So my cousin Lee Anne and I are coming back from after lunch today and both of our necks snap as we spot this off in the distance.
This tree is all split all up from the violent thunderstorm last night–large tree limbs everywhere. She and I spotted this from the car off in the distance at the same time and said in unison we say, “A griefheart!” I can’t even figure out how nature made this one. It’s like the storm carved it out of the wood at the top just for me.
Since my son’s suicide, there are many days my heart is in utter turmoil and feels twisted and tortured. And then after that grief storm lets up, it often feels so full of love and life, it’s bottomless. What will happen to this tree? Will it live through all this?
I am an emotionally naked mental health speaker, and author of the Book, Diary of a Broken Mind and co-author with Kim O'Brien PhD, LICSW of Emotionally Naked: A Teacher's Guide to Preventing Suicide and Recognizing Students at Risk. I raised two boys, Richard and Charles, and lost my younger son, Charles to addiction and suicide on June 5, 2015. I help people foster a culture of connection to prevent suicide, reduce substance misuse and find life after loss. My motivational mental health keynotes, training and workshop topics include suicide prevention, addiction, mental illness, anxiety, coping strategies/resilience, and grief.
As talented and funny as Charles was, letting other people know they matter was his greatest gift. And now the legacy I try and carry forward in my son's memory.
Mental Health Speakers Website. Trained in ASIST and trainer for the evidence-based 4-hour training for everyone called safeTALK.
View all posts by Anne Moss Rogers
One thought on “Stormy heart – #griefheart 68”
I, too, find inspiration in nature that makes me think of my child. As time passed after the death (by suicide) of my daughter, Madison, my heart, too, was still tortured – definitely like a piece was gone. But, I had a new-found empathy for others and I found relief and moments of joy in giving and doing for others. It is like the part of my heart that remained is swelling bigger each time trying to achieve maximum capacity. There will always be a hole and a deep sadness but there is still life to be lived and love to be shared.
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I, too, find inspiration in nature that makes me think of my child. As time passed after the death (by suicide) of my daughter, Madison, my heart, too, was still tortured – definitely like a piece was gone. But, I had a new-found empathy for others and I found relief and moments of joy in giving and doing for others. It is like the part of my heart that remained is swelling bigger each time trying to achieve maximum capacity. There will always be a hole and a deep sadness but there is still life to be lived and love to be shared.