Better Together

I love the Old Testament story of Ruth and Naomi. It’s a reminder that our story isn’t over when loss occurs.  Naomi suffers the loss of her husband and both sons.  One of those sons was married to Ruth.  Both women are faced with the plight of being alone in a culture and land where widows are the least of the least.  In Ruth chapter 1, verse 16, (CSB) Ruth expresses her strong desire to stay with Naomi, her mother-in-law, and return to Bethlehem: “Don’t plead with me to abandon you or to return and not follow you.  For where you go, I will go, and wherever you live, I will live; your people will be my people, and your God will be my God.”  Ruth defiantly declares her loyalty to Naomi and refuses to let her go home alone.  Together they form a bond that opened their hearts to hope.  They had each other and God did not abandon them.

It just takes one person to remind us we are not alone in our grief journey.  While grief is a journey only we can take by ourselves, we can find other traveling companions on the path. In the book, A Grace Disguised, author Jerry Sittser says, “My loss joined brokenness and love together.  Brokenness drove me to love, and I found a source of love that I could not find in myself.  I found it in community, and in the God who creates and sustains community for broken people like me.”

The latest research says that one in five Americans feel lonely or socially isolated.  We are not meant to do life alone.  There’s much healing that happens when we share our pain and walk alongside one another.  Ruth and Naomi give us a beautiful example of love, support and the power of togetherness.  Their losses were not the end of their stories.  Same for us.  Our stories are continuing to unfold as we find others to walk alongside us on the journey. 

"Grateful Yet Grieving"

FREE ebook by Pam Luschei | Click HERE To Download

Telling Our Stories

Last month August 30 was designated National Grief Awareness Day.  I think 9/11 might be considered another National Grief Awareness Day.  As we look at the 20th anniversary of what took place on 9/11, we pause to ponder and reflect on those who died and their loved ones who will never forget.

When my daughter lived in Washington D.C., my husband and I made a visit to the Pentagon Memorial. As I entered the memorial, I felt a sense of reverence and respect. I was on holy ground. Seeing the names of those whose lives were lost made it real.  They all left for work on that Tuesday morning expecting to come home again.  Life stopped for all their loved ones. 

Two women who lost their husbands on that fateful Tuesday have written their stories in books.  Lisa Beamer wrote, “Let’s Roll”, about her 32 year old husband, Todd Beamer, who was on Flight 93 that crashed in Pennsylvania.  Jennifer Sands wrote, “A Tempered Faith”, after she lost her husband, Jim Sands, at the World Trade Center. Both women found ways to honor their husbands by telling their stories in their books. In the same way, we get to tell our stories.  Recently, I sat at a table with four other women who had suffered loss.  The connection was palatable.  We each told our story and said our husband’s name out loud.  There was a sweetness in that moment, knowing we were not alone.  We had all entered the space of humanity where loss occurs and hope is discovered. 

Time passes and life has changed for all of those who lost loved ones on September 11, 2001.      

Whether 20 years have passed or three months, we want our loved one who is gone to be remembered. These words by author Rachael Naomi Remen speak to the journey we are on; “Grieving allows us to heal, to remember with love rather than pain. It is a sorting process. One by one you let go of things that are gone and you mourn for them. One by one you take hold of the things that have become a part of who you are and build again.” Letting go and taking hold are part of the sorting process as we remember with love those we lost.

"Grateful Yet Grieving"

FREE ebook by Pam Luschei | Click HERE To Download