I'm Sorry for Your Loss: Communicating with Those Who are Bereaved

Sample

It was a beautiful spring day in May. The tulips and daffodils were blooming in brilliant shades of yellow, pink, and red. The sky was robin’s egg blue and full of fluffy, white clouds. For 20-year-old Libby Jamieson, it may as well have been a cold December day. Libby was standing in Oak Park Cemetery, trying to pay attention to their pastor’s reading of the 23rd Psalm. Her mother’s casket was only a few feet away, draped in dozens of red roses, her mom’s favorite flower. Libby’s dad stood next to her, tightly gripping her hand in his. To Libby, her father’s face looked as numb and cold as she felt on the inside. The pastor finished reading and friends and family lined up to offer their condolences to Libby and her father. People began shaking her hand or hugging her, whispering phrases such as “at least she’s not in pain anymore” or “I’m so sorry for your loss.” Libby tried to say “thank you” but her throat was dry and her lips seemed to be glued shut. She just silently nodded her head as if to agree with what people were saying. Next to her, she noticed that her dad struggled to talk and was nodding his head as well.