How to grieve lovingly creatively naturally
Inspired by a dear friend and moved to share my experience of how I tend to grieve lovingly creatively naturally by letting my heart speak in its preferred way which in my case is photography. I am sure you have yours too. Maybe sports, building something, pottery, sewing, gardening, singing and so much more to being able to express your love for the loss of that relationship which once was.
I remember when my beloved grandmother passed away I was in my mid-twenties. We were very close even though we didn`t live in the same country. She had a house in a small village with a huge garden. Where once stood her first self built house, there were now flowers. Huge colorful flowers. Coming from a city I never knew flowers could grow so high! There were little paths amongst her flower garden and as children, I remember walking barefoot on the soily path with my cousins - it was almost like a flower labyrinth. Right at the back of that garden was the old brick wall where we would climb on top of it - overlooking the street and its surroundings. This view!
The other part of the garden was where my grandmother was growing all the vegetables: Tomatoes, beans, cucumber, carrots, onions, peas, pumpkins, zucchini, and on the wall there was the space for the blackberries. Hmmmm, so good!!! Every morning and evening when the sun was settling into the evening sky she would water her beautiful flowers and veggies. She never complained once about all the comitments she had. In the early days, we would go together to the vineyards on her bike. I remember the fresh air and the dust from the unpaved paths, I also remember the smell of the soil after the rain has passed. Awwww!!! Again, my grandmother never complained once. I guess her being connected and immersed so much in nature, she inherently knew of the cycles of the earth and its elements and therefore life itself.
Bleeding heart - opening up // 2008 - Julia Gold
So how to grieve? When my grandmother died I poured my love for her into making an art piece and then after that many other art pieces and photographs dedicated to her. So maybe this can support you in finding your way to grieve naturally lovingly creatively. Maybe you would like to draw a painting or to write a poem or to go to the places where your loved ones loved to go to. Maybe recite a poem there, which you have written for them, or a text you found online or in a book that speaks to you. Maybe a spontaneous prayer telling them what you appreciate about their lives, thanking them for being with you for a while. Maybe carve something into a stone for their grave or maybe grow some flowers remembering them, continuing their legacy. Doing something which they might have enjoyed seeing you do.
I remember my art professor once told me when a loved one passed away, he would take their bedding and shake out all the feathers of the bedding in a close by wood. I found it very touching to hear his poetic way of dealing with grief. So maybe you can ask others too, how they deal with grief and let it inspire your process. For me it was turning to nature and art, remembering my beloved grandmother when creating a piece, as little as it may be, one`s heart just loves to be.
once you were here - 2008 - Julia Gold
Forever connected - etherial - Julia Gold 2021