So much truth in this. Thanks for sharing.

5 hours ago, Mikiesboy said:

Time makes it easier...but it Never Ever goes away. You walk in my shoes then you can tell me 'you should be over it'. 

Thanks for commenting, tim.

I think that we've all got our trials - some more than others.  @MacGregwrote some on reserving judgment and trying to rise above that.  These are related, certainly.

I'm glad you're still here and still fighting.

5 hours ago, Thorn Wilde said:

So much truth in this. Thanks for sharing.

We all fight our battles, we all have our war.  Some don't recognize the fight others wage, but I try hard to do so.

You're welcome, Thorn.  I hope your day is going well.  🙂

3 hours ago, Parker Owens said:

This is a most welcome and inspiring entry. Thank you, and thank you @MichaelS36 for your words this morning. 

Thanks, Parker.  We are all fighting, one way or another.  Some more than others.  This post is an acknowledgment of that.

9 minutes ago, MacGreg said:

I think this applies to grieving, too. Each person deals with the loss of someone (human or animal) in their own way. People should not shame a person's grieving process by saying, "you should get past this". Maybe they never will. Maybe they need therapy to cope. Whatever the case, it's their grief to own.

I think you're absolutely right.  Nobody has the right to diminish your love for another being that has been lost.  Perhaps those people have never had such a deep connection to anything.  Frankly, that is yet another reason to mourn.

Thanks for your comments and insight, Mac.

5 minutes ago, Fae Briona said:

Think focus on this was lost when I was trying to get the size down.  Says, "You wake up every morning to fight the same demons that left you so tired the night before, and that, my love, is bravery."

I really like that.  Thank you, Fae.

45 minutes ago, MacGreg said:

I think this applies to grieving, too. Each person deals with the loss of someone (human or animal) in their own way. People should not shame a person's grieving process by saying, "you should get past this". Maybe they never will. Maybe they need therapy to cope. Whatever the case, it's their grief to own.

This is so true. In the business world 3 days is the allowed mourning time for a parent. If you have a compassionate manager that could stretch to a week. So inhumane. 

I remember a fellow officer once crying on my shoulder a month after losing her twin sister. She was still lost and couldn't understand why people couldn't understand her pain. I could only tell her we all deal with this in our own way and in our own time. Do not let them tell you it is too long or you should be dealing with it better.  If you stop eating or dealing with personal hygiene or you are withdrawing, then you may need to speak with a counselor but otherwise you may just need to talk.   That was what she needed for someone to listen to her stories of her sister, not to be told shhhh it's okay don't talk about it  ... but just the opposite she needed to talk and to relate stories and to remember even if she cried.  She simply needed someone to hear her.  

That is often all that is needed for many things.  The person needs to talk, to relate, to speak things aloud and to have someone hear, to be interested. Not to be told to hold it in … we need to free our pain and our fears. 

55 minutes ago, Fae Briona said:

Think focus on this was lost when I was trying to get the size down.  Says, "You wake up every morning to fight the same demons that left you so tired the night before, and that, my love, is bravery."

Those are good words. I like the image, too.

FYI, When I want to post images and they're too big to upload or I don't have room in my attachments, I use this site called imgBB. You just upload your pics, click on them, copy the image address, and paste them in your forum posts. It's what I did with the photos from the sculpture park in the DiC yesterday.