Dear Friends,
Greetings to you all from Connecticut. I am working from here as I spend more time with my daughter and her little family. I look forward to being with you all in worship on February 9.
A couple weeks ago I shared one of the building blocks of grief coaching, Providing a Safe Place.
This week we’ll visit another building block, Ride the Roller Coaster.
Do you like roller coasters? Some of us love the ride, with its steep climbs, stomach rising descents, and gravity defying curves. Others have no desire to experience such terrifying thrills.
One of my favorite memories is the first time I rode the Colossus at Magic Mountain (many years ago!).
I remember the clanky sound as the train slowly made its way to the top. We seemed to slow as we went over the top until gravity increased our speed to the point of watering eyes and screams of either joy or fear depending on the person. I also remember that this roller coaster had a series of dips…it was as if my body wanted to stay in one plane while the train quickly went down and up over and over again. The tops of my thighs felt the bam-bam-bam of the safety bar. Then a curve and a slow climb before the last thrilling downhill. Things change quickly on a roller coaster.
Grief is likened to riding a roller coaster because our emotions can quickly take us in multiple directions. We remember things, we cry, we feel overwhelmed, we remember other things, we bargain, we feel anger, we remember, we feel joy with a memory, we feel overwhelmed, and so it goes.
Knowing this can be helpful for us as we walk alongside friends and loved ones who are grieving.
It can also be helpful to understand if you are the one grieving. As we experience lots of grief around us these days, my hope and prayer is that we can give one another support and care.
And, if you need to talk, if you need someone to give you a safe place to process, please contact me. I am available for you.
A final, important reminder is that in the midst of whatever we are feeling, our God who loves us unconditionally walks with us. May that presence give us peace while also giving us strength for whatever journey we are on.
Grace and peace,
Pastor Nancy
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