grief response to VT massacre

Friday, April 20, 2007

Within the last two years, I have lost three friends and relatives. The most recent was my mother, who died in October from complications after a wheelchair accident in which she broke her right leg. I am, needless to say, mourning.

So, I can barely watch the news this week. But I do watch a little because, just like 9/11 or Katrina, VT has potential to raise our awareness in a way that can help us grow as individuals in communities within a nation. And I have a very personal response, something to share.

On television the other day, I saw one of the VT students being carried to safety by officers. He had been shot in the right leg. I don't know his name, but they said he was an Eagle scout and had put a tournoquet on his own leg, saving his own life.

It took me a while to realize that I was not only sad for him, but also for my mother. Now about seven months after her death, I'm constantly surprised at how much more grief comes up than I expect. And I feel a connection with those who grieve the VT students as well as the rest of you who are, like me, grieving the loss of your grandmother, your friend, your mother, or someone else who you suddenly find yourself wishing you could visit or call on your cell at unexpected moments.

I hope, and I pray that all the grieving people in Virginia and around the country have a lot of space and support to grieve as long and as much as they need to.

And I also hope that you and those around you who are grieving your own losses find ways to mourn, alone, with others, in the presence of others, whatever you need. This takes a lot of awareness and understanding from those around us. And it takes a lot longer than it appears to from a distance.
-poetSequitur

I got one comment: awayfromlove said...
misha, so glad to find you here! thanks for sharing this...we are shaken as well, maybe not as deep. my heart goes out to you and all who are suffering in this Easter season--may the wounds become a door, in walking through become a resurrection.

April 20, 2007 8:40 PM