Writing has been my crutch since my grandmother passed away in March. I went from sitting in a park, writing a card to her a few days before my graduation to opening up Google Docs every time I felt overwhelmed, never to reopen them after I was done. When I realized that the reason that I didn’t want to reopen the Google Docs was because I was too afraid to reread just how sad I am, I bought a notebook.
It’s a notebook I have to flip through to find an empty page and as a result this means I’m forced to reread how I actually feel, as opposed to what I choose to show the world.
Over coffee with a friend recently she asked me why I didn’t write a letter to my grandmother. Here’s the thing, I have and it sucks. Sometimes it doesn’t suck completely because I do get to get my feelings out, but once I’m done and the card is closed, I have no one to send the card to.
No one who will write back.
This is why I’ve been toying around with a better idea. A way in which you can write out what you want to say to your loved one who has died, while still getting a response.
Say what you want to say to your loved one, but then instead send it to someone else. If enough of you leave a comment below or let us know via social media/email that you’re interested in a variation of a penpal program, we’ll even coordinate it.
Either way, do it. Send it to someone who knew your loved one who passed, or send it to someone you wish had had the opportunity to meet them.
This is what I do, I write to my Grandpa who died 10 years ago. It lets me express my feelings and emotions and I get to write down on paper what I’ve been up to etc. I feel for me it’s a nice way to keep his spirit alive =)