grief

Navigating Sudden Loss in the Season of Rebirth

This past weekend, I gathered with local community to honor the life and mourn the passing of the daughter of a close friend. I was…

If you’ve been with me for any length of time, you know that 2018 was a very difficult year for me. My marriage of 20…

Craig was staying with me when the call came that Nora had died. Sundown in the West, gibbous moonrise in the East. We cupped seawater…

For the sun and the thaw, I give great thanks. For the near-full moon rising, I give great thanks. For the herb garden sleeping beneath…

Posted in Retreat

It didn’t feel like goodbye. I was told in July that the 86-year-old owner of the sacred land of Aldermarsh Retreat Center would be selling it,…

Last night I went up the hill just before dusk to a friend’s house, where we spent a couple of hours in her fragrant wood-fired…

Last Sunday, I received the news that a circle-sister and good friend of 20+ years had passed away on Solstice night. I was prepared, as…

Posted in Tarot

At this time of year, all of nature teaches us to release and let go. But we often struggle with the “shoulds” and “should-nots” of…

(Joanna’s note: I originally wrote this piece in 1991, and it was first published in The Beltane Papers in October 1992. The “Helen” in this…

Grief seems to be surrounding me like waves on a turbulent sea. Everywhere I turn, I hear another story of loss. Someone’s mother has died,…