Ch.225 Pat and Judy’s Radiant Smiles Nov. 2023           Most Wednesdays at noon I eat lunch with my friends Richard and Jerry. Jerry, like me, is a widower; Read more

Ch.224 Walking at Daybreak Nov.2023 7:15 a.m. 27 degrees Fahrenheit. Just a hint of light in the sky. Time for a walk.           Blackie, my cat, has been awake a Read more

Ch.223 My Grieving Brain           Oct.2023           About eight months ago I made an appointment with a neurologist at Mayo Clinic in Eau Claire, Read more

Ch.64 Ron Becomes Anxious and Irritable Summer, 2020           Lately I’ve been anxious and irritable. I’ll talk about my irritability later in this essay, but for now let Read more

Ch.221 Evidence of Healing: A Tale of Two Vacations Oct.2023           Last May I flew to Canada to visit my brothers Don and Art, eleven months after Pat’s Read more

Ch.220 Please Worry Just a Little Sept. 2023           There is a special look reserved for people talking to someone in mourning: closely attentive with sad but searching Read more

Ch.219 I Feel Too Full of Feelings Sept. 2023           Do you remember the phrase from a John Denver ballad (“Annie’s Song): “You fill up my senses”?     Read more

Ch.218 What Happened to “Us” When Pat Died? Oct. 2023                 The day Pat died, I felt as if I was being split in two. Read more

Ch.217 Why Is Grief Such a Strange Feeling? Sept. 2023           One thing that has puzzled me all through the last 15 months is why does grief feel Read more

Ch.216 Feeling Empty on Pat’s Birthday Sept.1, 2023           Something felt wrong the moment I awakened, about 6 a.m. today. I felt hollow, an emptiness in my belly. Read more

Ch.215 Grievers’ Enemy: Lonely Weekends August 2023 I was having coffee with Betty, a recent widow when she said, “I hate weekends, I hate them.” She talked about how lonely she felt on Read more

Ch.214 An Unexpected Invitation August 2023 There is an organization of volunteers in the Eau Claire/Chippewa Falls area who run an open-ended support group for grieving individuals, mostly for spouses of loved Read more

Ch.213 My Two Worlds Aug 2023           I attended a two-day workshop on grief recently. My goal, when I attend seminars, no matter how long, is a modest Read more

Ch.212 Am I Abandoning Pat? August 2023           It was about 4 p.m. I’d been busy all day with chores, visiting my horse, walking my dog and my Read more

Ch.211 Critical Decisions: Pat and Levi Aug. 2023            For almost a decade my collie Levi has carried a fluid-filled sac that hangs from his mid-section. Every time Read more

Ch. 210 Walking My Cat July 2023           I was taking a walk on the road by my home the day after Pat died, my collie Levi twenty Read more

Ch.209 I Give Away 150 Bales of Hay July 2023           Two weeks ago, I placed an ad in a local paper called the Ad Delight. “Free outdated Read more

Ch.208 Our 58th Anniversary July 3, 2023           Pat and I were married on July 3, 1965. That means every July I will commemorate almost simultaneously both Pat’s death Read more

Ch.207 Hanging On or Getting Through My Loss? June 2023           “I choosy with the pain I feel,” Sarah said. “Some people pain is eternal. Some people worship Read more

Ch.206 Levi Hasn’t Eaten in Three Days June 2023           Four mornings ago, my 13-year-old collie Levi began coughing lightly and panting frequently. He began walking more slowly Read more