The farm mower was loaded in the bed of the old Dodge truck and he wore his dad’s old Carhart jacket. It was Father’s Day and he was ready to work. We stood on the front porch, holding each other close for a moment, my head resting near his heart. He loved being Kalkidan’s dad. […]
grief
3 Special Moments You Shouldn’t Miss
“Go to the wedding, go to the funeral, stop at the lemonade stand.” For many years life was crazy busy. I homeschooled, parented seven children, adopted four more children, wrote a blog, spoke at conferences, and learned all about parenting kids with trauma. Living in the trenches of parenting children from “hard places” was a […]
Walking Through the Hard
How do I step back into writing when it feels like so much has happened? My father passed away last Sunday. It still feels hard to believe. He had a pacemaker put in March 13th and was fine until April 1st when he collapsed. I got in the car and headed to Seattle an hour […]
What ‘This is Us’ Teaches Us About Tragedy
[Spoiler Alert: this was written following Season 2, episode 13, which aired on 1/23/18] After nearly two seasons, the writers of ‘This is Us’ revealed more details of how Jack, the father in the series, died. We watched him clean the kitchen while his wife slept, putting food away, washing dishes, wiping counters, and then […]
Remembering Kalkidan Year 3
This morning we are quiet. In the early hours, Russ and I sat together, coffee mugs in hands, talking and sharing tears. Year three of remembering the day we lost Kalkidan. Today marks the most traumatic event we’ve ever experienced while also marking the day Kalkidan ran into the loving arms of Jesus. Life is […]
How to Survive When Grief is Your Teacher
Grief is the teacher you hope you’ll never get. As you trace your finger down the column of names assigned to each class, you hope you won’t find your name on her list. But then you see it – your name typed in crisp letters, and your heart sinks. You get the call. You hear […]
