Sometimes it helps to move forward if you take a look back. Revisiting where you were and then realizing how far you have come gives much needed perspective. So, join me on a journey back in time to two years ago today when my husband, Brian, started on the long road home . . . and I was left to continue writing my story with him no longer in it.

This episode is also available as a blog post: http://timeinabottle.blog/2023/03/29/flashback/

Do you ever wonder where the time goes? Between being a 24/7 caregiver through COVID and the next year losing my husband, I have found it extremely difficult to come to grips with concept of time. It is just one of the many adjustments I've had to make to the new life I now find myself in. But it's all a process, right? And I'm getting there, wherever that is, step by step, one day at a time. The one piece of time that I do understand, however, is that once a year, on April 1, I remember the day Brian died. His struggles with Parkinson's ended, and I met my new companion -- grief. I'm learning to live with it. To make it a friend. To walk hand in hand with it instead of try to run away. It's taught me many things, the most important of which is each new sunrise that you get to see is a gift. Don't take it for granted.

It's a long way back from wherever it is I ended up after Brian died, but I am confident that I am finally beginning to find my way through the grief maze and back to life . . . not all of the time, but enough to be encouraging.

Valentine's Day can be particularly difficult for widows and widowers. Still, on this day and every day, we need to be open to seeing signs that they are still with us, cheering us on as we continue to write the rest of our story. Why do I believe that? Here's one of the many reasons why.

This episode is also available as a blog post: http://timeinabottle.blog/2023/02/14/giving-away-my-heart/

Death anniversaries can be tough, especially when you are getting close to one that marks another entire year that your special person has been gone. Today, February 1, is one of those days. I'll get through this one, and the one after that, and the one after that, until I, too, am no longer here to remember them, and my life and death will be remembered by those who loved me in this life. The important thing is that we recognize the significance of these anniversaries, and take time to reflect and reset our sights to the future. As Carl Bard has said: "Though no one can go back and make a brand new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand new ending."

This episode is also available as a blog post: http://timeinabottle.blog/2023/02/01/my-favorite-song/

It's the holiday season, and everyone expects us to be jolly, merry, and full of Ho, Ho, Ho's. But, sometimes, try as we might, we just can't dig deep enough and far enough past our grief to find those things.  Experts tell us that holidays after a loss are always hard. Other widows/widowers I know, even those whose spouse/partner died what is considered "a long time ago" in non-grief times, say that the holidays are never the same. This is the first podcast in a series dealing with how I am working through this second holiday season after my husband's death. I hope you find comfort and hope in them, knowing that we are all doing the best we can, and in the time frame that works for each of us. Hang in there. We'll get through this . . .