OK, I know I said I was going to tell you about the information that would help you make a more informed decision about what happened to Cindy. But I’m going to delay that because I have to share this awesome story that I remember hearing at Hospice Yukon (You’ll love it): Two men, both […]

Today I was watching the TV’s listings channel and looking for the news stations. Suddenly I heard the familiar pan-flute music of the Romanian artist Gheorghe Zamfir. I was riveted. It’s been forever since I’ve heard his precious melodies! Years ago, as I had watched the guests filing out of the chapel and walking past […]

Death, dying and grieving are a natural part of life and sometimes our society doesn’t always do a good job of preparing people for facing their own deaths or the loss of loved ones. But the Lights of Life project (a tree lighting ritual that I participated in while I lived in Canada’s far north—Whitehorse, […]

On Tuesday a sentencing hearing will begin for Robert “Willie” Pickton, the man who was recently convicted of second-degree murder of the six women whose butchered remains were found on his pig farm. That verdict will certainly help the family move forward as they continue to grieve. And so will the victim impact statements they […]

When I was grieving for my sister, Cindy, I was blessed to have time with wonderful people who supported me, who listened to my heartache, who cried with me and who uplifted me in some of my darkest moments. There were countless times when I was alone with my despair and countless times when I […]

When my sister, Cindy James, died, I found it hard to believe it was a reality—I was in shock and bathed in numbness, disbelief, denial (and eventually acceptance). When the numbness wore off I felt intense emotional pain and gut-wrenching emptiness (and it was scary) but I learned this was a natural, common, and healthy […]

Recently a fire raged within the community I live in, and it was nerve wracking. I’ll never forget the sight as I rounded the corner at the bottom of my street early one evening and saw the fire on the hill behind my home (I had been out river fishing with my family). Trees were […]

After my sister, Cindy, died, I was amazed that the rest of the world went on as usual. This immediate sense of isolation hit full force when, from the window of a limo en route to her funeral, I watched the world go by. Before the limo picked us up for the funeral, some family […]

Just as our body goes through a healing process when it is injured, our mind enters into a healing process that allows itself to recover from the emotional injury of being traumatized. It is true that you lose a mirror for your heart when someone you love, dies! There is no “sure cure” in grief. […]

Many people who have shared their sorrows with me about their own losses of loved ones have told me how “lucky” I was to have a “meeting” with Cindy (see my previous Blog entry) and how they yearned to also have such an encounter with the person they lost in death. I’ve heard how other […]