Larry Patten

I am a writer, a United Methodist minister, and currently serve at a hospice in California. I maintain www.larrypatten.com (musings about faith) and www.hospice-matters.com. And just to remind myself that I’m never fully in control, my wife and I are raising a puppy. Whew. I have published two books, available on Amazon: A Companion for the Journey: 41 Reflections (Mostly) on the Lord's Prayer . . . and Another Companion for the Journey: 40 Reflections (and Questions) on Faith. Through my professional work at churches and in hospice, I understand it’s difficult to openly discuss dying and death, or to share how grief can impact us every day. Don’t feel like you’re alone with your concerns and questions. I look forward to your comments here at Open to Hope or at www.hospice-matters.com.

Articles:

A Christmas Promise

A Christmas Promise On a long-ago Christmas Eve, I made my last visit to a patient as her hospice chaplain. I was honoring a promise made weeks before. While a […]

My Loved One Died and the Grief Hurts

This is an excerpt from Larry Patten’s A Companion for the Hospice Journey which is available on Amazon or though his website Hospice Matters. He has died. She has […]

I Just Wanted Her for One More Day

This is an excerpt from Larry Patten’s A Companion for the Hospice Journey, which is available on Amazon or though his website Hospice Matters. Several years ago, our hospice team […]

When Death Comes Quickly

This is an excerpt from Larry Patten’s A Companion for the Hospice Journey which is available on Amazon or though his website Hospice Matters. What about a loved one who […]

Well-Dressed Grief

He was dressed for success. His suit was charcoal gray, shirt the blue of a perfect spring sky, both complimented by an elegant tie. Since the gentleman had just entered […]

Inspirational poem about puzzles by author Laurel D. Rund

A Terrible Saturday Morning

“I feel like I’m getting close to the gates,” he muttered. He was 91. I knew he was referring to death, to the “Pearly Gates” where Gabriel the angel (or […]

Open to hope

I Still Grieve my Father’s Silence

My wife pointed to a curved red slash on my leg. “Where’d you get those scrapes?” “Maybe from the dog when we played a couple of hours ago?” Our dog […]

Open to hope

In the Forest: Unsettled by a Stillbirth

Serena asked me to help bury her child. This question occurred a couple of years after we met. I wonder now if Serena’s request, accompanied by her intense gaze, had […]

Open to hope

Set Free to Grieve and Heal

In the Bible, Jesus healed on the Sabbath. Bad Jesus! Law-breaking Jesus! Once he was accused of healing a woman who’d been in physical agony for nearly two decades. Jesus […]

Open to hope

At My Father’s Desk: Dementia’s Silent Toll

Grief can elbow its way into life long before death. This I remember . . . I visit my parents’ home. Only Mom lives there now. Because of dementia, Dad […]