"Grief is real, and is suffered. You're not crazy if you feel it; it means you loved someone, deeply." I feel the murky waters of grief pouring over me. I feel sometimes like I'm going crazy. Waves of overwhelming muddy water wash over me. I feel like crocodiles of confusion, sadness, and mental stress are snapping their teeth at me. It's such hard work to keep my head above the stinking brown water of despair. I can't cope with the pull of the depths of this water. Slowly, I'm feeling pulled under by the water of gloom. Yes, I've been here before. I've read and heard and even experienced the stages of grief in the deaths of my mother at 13, the sudden death of 5 nieces and nephews in my 30s, my step mom and my dear grandma in my 40s. Yes, I know them and they are very true and real: 1. SHOCK & DENIAL 2. PAIN & GUILT 3. ANGER & BARGAINING 4. "DEPRESSION", REFLECTION, LONELINESS 5. THE UPWARD TURN 6. RE
When our family moved to Poland over twenty years ago, a friend told me that I must always remember to have a bubbling teapot, full and ready to serve...And it was true. A friend stopping in for a visit wasn't complete without a cup of tea! Consider this page as a place to stop for a cup of tea.