It is nearly the end of December. It is nearly the end of December. One more time for the people up the back: IT IS NEARLY THE END OF DECEMBER. Holy cow. What a year, huh? The world went nuts. NUTS. Satirists and comedians had a great ...
Strobe (National Stroke Week 12-18 September 2016)
When I was nine years old, my family bought a VCR. We were so excited, so fascinated. It had a remote control! And the remote control had lots of buttons! So very many buttons! Our favourite button was labelled STROBE. If you pressed it, it ...
You’re doing grief wrong
"You're doing grief wrong." No-one has ever said this to me. Not directly. And I hope that no-one has ever said it to you, either. But I have a question for those of you who have grieved: have you ever felt like this is what others are ...
My Mother, My Father – edited by Susan Wyndham (book review)
Last year, I attended the Bendigo Writers Festival. One of the sessions I attended was titled On Grieving. As someone who has lamented the lack of books available on the topic of grief, this was one of the first sessions I circled in my program. I ...
Reflecting on 2015
Warning: self-indulgence ahead. Still here? Fabulous! But don't say I didn't warn you. This time last year, I reflected on the year that was. My 'greatest hits' of the year, by month, in reverse order. And it was a lovely way to round out the ...
Feelings
(Image source: Jean Jullien - Facebook - Instagram) I'm feeling a lot of things at the moment. I'm feeling shock that there are people in the world who think so little of human life. I'm feeling grief for the victims of the terrorist ...
Boy, Lost – Kristina Olsson (book review)
In August, I went to the Bendigo Writers Festival and had a wonderful time. I thought I would enjoy it and get a bit from it, but my expectations were exceeded. Twice over. One of the sessions I attended was titled On Grieving. As someone who has ...
Without My Mum – Leigh Van Der Horst (book review)
Earlier this year, I lamented the lack of books and stories about grief when I shared my own story of grief. I was, and remain, annoyed that grief is a largely taboo subject. We are expected to sweep feelings of grief and loss under the carpet, and ...
Untabooing grief
This week, my family celebrates the 20th anniversary of my father's death. Did that sentence make you feel uncomfortable? Me too. They're not the right words, are they? Celebrates. Anniversary. But the problem is, there ARE no right words. We are ...