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Do you want to read stories of others who have been where you are? Are you looking for bereavement help, and advice? Look no further. We offer over 7,000 articles written by our Open to Hope authors.

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Pregnant After My Mother’s Death

Posted on June 30, 2025 - by Natashia Pillow

Pregnant After My Mother’s Death I woke up screaming, as if I’d had a nightmare, only to realize this is my new reality. Screaming, crying, breathless, heart aching so deeply, I’m not sure it will ever heal. My stomach in knots feeling like I could puke or poop myself at any moment. My mom is dead. My dad and I found her yesterday. Today is my birthday. FUCK THIS! I don’t ever want to celebrate this day again. I can’t even think about eating, my world in shambles. Oh, by the way, I’m pregnant with my first child, not even […]

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Grief Illiteracy: How Avoidance Adds More Pain

Posted on June 30, 2025 - by Linda Henderson

What Grief Illiteracy Has Taught Me Losing Andrea irrevocably altered my life most profoundly. Child-loss changes the course of one’s life forever. My world is a different place, and I am not the same person I was before. There’s the deep personal pain that words are unable to touch, but there’s also something else I didn’t expect: the way the world responded. Or didn’t. In the months after Andrea died, I learned that many people don’t know how to deal with Grief, especially when it’s not their own. I call it grief illiteracy: the widespread discomfort, avoidance, and misunderstanding around […]

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Young Widow Can Imagine Not Marrying Again

Posted on June 25, 2025 - by Catherine Tidd

Young Widow Can Imagine Not Marrying Again Ahhh, dating.  Sooner or later this becomes every widow’s favorite topic with other widows.  And there is a very good reason for this: Because we feel like it’s unacceptable to talk about it outside of the herd. But I can guarantee you that, for most widows, it’s one of the first things we think about after our husbands die.  I don’t mean that in a bad way.  It’s human nature to wonder what comes next.  And for those of us who suddenly find ourselves involuntarily single, we want to know:  Am I supposed […]

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grief and hope

My Run-in with the Divine

Posted on June 16, 2025 - by Heidi Gessner

My Run-in with the Divine As I drove teary-eyed in the twilight, I panicked, how in the world did I wind up here? How did my life end up like this? This wasn’t how I imagined my life would be when I was younger. In that very instant, I had an incredibly intense feeling that someone was in my car with me. So much so, that I whipped my head around to look in the back seat to see who was there. Of course, I was alone, but also, not-alone. I sensed something or someone with me — intangible, yet […]

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Communications at the Edge of Death

Posted on June 16, 2025 - by Heidi Gessner

Communications at the Edge of Death There is an incredible story about how Tiffany got her new lungs. First, she was on the donor waiting list forever. Then one day she got a call that there were lungs available for her. After many tests and lots of preparation, Tiffany bravely went underwent surgery for her new set of lungs. Lying in her hospital bed, after her operation was over, every orifice of her ravaged body was plugged into a machine. She couldn’t move or speak, since she had a tube down her throat breathing for her. Yet Tiffany felt grateful […]

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Norman Rockwell Moment

Posted on June 16, 2025 - by John Wenderlein

Norman Rockwell Moment The reason I named this short story “Norman Rockwell Moment” will become apparent at the end of my story. So, you’ll have to read it to the end to find out. As a Hospice Chaplain, there are times I’m on call overnight for several nights a week. It was early one morning when I heard my phone ringing. You see, I set it close to my side of the bed to ensure I didn’t miss a call and wouldn’t wake up my wife. A little about how I act when I’m on call: I find that I […]

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Twenty Years after the Death, Mother Honors Her Child

Posted on June 9, 2025 - by Janice Bell Meisenhelder

Twenty Years after the Death As bereaved parents, we need encouragement to remember and honor our children as often and as long as we wish. There is no time limit on grieving. Any time is appropriate to bring attention to the memory of a loved one. In my initial years following the physical death of my 19-year-old daughter, Melissa, unspeakable pain overwhelmed my life. Although I functioned, heartbreak ruled my existence. Ever so slowly color began to mingle with the darkness of grief. Now, twenty years after the death, the tapestry of my life is filled with peace, joy, love, […]

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When Both Parents Die

Posted on June 3, 2025 - by Sweta Vikram

When Both Parents Die May is when most people start to plan their summer vacations; May is the month my heart pounds louder than anything I have ever heard. It’s the month I lost my parents 9 years and 3 days apart. It’s the month my father-in-law passed away. In May 2023, my father and my husband’s father died 2 days apart, one day shy of Mom’s 9th death anniversary. I know, my story sounds like an episode from a horror show. There’s something peculiar about becoming parentless when you’re already “grown.” People assume it’s easier. People who haven’t lost both […]

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A Hospice Chaplain’s Heart: Miss Lilly’s Story

Posted on June 3, 2025 - by John Wenderlein

A Hospital Chaplain’s Heart Working as a hospice chaplain, there’s never a dull moment. This is true for every patient who comes to our service. You pray, you say, and you do the right thing to give people peace at the end of their lives. My patients have been told they have limited time left; for some, they are more than ready to go. For others, they fight this reality. I want to share with you Lilly’s story. Sometimes, patients or family members opt out of having a chaplain visit during their stints in hospice care. There are various reasons […]

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Grief is a Teacher, Teacher Says

Posted on June 3, 2025 - by Dolores Cruz

Grief is a Teacher It had been only six weeks since my 24-year-old son was killed in a car accident. That amazing young drummer who charmed most anyone he met with his good looks and kind personality, the one with the sparkle in his eyes that hinted at a bit of mischief, the one people were drawn to by his charismatic personality, the one who never in 24 years hesitated to hug his mom in front of his friends and audibly tell her he loved her. Yeah, that one. His physical presence was now gone, and though my raw grief […]

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