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Death From Cancer: A Poem About My Father

Posted on November 24, 2006 - by admin

My father died from lung cancer on January third, 2005. After entering a nursing facility for rehab, we soon discovered that he had stage four small-cell lung cancer. He lived for three and one-half weeks after his diagnosis. While January third never had any signficance before, it now holds signficance for me that I would never have imagined. The words to the poem describe how one often feels about the anniversary of a person’s death.

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Supporting Our Grieving Children To Cope with Katrina and Other Losses

Posted on November 24, 2006 - by admin

Children may feel the same feelings when they grieve as adults, yet their responses can be very different. In addition, every day through the media, images of death, loss, grief and violence are presented to not only adult eyes, but also the vulnerable eyes and hearts of our children. Adults barely have the tools and experience to process what they see intellectually and emotionally. Imagine how the younger and more vulnerable among us deal with this!

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The Holiday Army

Posted on November 23, 2006 - by admin

Here it comes again ? the Holiday Army ? in its annual march against us. Some of its generals are called “Thanksgiving,” “Christmas,” “Hanukah,” “New Year?s Eve” and “New Year?s Day.” They are no respecters of the heartbroken and emotionally wounded, and their troops are merciless. They take no prisoners! They demand that we participate in their joy and nostalgia or they will mow us down with their militant tanks of holiday spirit.

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November 23, 2006 Thanksgiving Reflections Joy Johnson

Posted on November 23, 2006 - by Joy Johnson Brown

NOVEMBER 23, 2006 – THANKSGIVING REFLECTIONS:? JOY JOHNSON has written or edited more than 150 books on grief.? She is co-founder, along with her husband, Dr. Marvin Johnson, of Centering Corporation and Ted E. Bear Hollow, a center for grieving children. Centering Corporation, has received the TCF Professional award, and is North America?s oldest and largest bereavement resource center.? Centering is also the official bookstore for The Compassionate Friends.? Her compassion and understanding have touched many lives. Join us for a discussion of traditions, memories, and challenges of Thanksgiving Day without that special person.? http://www.centeringcorp.com/catalog/ and http://www.tedebearhollow.org/

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November 23, 2006 Thanksgiving Reflections Joy Johnson

Posted on November 23, 2006 - by admin

NOVEMBER 23, 2006 – THANKSGIVING REFLECTIONS:? JOY JOHNSON has written or edited more than 150 books on grief.? She is co-founder, along with her husband, Dr. Marvin Johnson, of Centering Corporation and Ted E. Bear Hollow, a center for grieving children. Centering Corporation, has received the TCF Professional award, and is North America?s oldest and largest bereavement resource center.? Centering is also the official bookstore for The Compassionate Friends.? Her compassion and understanding have touched many lives. Join us for a discussion of traditions, memories, and challenges of Thanksgiving Day without that special person.? http://www.centeringcorp.com/catalog/ and http://www.tedebearhollow.org/

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Grieving at Holiday Times

Posted on November 23, 2006 - by admin

As we approach the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays each year, our senses are heightened and memories of past celebrations flood our consciousness. Most of us can remember that, as children, we celebrated traditions with members of our extended family, many of whom we may have seen only at these joyous holiday times.

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The Empty Chair Around The Holiday Table

Posted on November 22, 2006 - by

Many Americans will be sitting down together around the dinner table very soon, to celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah or Kwanza. These dinners re-enforce a sense of shared family values, a feeling that all is right with the world as long as we can be together at holiday time. But the truth is, all may not be in order at the holiday table. There will be empty chairs this year, chairs that were filled last year with our beloved parents or grandparents or close friends, those who have died and gone on to their next journey. We will look around and those

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The Empty Chair Around The Holiday Table

Posted on November 22, 2006 - by admin

Many Americans will be sitting down together around the dinner table very soon, to celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah or Kwanza. These dinners re-enforce a sense of shared family values, a feeling that all is right with the world as long as we can be together at holiday time. But the truth is, all may not be in order at the holiday table. There will be empty chairs this year, chairs that were filled last year with our beloved parents or grandparents or close friends, those who have died and gone on to their next journey. We will look around and those

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PAM, Life Beyond Death; Joy Beyond Grief by Christy Lowry; BOOK REVIEW

Posted on November 22, 2006 - by admin

Pam: Life Beyond Death; Joy Beyond Grief By Christy Lowry Publication Consultants (2000) Reviewed by Beverly Pechin for Reader Views (1/06) When I first read the book’s cover, telling the true story of a family’s dealing with the loss of a 13 year old daughter/sister I simply didn’t know if I COULD read the entire story. I was expecting a story of horror, sorrow, and pain. Instead, what I got was a story of faith, love, and in the end, happiness. While some sadness was evident in the beginning of the story, losing a child is traumatic and painful for […]

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Grieving, A Poem: When the Crabapple Blooms

Posted on November 22, 2006 - by admin

This is a poem based on the act of a grieving son to come to terms with the death of his father. The process of planting a tree can prove very therapeutic. When the crabapple blooms, I will remember you, remember the pain that you felt. When its dark blooms appear, my thoughts turn to you, thoughts of suffering that make my heart melt. The plant was a gift from good, loving friends, who stood close at hand in my pain. In their kind, loving words, they suggested to me, that this tree would live on in your name. When […]

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