Death of a Parent

Matt – Telling my young son

Matt describes the death of his birth mother to his young son.

Matt – Grief changes

Matt explains how he deals with his grief. Matt continues to grieve the death of his birth mother.

Bryan – Mom

Bryan gives his mother credit for how well she raised her two sons after her husband was murdered

Lyss – Seasonal Reminders

Lyss seasonal reminders and her mother dying at New Years

Hope – Not wanting to burden my Mom and school

Hope talks about her fathers death, burdens and the importance of sharing emotions

Learning from Grief

Grief is weird. Odd start, I know, but that was the sentence I used a lot whenever someone asked me how I was. It was never a constant feeling; it changed day to day. And still does. It’s the full gambit of emotions from sadness to anger to guilt and, though dark, even humour found its way in.

Keeping Records

I pulled the photos out of their envelope one at a time, turning over each one to carefully record the date, place, and people in the photo. Sometimes, I included comments. “Apple picking in Hamilton with Pop Pop, Fall, 2023. You loved the wagon ride!”. I slipped each picture into an empty pocket in my son’s photo album.

Reflections on Mother’s Day

Mother’s day is a holiday where we show appreciation and care for the maternal roles in our lives. However, this holiday can feel very overwhelming for those of us who are grieving the death of a mother figure, a mother grieving their child, or those of us grieving the loss of not being able to become mothers ourselves.

Zoreena – Burnout and counseling

Zoreena talks about her father’s decline in a nursing home during COVID

Bryan – Vulnerability

Bryan talks about things are not always OK and that’s OK and things are going to get better

Antoinetta – Things that help when struggling

Antoinetta talks about the first time she learned that it was ok that she was grieving and how to unpack all her feelings

Lyss – Support, Family, and Friends

Lyss discusses the long process of her mother dying, miscarriages and support from family and friends