dying of cancer, I embarked on a 365-day experiment in living.

Forever ‘The Girls’

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After my husband died, my best girlfriends didn’t know what to say to me. But their presence that Memorial Day was more important than their words.

Hiding Out

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How do I get my grief-stricken friend out of her house? Can I expect other people to remember my loved one's birthday? Our advice columnist weighs in.

Must-See TV

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In the moments after my mother died, I recorded an episode of “Friends” — a decision that still confounds me a decade on.

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