Sitting in Grief: A Devotional Journey Towards Standing AgainSample

Day 4 - Memories

In *A Grief Observed* (a book you need to read this very moment), C.S. Lewis wrote about how he was afraid of losing the memory of what his wife H was like. He was worried about building up a false image of her in his head that would only be a shell of what she was really like. 

 At one point, he mentioned that he didn't have any photos of her that were good. That probably isn't the case for the person you're grieving today. Given the explosion of social media and everybody having phones in their pockets, chances are you might be sitting on a veritable treasure trove of memories.

When I lost my father, it was a huge blessing to be able to head over to my Google Home, click on his face, and then only see photos of him as I walked by. This, in combination with journaling memories of my dad, helped me work through my grief in a very positive way. Instead of reliving how I found him, I focused on reliving my favorite times with him. 

If you've ever had to clear out the home of a loved one, you know it's a challenging, painful process. What I want you to hear is that you don't have to value everything the same as your loved one did. Your memories of your loved ones are not in the things. A picture of the item will trigger the same memory as visually seeing it, as well. It's perfectly normal to keep some sentimental stuff, just don't feel like you need to adopt everything your loved one owned. 

Think about writing down your memories now, while they are clearer in your head. It may be too raw to do now, and that's OK, but think about doing this when you feel up to it. The Holy Spirit will provide you with plenty of joyful things to remember.