The Aftermath…When a Loved One Dies by Suicide
By Iris Bolton, MA
‘These days are the Winter of the soul…
But Spring comes…
And brings new Life and Beauty…
Because of the growth of the roots in the dark”
The mystery of life and death is beyond understanding. Who could even imagine the sudden death of a child, a sibling, a parent, grandparent, spouse, or friend. And suicide? That event is reported on television and in the newspapers, but it doesn’t happen in your own family, or to people you know…but it does! It happened to me and my husband and our family. On February 19, l977, our world collapsed and changed forever. Our twenty-year-old son, Mitch, ended his life with a gun. The impact on our other three sons and our extended family and friends will never be fully known. Continue reading››
Beatitudes for Survivors after Suicide
By LaRita Archibald
BLESSED are they that recognize suicide grief is compounded; that we grieve the death of a beloved person, but first and foremost, we grieve the cause of the death.
BLESSED are they that give us permission to mourn the loss of one dearly loved, free of judgment, censure, and shame.
BLESSED are spiritual guides who relieve our concerns for the repose of our loved one’s soul with the truth that God is All-Knowing, All-Loving, and All-Forgiving.
BLESSED are they that don’t offer the meaningless cliché, “Time Heals,” because, for a long while, the passing of time holds no meaning or value for us. Continue reading››