grief 32
Despair Is Part of Life, but Not All of Life
Her heartfelt lament may sound like despair, and in a way it is, save for a crucial difference.
Erich Maria Remarque’s Grief
He decides to write about his experience. Two earlier novels were dismal affairs. But now in 1927, over the course of a few months, he fills each page with pain…
A Phone that Does not Ring
Jess never missed calling me today, even when I was half a world away. This marks the eleventh year that my phone will not ring.
The Hidden Sorrow of Easter
Christ’s resurrection offers assurance in the face of inevitable, implacable death. But it doesn’t come easily
Grief in the White House
Parental bereavement is as profound as the lifelong changes that accompany it
Facing a New Year of Grief
Grief is not a process to work through, a disorder to heal, a condition to treat, or an illness to cure.
William James’s Grief
Decades of sorrow and searching for clinical evidence have strengthened his resolve, tempered now by experiences that add up to more than disparate bits of empirical data.
Mary Shelley’s Grief
Mary writes with gentle pathos, patience, and calm—traits common to those who have endured terrible loss. Her observations on life’s many ironies offer catharsis for author and reader alike.
Joan of Arc’s Grief
My grief would overwhelm me if I were not in God's grace. — Joan of Arc, February 24, 1431
Else Lasker-Schüler’s Grief
Her work is certainly redolent of sorrow and, as she describes it, the eternity that dwells within her. But her words also carry hope and surprising faith that she will…
Falling is Not Failure, and Getting up is Not the Point
Life knocks us down. It is the price of this world, however much we may kid ourselves otherwise. Our falls become part of us.
Sigmund Freud’s Grief
In expressing his love through epistolary lament, it may be that Freud discovered the precise meaning he felt he had lost.
Safe at Last
As the sun rises over the Nile or my daughter’s grave, it occurs to me that the ancient Egyptians may have been onto something. Jess lives on, her soul soars…
The Consolation of Silence
Your presence is needed. Hush. Stay. Show your love by letting them grieve.
Grief in Eternity
Yet at times, if only for a moment, I feel the shadow over my days is transformed into pure spirit. Such thoughts give me a surprising sense of quiet joy.
Emerson’s Grief
Wallie is gone; no visible scar remains. Mourning provides no lesson, no answers, no closure. The poet is not decrying grief for its lack of utility.
A Son’s Journey to His Father
Men often reflect on their relationship with their fathers during these coincidences of milestones; a similar thing often happens when a son reaches the age his father was when the…
Wandering in Solitude
But there is something more going on. We also face a new “transcendent reality,” as Klass puts it, in which we see the spiritual world with new eyes. This may…