WELCOME TO OUR BLOG
Welcome to the SevenPonds.com blog – a community-driven extension of SevenPonds.com! I hope you find comfort and community in the resources and stories featured here. I’m always happy to hear from readers and can be reached at suzette@sevenponds.com.
FEATURED
-
10 Facts About Hospice Care You May Not Know" />
10 Facts About Hospice Care You May Not Know: NHPCO stresses that hospice is about living fully, not preparing for death. -
Man of Many Faces" />
Man of Many Faces: A niece says goodbye to her favorite gay uncle, in whom she confided about her own sexuality -
Last Rites: A Catholic Send-Off" />
Last Rites: A Catholic Send-Off: A look at the religion's final prayer procession for the dying
-
Tag Archives: Poetry
“Death is a Dialogue” by Emily Dickinson
A dialogue between death and spirituality in an Emily Dickinson poem offers an interesting perspective
Emily Dickinson, one of the greatest American poets of all time, is no lightweight when it comes to exploring death. In her poem “Death is a Dialogue,” Dickinson touches on a few contrasting ideas that portray death as a complex … Continue reading
Posted in The Next Chapter
Tagged Afterlife, Death, Death is a Dialogue, Death Poem, Diction, Emily Dickinson, Healing, Metaphor, Mystical, Poetry, Religion and Spirituality, Spirituality, Symbolism, Trust
Leave a comment
Walt Whitman’s “Whispers of Heavenly Death”
Exploring the unknowns after death through poetry
Walt Whitman’s poetry has been immortalized by his beautiful, visceral tributes to nature that leave us rethinking our ideas of the world around us. Whitman begins triumphantly in “Whispers of Heavenly Death” as though he wants his readers to picture … Continue reading
Posted in The Next Chapter
Tagged Death, Death Poems, Poetry, Walt Whitman, Whispers of Heavenly Death
Leave a comment
“Another Weeping Woman” by Wallace Stevens
Earnest advice for grieving, moving on and cherishing a loved one’s memory
In “Another Weeping Woman,” by Wallace Stevens, we are given earnest advice to move on and let go. While we at SevenPonds suggest you take your time with the grieving process and give you emotions as much attention as they … Continue reading
“Doesn’t Matter if You’re Coming or Going”
Coping with loss through my poetry
Poetry of loss contributed by Nate Reid. “The Medically Induced Coma” A man stood beside a warm hospital bed Watching his son die, one piece at a time. “He still might survive,” the kind doctor said. “There’s one more solution … Continue reading
Posted in Opening our Hearts
Tagged Copy with Loss, Hearts, Loss of a Child, Loss of a friend, Poetry
1 Comment
Have Fun with Life!
Finding freedom from loss and fear
This is the story of Francisco, “Frandu”, as told by Dana Sitar. I was out of my house, lost my family and my wife of twenty years. And the doctor had just informed me that I have about six years … Continue reading
Memorial Poems for Mother’s Day
Words to celebrate Mom even after she's gone
Your Mother is Always With You – Anonymous Your mother is always with you… She’s the whisper of the leaves as you walk down the street. She’s the smell of bleach in your freshly laundered socks. She’s the cool hand … Continue reading
Exploring Grief, Loss, Death and Dying
Bloggers exploring the end-of-life through poetry, art, and prose.
Exploring Death This anonymous blogger created the blog entitled SarSaparillameliSSa to explore her world through photography and the written word. “The Tree that Bleeds” is a poem dedicated to exploring death. Here’s an excerpt: Long sunset shadows chill his bones. … Continue reading
Posted in Soulful Expressions
Tagged Art, Blogging, Death, Grief, Healing, Loss, Poetry
Leave a comment
A Different Take on Death
Anna Barbauld's poem questions life, not death
“Life,” by Anna Barbauld, is a unique poem; rather than question what death is, and wonder what happens to us after we die, Barbauld ponders what exactly life is. In her view, life is the active force, not death. Life … Continue reading
“Glad Did I Live and Gladly Die”
Robert Louis Stevenson drives a crucial point home
I’ve been thinking a lot about boldness lately, about saying what you want to say when you want to say it. This concept of simply stating what you mean is certainly at work in “Requiem,” by Robert Louis Stevenson, one … Continue reading
Posted in The Next Chapter
Tagged Accepting Death, Literature, Poetry, Requiem, Robert Louis Stevenson
1 Comment
“Sing No Sad Songs for Me”
Christina Rossetti's poem is still powerful and relevant, nearly 150 years later
It’s the holiday season, and unfortunately, this can be a difficult time for people who have lost loved ones. Although this makes it hard to get into the cheerful holiday spirit, we must keep in mind that whoever has passed, … Continue reading
Posted in The Next Chapter
Tagged Christina Rossetti, Holidays, Loss, Poetry, When I am dead my dearest
3 Comments
“Healthy children will not fear life if their elders have integrity enough not to fear death.”
-Erik H. Erikson
Posted in A Right of Passage
Tagged Children and Death, Death, Death Saying, Death Saying Goodbye, Erik H. Erikson, Life, Poetry, Saying
1 Comment
An Interview with Dr. Nader Shabahangi
The president and CEO of AgeSong Institute opens up about elder care and our fear of aging
Nader Shabahangi, Ph.D., is a licensed psychotherapist based in the Bay Area. Through his work at the AgeSong Institute and its elder communities, he has become an advocate for elders and for programs that provide more comprehensive elder care. His … Continue reading
Posted in Professional Advice
Tagged AgeSong, Aging and Elder Care, anti-aging, elders, grandparents, Poetry, senior community, seniors
1 Comment
”I shift my pillow closer to the full moon.”
- Saiba, Died on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, 1858 at the age of fifty-one.
“To fear death is nothing other than to think oneself wise when one is not. For it is to think one knows what one does not know. No one knows whether death may not even turn out to be one of the greatest blessings of human beings. And yet people fear it as if they knew for certain it is the greatest evil.”
-Socrates
Posted in A Right of Passage
Tagged Death and Dying, Fear Death, Poem, Poetry, Socrates
Leave a comment
“It is Just as Lucky to Die”
Walt Whitman sees the good fortune in dying
I fell in love with the poems of Walt Whitman in high school, and to this day I still have my worn-out copy of his poetry collection, Leaves of Grass, peppered with bookmarks of my favorite pieces. One of these … Continue reading
Posted in The Next Chapter
Tagged Death, Leaves of Grass, Poetry, Song of Myself, Walt Whitman
1 Comment
Death as a Journey
Emily Dickinson's poem offers a peaceful look at death
I’ve been looking a lot at writers’ views on death itself lately, but not as much at what happens after death. Emily Dickinson offers her take on the afterlife in “Because I could not stop for Death,” arguably her most … Continue reading
Posted in The Next Chapter
Tagged "Because I could not stop for death", Death, Emily Dickinson, Poetry
1 Comment
“Life is a great sunrise. I do not see why death should not be an even greater one.”
-Vladimir Nabokov
Hope for a Healing Nation
Henry Vaughan's poem offers an inspiring look at death
The ten-year anniversary of September 11th, 2001 is just six days from now, and because of that, I wanted to choose a piece of literature that really captured the feelings of our nation after these tragic events took place. Well, … Continue reading
Posted in The Next Chapter
Tagged 9/11, Death, Henry Vaughan, Poetry, They Are All Gone into the World of Light
Leave a comment
Death as Transition
John Donne helps us see that we are all connected, even in death
You have probably heard the famous phrase “No man is an island,” whether in a classroom, or being quoted by one of your more pretentious friends. But you might be less familiar with the piece of writing this expression originates from: … Continue reading