I wrote this on Christmas Day, 2021—ten weeks after Jeremy graduated to Glory. I believed it then, and I know it to be true now, more than ever. He is […]
Skipping Christmas
Wanna skip Christmas this year? I hear you. And I get it. But perhaps there’s another way. Here are some thoughts on celebrating Christmas, even when our Christmas isn’t, at […]
Thankful, Grateful, Grieving
Grief and gratitude can coexist. You can be truly thankful and also deeply saddened by the empty chair at your table. Leave space for your memories today. Then, through your […]
Your Song Isn’t Over Yet
I’m still wearing my pause necklace. She’s a little rough with wear. In fact, I stopped wearing her for a minute because she’s all pitted and the “gold” is rubbed […]
Thankful for Grief
I am thankful for grief. Hear me out… Grief is love. 🥀 Not, “I once loved,” but rather, “I love still.” I am privileged to have had a love that […]
Love Bends Down
She was exhausted. She was out of her comfort zone. She’d had enough. So, he just sat with her. For as long as it took.
Because love bends down.
Like a good earthly father sits by his struggling child—tenderly, lovingly, patiently—so our good heavenly Father stoops down to us in our need. For as long as it takes.
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When You Want to Ask Why
When we realized Jeremy wasn’t going to make it, I looked at my dad and asked, “Why does this keep happening to me?” When bad things happen, often our first […]
Grief and Gratitude
Thanksgiving has always been a month-long holiday in the Smith home. When our boys were little, our family began an exercise in thanks-living, which became a yearly tradition for us. […]
The Binder of My Wounds
Jeremy married a very broken girl almost 27 years ago. In him, God graced me with exactly what I needed in that particular season. He was patient and steady and […]
And Then Came Cancer
Exactly one year and one day from the death of my beloved husband, I had the first of three surgeries to remove cancer from my body. More specifically, a double […]
2 years—cancer free!
When I found out I had cancer only nine months after my husband died, I didn’t think I even wanted to survive it. I was numb. I was exhausted. I […]