Open to Hope Articles

Articles Home

The Season of Advent Helps Nurture the Waiting Heart

Posted on November 13, 2014 - by Charles W. Sidoti

Advent is a season observed in many Western Christian churches as a time of expectant waiting and preparation for the celebration of the Nativity of Jesus at Christmas. The term is an Anglicized version of the Latin word adventus, meaning “coming”. One of the greatest influences in my spiritual life is an audiotaped lecture called “A Spirituality of Waiting” by the late Fr. Henri J.M. Nouwen. Over the years I have returned to this wonderful recording during Advent, always finding its message fresh and meaningful. I have come to realize that having “a waiting heart,” as Fr. Nouwen suggests, not only fits well […]

Bereavement and Adolescents: Interview with Dr. David E. Balk

Posted on November 13, 2014 - by Gloria Horsley

At the annual ADEC (Association of Death Education and Counseling), I spoke with Dr. David E. Balk about grief and adolescents. David is the author of a book called Dealing With Dying, Death, and Grief During Adolescence. In the video below, David discusses social media and the internet and how it has changed the face of grief for adolescents. Here are some key takeaways from the video: So many adolescents and youth stay in touch through social media, and David says he’s not sure how many people have come to terms with the fact that this has entirely changed how adolescents […]

It’s That Time of Year…Again

Posted on November 12, 2014 - by Lisa Khuraibet

The clocks have been turned back and the weather is changing, signaling the end of summer and our moving into a new season. Much like a new season during the year, so it is in life. Fall is particularly difficult for many people because we are thrust into a world of holidays; Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Christmas, Kwanzaa and the New Year. Each one holds a promise all its own, with messages of faith, gratitude, and hope. But what if we aren’t feeling those things? What if we are too sad to feel the presence of God in […]

Grief from a Native American Perspective: Interview with Damita Sunwolf Larue

Posted on November 11, 2014 - by Gloria Horsley

At the annual ADEC (Association of Death Education and Counseling), I spoke with Damita Sunwolf Larue about the Native American people and the loss and grief they have suffered throughout their history. Damita is a Cherokee from Oklahoma and her grandmother is a medicine woman. Damita says grief and loss have been a part of their history since Columbus came 522 years ago. She goes into more detail about this in the video below. Here are some key takeaways from the video: In the 522 years since Columbus came to America, there have been a number of instances of genocide […]

Is SAD Due to the Darkness of Grief or Darkness of the Season?

Posted on November 10, 2014 - by Barbara Rubel

What is Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)? In the beginning of the fall until the end of the winter many people experience Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), a seasonal depression. There is less daylight during the fall and winter and serotonin, the neurochemicals in your brain that regulate your mood and functioning are effected. Also, too much melatonin, a brain hormone produced during the hours of darkness, causes depressive symptoms. Although your body expects to go to sleep when it is dark and wake up when it is light, that’s not the case in the fall and winter months. Your biological clock […]

A Widow Remembers the First Year of Holidays

Posted on November 10, 2014 - by Cindy Adams

Yes, they’re coming! We can’t hide, it’s inevitable. The holidays are here! Although my young children were grieving in their own ways, they looked forward to Christmas, presents, decorations, and celebrations. My oldest daughter was in second grade and my youngest was in kindergarten. This was the first year of holidays without their father. They participated in all their class activities for Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas that year. In their grief, these special days in school appeared to give them relief, joy, and laughter. For me, in my first year of widowhood, I despised the holidays coming. I wasn’t looking forward to any of them! […]

Just So You Know

Posted on November 7, 2014 - by John Pete

Just So You Know I can’t stop grieving just because you believe it is time for me to move on. I can’t stop hurting just because you do not understand the piercing pain in my heart. I cannot stop my tears from flowing just because they make you uncomfortable. My heart is not suddenly mended just because you believe I have grieved long enough. I will grieve the loss of my loved one for the rest of my life. Just so you know. (Just So You Know © John Pete) Just So You Know Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ps7k8JM5RoU

Re-embracing Halloween After a Loss

Posted on October 31, 2014 - by Gloria Horsley

The candy you buy at the drugstore may now be just for you, the lights turned off for trick-or-treaters on Halloween. You may want to go through the neighborhood late at night and tear down all the ghastly tombstone decorations and leave notes reminding neighbors that death is not “fun.” The cheap hanging ghosts may feel like mockeries of your own constant search for signs of spirit in butterflies, rainbows, or in my case, pennies. And costume contests are probably way down on your list of priorities. After experiencing the death of a loved one, Halloween may feel too raw […]

Finding a Silver Lining in Living with Loss

Posted on October 28, 2014 - by Sheri Perl

Can we find anything at all in living with loss that in some way we might benefit from? Is it possible that something as terrible as loss, so final and irreversible, can contain a silver lining? Maybe this isn’t exactly a silver lining, but I’ll tell you about something that has dawned on me as a result of losing my 22-year-old son in July of 2008. Even though I always knew in a factual way that someday I would die, I still lived in emotional denial of that reality. Since losing Danny, the façade has been ripped off of my […]

Learning to Live Again After Loss: Interview with Alan Pederson

Posted on October 28, 2014 - by Gloria Horsley

In a recent interview, Alan Pedersen opened up with Dr. Gloria Horsley about Learning to Live Again After Loss and the trials he faced after his great loss. Below is the interview: G: Hello. I’m Dr. Gloria Horsley with my co-host Dr. Heidi Horsley. Welcome to the show today. We’re so happy to have you on Healing the Grieving Heart. Heidi and I want this to be a show of hope, friendship and renewal for those who suffer the loss of a child. Well, Heid, I want to start out the show by reading an email we had. We get some […]