Earlier this week I was interviewed by Lori Latimer for her podcast, Grief with Grace. The episode will air in a few weeks and I will share it when it does.
Although I was the interviewee, I learned so much from and about Lori. An hour of conversation on Zoom doesn’t seem long enough to really learn about someone, especially when they are the one asking the questions. However, Lori was so easy to speak with, and I felt a deep connection with her from the outset.
Lori lost her son, Greg, very unexpectedly about a year ago and has been navigating her grief ever since. I first connected with her through an online business group, as you do during these times of social distancing and isolation. Some people just stand out, don’t they? Whether in person or online. Those who know me know that I’ve always believed in the power of the internet, and particularly social media, to connect people. I’ve met some of my closest friends in cyberspace! I began listening to Lori’s podcast and was immediately struck by the aptness of the name, Grief with Grace. She created it specifically for grieving moms, but really, it speaks to anyone struggling with profound loss.
Grief is a black hole. A vortex that draws you in until you feel that you will suffocate. It’s untamed, and destructive in its wildness. In those first weeks, months, even years, it’s unpredictable, and most people would not even be capable of navigating those unchartered waters and finding a course toward grace. Yet that is exactly what Lori has done.
She has taken her pain and her devastation and found her way to compassion, acknowledging that she is not alone, that there are other grieving mothers that could benefit by sharing her grief journey.
It’s a way of honouring Greg, and bringing him with her into the life she now has to live without his physical presence. “It’s a selfish motivation”, she says, but I don’t agree. I believe that it’s a motivation spurred by grace. A grace that comes naturally to this extraordinary woman, who is so clearly in the depths of grief, yet manages to look beyond and see a path forward in which she, together with Greg, can help others navigate the devastation of loss.
It may seem that she has undertaken this journey solo, but I believe that Greg walks with her, and together, with Grace, they are going to change lives.
You can follow the Grief with Grace podcast on all major podcast apps and you can find the podcast page here: https://griefwithgrace.buzzsprout.com/
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