Tag Archives: Grief

How Can a Labyrinth Help in the Grieving Process? An Interview with Lauren Artress

In the first part of our two-part interview, SevenPonds speaks with Reverend Lauren Artress about what it is like to walk a labyrinth and the ways that a labyrinth can help with the grieving process

Reverend Lauren Artress is an inspiring Canon at Grace Cathedral in San Francisco, and a spiritual pioneer in the Labyrinth Movement. She has written many books on the labyrinth and holds workshops around the world. Lauren’s labyrinth-based nonprofit, Veriditas, has the mission … Continue reading

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 “Death With Dignity” by Sufjan Stevens

A memorial song that captures loss, longing and the pain of coming to terms with a parent's personal failures

In the first few lines in the first song off his newest album, Sufjan Stevens invokes a sacred silence, desire, confusion and fear: “Spirit of my silence I can hear you / But I am afraid to be near you.” In … Continue reading

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Marks the Spot

Dave Nance's photographic series "Descansos" documents the roadside memorials of the American Southwest

Death, so they say, is inescapable. It is a private affair that plays out in public, and the depths of grief follow the same shifting landscape of public and personal. A death is marked in the public sphere in obituaries, … Continue reading

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“Wake Me Up When September Ends” by Green Day

This mournful song acts as a reminder to cherish our loved ones while we have them

The iconic modern-punk band Green Day is no stranger to writing and performing mournful and nostalgic ballads. As we’ve seen before, their early song, “Good Riddance (Time of Your Life),” has served as an inspiration to many who play it … Continue reading

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Working Stiff: Two Years, 262 Bodies, and the Making of a Medical Examiner by Judy Melinek, M.D. and T.J. Mitchell

Judy Melinek shares how her career as a pathologist has colored her understanding of life and death

Judy Melinek’s Working Stiff is the kind of memoir that reads like a season of the TV show “CSI”. In her book, she writes how her experience as a forensic pathologist has led her to uncover murder plots, medical accidents … Continue reading

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Remains Close to the Heart

Amanda Straka's bespoke memorial jewelry holds ashes in a sweet place

Moving through the process of mourning the death of someone you love is a complicated path. Through time, the sharp intensity of loss softens a bit. The deeply transformative throes of grief ebb and flow as we come to terms … Continue reading

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