Category : surviving the anniversary of a loved one’s day of death

Grief, Parenting during grief, surviving the anniversary of a loved one's day of death, Uncategorized
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Time keeps on ticking!

Time keeps on ticking. Twenty years ago today my family lost David.  I usually mark this day by reflecting on all the living he packed into his life of 45 years. This year I’ve decided to focus on forgiveness. The trauma of David’s death has been hard to wrestle with.  David died of a fatal heart attack at our sons’ school while playing basketball with Andy and other boys at St. Christopher’s School. It is always our hope to honor David’s life rather than his death.

There are rarely days without thoughts of David.  His untimely death catches  me off guard sometimes. It happened yesterday when I heard my neighbor’s son dribbling the basketball in his driveway.  I was walking down the street. I glanced up to see this young man quickly shift his weight in front of the goal. I knew he was going for a lay-up. Of course, he made the shot. I said, “Great shot!” He smiled at me and turned back to his pounding of the ball with every dribble. I picked up my pace to avoid the impending grief settling in around me. I was determined to remain positive.

I looked for nature to help throw off the blues. I spotted a patch of clover growing alongside the road. One of my hidden talents is finding 4 leaf clovers. They symbolize hope for me.  Just as I was lifting my hand to touch the top of what was likely a 4 leaf clover, I screamed so loud I startled myself.  A long black racer snake was just inches from my fingers. To say I’m afraid of snakes is an understatement. I quickly realized it was not moving. It had likely been run over.  I bolted past another basketball goal at the edge of the street.

When I returned to writing this reflection, I found myself thinking of how hard grief is to express. There is no way around it. We must go through it to come out on the other side of it. The hard truths of David’s life and the impact on our grief is messy.  I’ve had to forgive David for leaving us much too early in life. I’ve fussed at him in my head and out loud for taking his health for granted. He used to say, “smoking only affects me.” That’s simply not true. He enjoyed being the life of the party, but the impact of binge drinking aged his body too quickly. The hardship of the legacy of trauma that David endured as the only adopted son of a raging alcoholic father affected all of us. His way of coping with his past cast a shadow over ours. During all the years of our grieving his loss, it is finally time to say we forgive you David.  As John Prine sang in the song, Fish and Whistle, “Father forgive us for what we must do, You forgive us, We’ll forgive you, We’ll forgive each other, Till we both turn blue, then we’ll whistle and go fishing in heaven.”

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grace during grief, Grief, Inspiration, surviving the anniversary of a loved one's day of death, Uncategorized
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Seventeen Years of Understanding Loss

This day marks the seventeenth anniversary of losing my fun-loving husband David and dedicated father to Andy and Ben. It was a Thursday much like today with lots of white puffy clouds against a sunny blue sky. The beauty of the spring day faded later around dusk.  David suffered a fatal heart-attack on the basketball court while playing with Andy and some other boys after school. Even after all these years, my heart beats to a different rhythm as I rewind the events of that day. It is a challenging day, but time has given us ways to remember all of the goodness that David shared and lives on in each of us. I catch a glimpse of him when Andy and Ben smile. I hear his laughter when his best friend from childhood comes to visit. I feel the strength of his hugs when Ben or Andy give me a tight hug around my shoulders. I see his compassion for others lived out in all of us as we try to help brighten someone’s day.  I jump with his sense of joy when his beloved Virginia wins the Final Four.  I see his hope and radiance in his grand-daughter’s face as she sees a bird flying in the sky.  I feel my heart expand with the warmth of his love when I draw closer to my family, friends, and even strangers on this journey of living life to the fullest! Seventeen years brings understanding to loss and gives me a deeper appreciation for the one and only David Butterworth.

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Blogging, Grief, Inspiration, surviving the anniversary of a loved one's day of death
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Reflections of our loved ones

Seventeen years ago, my Mom died of a fatal heart attack. The melancholy that drifts in around the anniversary of her death threatens to overcome me each year.  I decided to take a walk around the gardens at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts to shake the blues and the dreariness of this winter day.  As I rounded the edge of the museum, I was surprised by the peacefulness that swept over me.  The 24-foot-tall sculptural head of a girl named Chloe carved by Spanish artist Jaume Plensa summoned my attention.  The gray barren branches of the large oak tree behind her stood in stark contrast to her meditational visage, radiant even with closed eyes.  Chloe’s powerful pose reminded me of my Mom’s determination to raise her 3 daughters to be strong women. I could always count on her encouraging words whenever life became hard to navigate. She often ended those conversations saying, “Everything will work out, and I’ll be thinking about you. Hold your head up high!” These words have been implanted in my heart, and I often use them to encourage my sons in their own challenges. As I turned to leave, I took this picture that shows the strong presence of the oak tree next to the imposing presence of Plensa’s Chloe. These towering images both represent to me the reassurance of my mother’s words. Her comforting words are as permanent in my mind as the images of oak and marble that spoke to me from that image.  Throughout the seasons of our lives, the words of loved ones can anchor us over time and space.

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