The Problem With Funerals
Is That They Remind You of all the Others you’ve been to.
Less than 4 weeks ago, my aunt was admitted to the hospital with sudden onset undiagnosed symptoms. Her funeral was this week. She had a form of cancer the doctors called ``very rare’’. She didn’t live long enough to be told exactly what it was. Her immediate family is certain no one actually knew.
My cousin, one of her sons, wrote the most honest, moving, and brave eulogy I’ve ever heard. That he managed to read it at his own mum’s funeral really impressed me. It was the kind of eulogy that made everyone else attending feel better. When he finished, the congregation exploded with applause.
Grieving is a Full-Time Job
At age 9, I realized I was different from the other kids around me. I felt as if I was put here by aliens from another planet. I concerned myself with life’s biggest questions way too soon.
Quite recently diagnosed autistic, I now know it’s a common feeling for autists. At age 12, my mum became very ill with cancer. I don’t remember any good news from then on, and she died 5 years later.
I experienced the ongoing loss of not having a Mum. I struggled with low mood every day and had no adult to talk to. I felt totally lost and bereft, without warmth, without female adult guidance. I…
