grief

Losing a family member is one of the most traumatic life events; Families must support one another to endure the five stages of grief and get through it together.

The Stench of the Silence . Content Warning.
The stench of the silence is what angers me the most. The void that is left deep within your soul and it seems like no matter how much you try to prepare you never truly are. Closest thing that I can thing of is having a baby, but I lost my baby. I was supposed to take care of you when you got old, at least that's what you told little me. This grief has brought about a sense of anger that worries me. It's the type of anger that calms me, the type of anger that would have the audacity to control me. But daddy can I ask you a serious question? I don't want to know why you left, this earth ghetto as hell and I get your heart was broken in ways we weren't exposed too.. But why did you go by yourself? Why wouldn't you want someone there to go down that journey with you? You were loved by so many in ways I don' t think you understand...Why you have to leave alone, was that the place you were mentally in? I just wish we could've talked one last time. To hear your voice and your laugh, I would've never imagined that I would have to open up the box of memories in order for you to be here with me.
By Mother Amaru 7 months ago in Families
The Small Hand at the Casket
My cousin’s kid was seven years old at her grandfather’s funeral. She tugged on her mom’s sleeve and asked, in a voice loud enough for half the room to hear: “Is Grandpa sleeping? Why won’t he wake up?”
By Cher Che7 months ago in Families
Do I Have To?
Tuesday was a “national” day of celebration, but not everyone was in a celebratory mood. While our nation and others were partying and gorging themselves on corned beef, potatoes, cabbage, and an overabundance of beer, one person was grieving and sinking into a rabbit hole of sadness over the death of a parent.
By Alexandra Grant7 months ago in Families
She’s not the way I imagined her.
It took me a long time to say this out loud, but today I’ve accepted it: my mother is not the person I once imagined her to be.
By Anya megmondja/ “Mom will tell you.”7 months ago in Families
The Baby No One Saw
The night was quiet, the kind of quiet that presses gently against the walls and settles into every corner of a house. Emma sat on the bathroom floor, her back resting against the cold porcelain of the bathtub. The small yellow light above the mirror hummed softly. In her hands was her phone, its screen glowing with lines of poetry about grief.
By LUNA EDITH8 months ago in Families
A Heavenly reminder of an important date
I woke up a little earlier than usual this morning and was editing some Vocal articles at 3:40 a.m. When I came across My Heart Still Beats for You I realized that it would soon be five years since my husband passed away. I decided I would re-share this story on March 21st, and as I saved my changes, I had a supernatural encounter.
By Cheryl E Preston8 months ago in Families
The Paradox of Liberation
Every year on International Women’s Day, the world pauses to celebrate women—our strength, our endurance, our long and unfinished walk toward dignity.
By Aja Truth8 months ago in Families
Love That Acts, Not Love That Speaks
When Love Became a Language Instead of a Practice In modern parenting culture, love is increasingly defined by what is said rather than what is done. Emotional affirmation, verbal reassurance, and constant validation are treated as the primary evidence of care, while less expressive forms of love are often overlooked or misunderstood. A parent who says “I love you” frequently and validates feelings consistently is assumed to be providing something essential, while a parent who demonstrates care through sacrifice, consistency, and enforcement may be perceived as distant or emotionally limited.
By Peter Thwing - Host of the FST Podcast8 months ago in Families
Rewriting unpleasant childhood experiences can help people feel less afraid of failing.
Have you ever been reluctant to start something new because you thought you wouldn't succeed? That fear begins in childhood for a lot of people. A critical remark made by a parent or instructor might linger for years. Those recollections may eventually develop into a profound fear of failing.
By Francis Dami8 months ago in Families
The Price of Depredation:
By a Black woman who reads the fine print I. The Myth of the “Value” Price We are told, over and over, that a “low price” is a kindness to the consumer. An act of corporate generosity. In reality, it is an accounting trick. The price tag is not a measure of efficiency; it is a map of who is allowed to be harmed. When a big-box retailer sells something below the cost of sustainable production, the discount does not appear by magic. It is pulled from the bodies of workers in the Global South, from the health of Black and brown communities at home, and from the erosion of wages for everyone else. The world pays the difference—with toxic water, children who grow up too fast, and neighborhoods stripped of local businesses.
By Aja Truth8 months ago in Families
He Was a Teenager With a Bright Future
CHECK OUT MY EBOOKS COLLECTION By Soul on Fire LEAVIE SCOTT ST. LOUIS — In the sharp light of a July evening, a 52‑year‑old man stepped out of the Mel Carnahan Courthouse, paused, and placed a hand to his chest. He scanned a city that had grown up without him—glassier buildings, faster phones, different slang, a world that felt like a foreign country. His name was Christopher Dunn, and on July 30, 2024, after more than three decades behind bars for the 1990 killing of 15‑year‑old Ricco (Recco/Ricco) Rogers, a judge’s ruling and a prosecutor’s decision finally opened the door to his freedom.
By Press Release 8 months ago in Families
Love, Loss and the Leash That Started It All. Content Warning. AI-Generated.
It was a warm Saturday morning in early spring. I was half awake, holding a cup of coffee in one hand and my golden retriever’s leash in the other. She was the kind of dog who loved everyone. I, on the other hand, needed a little warming up.
By Pets Lify8 months ago in Families