(The post below was written on April 27, 2020. My mom passed on April 4, 2020.)
A lot of people have been asking about my dad and how he’s doing since my mom passed.
I would say he’s doing ok. He’s really sad and he really misses my mom, but that’s to be expected. I would be more concerned if he wasn’t feeling that way.
My mom and dad were high school sweethearts. They have been married for almost 52 years. Of course he’s going to be really sad and miss her tremendously.
But, I also see a little bit of relief in that she’s no longer suffering. She’s finally at rest. I also see a little bit of hope in that he will be able to spend more time with his family and granddaughters (well, once this whole pandemic thing is over).
As they say, grief comes in waves. Some days he’s treading water, maybe even walking along the shore, and other days he’s drowning. That’s normal. That’s how I feel, too.
One thing I’ve learned from my mom’s journey with Alzheimer’s is patience. I will be patient with his grief, as well as with my own. I will hold his breaking, bleeding heart and sit with him in his brokenness, in his emptiness. We will take turns lifting each other up and trudging forward with our grief.
Because deep grief simply means deep love. We loved hard, so we will grieve hard.
Our grief will never leave us, but neither will my mom. She is always with us.
And we will never leave each other. Hand in hand, through the fog, until we all come out the other side.
Lauren, I read a few of your posts and it brought me to tears. Thank you for sharing your journey and sharing the path as a daughter going through your tumultuous journey. I have had a different one, but with similar turns, unfortunately. I wanted to reach out as I looked at the dates of your posts and…1) I’m so sorry that you lost your mom, 2) I’m sorry you are having to grief and support your Dad during this pandemic.
I’d love to connect with you when you’re up for it…to see if we could help each other in providing support to others…but in the meantime, if it’s helpful, take a look and see if Treasure Texts would help your Dad through grief. I launched Treasure Texts as a tribute and inspiration to my late Dad. At some point, I’d love your thoughts and the potential opportunity to connect. Take a look.
https://www.treasuretexts.com/
And to read a bit more on my story, click here: https://www.treasuretexts.com/ourstory
I can’t take your pain away, but I understand the pain of losing a parent after a long journey. Sending you prayers of peace.