When Sorrow Weighs You Down (warning: deals with death)

Warning: this is a sad post and deals with death. It is not the post I had in mind for today.

Please .. no more bad, sad news. Enough.

It seems every time someone calls with news this year it is sad.

Actually it started in November of last year when a wonderful friend, Linda, passed away quietly in her sleep. She was in a nursing home for the care needed because of her illnesses. She was only 60.

On the very first day of January this year, Cynthia, an elderly friend, passed away. She had Alzheimer’s, was in hospital after suffering a broken hip, and did not recover. Added to her husband’s pain, near the end of that month, their son James contracted Meningitis. All efforts failed to save him and he passed away in hospital.

News of two other deaths came this week. The husband of an acquaintance was found, having died suddenly, the cause yet to be determined. Then on February 1, the best friend of the boyfriend of one of my daughters came home and found his young wife had passed away unexpectedly due to a medical problem. He is left to raise their two small children.

All of those are so heart-wrenching, but what has personally hit me the hardest is the news I received this morning. Ruby, a long-time friend and my husband’s cousin, passed away this morning. She was a cancer survivor but the treatments seven years ago seriously damaged her heart so when more cancer was discovered in December there was nothing that could safely be done for her this time. She chose to not try it. Hardly out of her fifties, her spirit departed this life and her loved ones a few hours ago.

My heart is heavy. I have cried many tears, grief sweeps over me in waves. But even though I sorrow it is not without hope. I am reminded of the Scripture verse 1 Thessalonians 4:13 that says in part, “that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope.” I know for a fact that three I mentioned above knew the Lord Jesus, the others I cannot say for sure. But families and friends can find their comfort in the Lord, and will carry on – even with heavy hearts.

If you are a Believer I know your prayers would be appreciated for the spouses, families, and friends of the ones I mentioned – for comfort and strength. It’s a rough beginning to this year and a long road ahead.

If you yourself are facing difficulties .. be encouraged. There is One who knows and is ever-present and waiting to walk through them with you.

Life changes, brings circumstances that sometimes we wish we never had to face, but life still goes on. It is our choice what to do with the short time we have.

On the flip side there are exciting surprises and situations that come into our life path, things that make us dance or sing or jump up and down. And, I have found, that even when death comes .. for the one who has hope there is reason to rejoice.

Do you have any experiences that you would like to tell us of God’s comfort?

If you know of any books for children on this topic of death, mourning, grief, please let me know by leaving a comment. Thank you.

Thanks for reading, and … Creative Musings! 🙂

 

 

 

 

18 thoughts on “When Sorrow Weighs You Down (warning: deals with death)”

  3. Oh that is so sad Lynn. Of course our prayers go out to all the families who have lost loved ones. I read a book about turtles but I can’t remember the name of it. There are a lot but they are not listed together unfortunately. Thinking of you and sincerely hope that is it for this year now Lynn. x

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    1. Thank you, Catherine. I will call the bookstore and I may have to just do a search. I was thinking a book like that may be good for Ruby’s little grand-daughter, so ideas from people who have read such books would be helpful.

      I, too, hope that is it for this year.

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  4. Lynn, I’m so sorry for such nearly non-stop bad news – so many people near to you who are now gone, or suffering the loss of loved ones.

    What age is the little girl? I have a friend who is a grade-school librarian who purchases books for her school. She also has grandchildren who have had to deal with death and grief recently. I’ll drop her a note, and I’m sure she’ll have some good recommendations, but knowing the age would be good.

    When my mother died last July, my blogging friends helped so much – I hope our prayers and good wishes help you.

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  5. I am so sorry to hear of all your recent losses. It is always difficult but when there are many within a short time, it is especialy hard to bear. My thoughts and prayers go out to you and the families left to grieve. It is important to pay attention to the children as often they are forgotten or dismissed as not being able to understand. I hope you find an appropriate book.
    Much Love, Darlene

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    1. Darlene, so many in my own generation are passing away lately, but it’s the last one that is the hardest for me. She and I were close friends for almost twenty years, and even though not as much the last several I’ll always love her.
      I am going to be looking for an appropriate book for very young children.
      Thank you for your sweetness.

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  6. I agree, Lynn. There have been many deaths lately of people I know. I was to two funerals in late January. It is especially sad when the lives of children are effected. Makes me so sad and reminds me that we never know when we’ll see the face of a loved one for the last time. That last time should be with a smile.

    I will definitely send along prayers for all those who have suffered recent loss. I hope you are soon feeling better.

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    1. Thank you so much, Laura, for prayers. We both know people who are/were close to one I mentioned. You are so right, one never knows who or when or how. I like to always leave people with good thoughts if I can.

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  8. Oh, Lynn, my heart aches for you and all the friends and families who have faced these great losses. The greatest loss in my life was my baby daughter who died of meningitis. I leaned heavily on the Lord during my sorrow, and – this may sound silly – I took up knitting. The repetitious activity was almost like white noise in drowning out my pain.

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    1. Sue, I’m glad you were given something that helped during your tremendous loss and pain, something constructive and absorbing.
      Tomorrow is my friend’s funeral .. planned as a time of celebration, the way she wanted it. Even so, for me it will be a hard day.
      Thank you for your comment.

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  9. The Fall of Freddie the Leaf is a good book about death for children.

    I am sorry for your multiple losses. The blessing of growing older is that we have so many more people to love, but that also means that we have so many more people to lose. Regardless of what one believes regarding what happens next, it hurts to lose people we love for the rest of THIS life.

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    1. Thank you for the recommendation of a book.
      I agree, “it hurts to lose people we love for the rest of THIS life.” But I have always found that there is life beyond the pain. Today is a much better day.
      I appreciate your comment and good thoughts. Thank you. 🙂

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I look forward to reading your greatly appreciated comments. Thanks for making my day! :)

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