I contribute to and help others by listening and offering compassionate conversations to bereaved parents, spouses, significant others, siblings, and children. The challenges I address are the feelings of being stuck in the season of grief. Addressing debilitating trauma and grief, when people are not able to move on with life because of the pain that comes with the death of a child, a spouse, a career, or even the death of a dream. Who inspires me to do this is Joshua, my Beloved Son. His traumatic, sudden, and unexpected death, was buried in the month of his birth, the day after his 31st birthday, in November of 2014. I was also inspired by my mother and a dear friend who committed suicide, due to the deep pain, following the death of her only son and her only grandchild, less than a year apart. My friend made a permanent decision in a moment. However, my mother made a lifelong commitment to her pain and grief, which was a living death until her actual passing at eighty-nine. These situations inspired me to encourage people not to get stuck in a season of grief; that death is part of what makes us alive and healthy, and grieving is possible. I determined that my pain would have a purpose.
