19/04/2024
When I started this page yesterday, I had no real idea of what it might contain, I still don’t. I think it will unfold as it feels right to, so let’s see what the days bring!
So far, the vast majority of my work has been helping the bereaved through their experience of loss. Although that work usually has a clear focus - a ceremony - much of it is about listening and talking to the bereaved.
Listening is key to helping. We need to express our loss repeatedly and from many angles, but there’s an area of loss we have not, as yet, fully recognised and built in to our life’s structures.
The loss of a pet. Somehow, after losing the individual you’ve shared so much with, you’re just supposed to get on with life, pretend nothing’s happened, go to work and so on. This fails to acknowledge the enormous significance our pets have in our lives. They are family.
Yesterday we said goodbye to a much loved family member, my sister in law’s 19 year old dog, Spud. He was a true star and all of us loved him to bits. The hole he leaves is huge.
Have a read of the attached article if you have time.
So Spud, wherever you are, this is for you, thank you for everything ❤️❤️
To lose such a friend is not just to have sudden hole where they used to be. There are constant reminders of time spent together, threads in the tapestry of daily life left ragged and loose.
