My Heart is Riding Shotgun

Acute grief, the early stage of grief, is hard. While that probably goes without saying, let me add that for me, it was also very different from the rest.

In September 2021 I wrote, Can’t You Hear the Whumpfhing. And darn, I am still hearing the whumpfing. Less subtle. More frequent. Increasingly frightening.

Because you are reading this, you already know that I believe in signs -that I am open to them, I am observant of them, and I receive them.

Grief changes over time. It becomes different. I believe you will hear this from most people who have been mourning a significant loss. Even still, it doesn’t really go away.

I say it a lot, and I feel it even more. Nature heals.In 2024, I went on 88 hikes, thirty-seven of which were on trails new to me.

I’m an introvert and typically get most energized by my solo time. Generally, I’m an observer of others.

My mom, Sharon, passed away on November 24, 2023. This is the same date, November 24, on which her own mother died 57 years earlier.

Do we always have choices? I think so. And I hope so. We may not always like the ones that are available. Sometimes, of course, we may feel limited.

There are all kinds of changes that can occur in our habits and abilities when experiencing the loss of someone we love. Grief can take over in unanticipated ways.

I have been writing regularly for over four years and have published 89 blogs on My Heart is Riding Shotgun. Most of them are timeless.

I can be pretty stubborn. I’m a Taurus. A Bull. I like to think I’m more stubborn with myself than with others. My friends and family may say otherwise.

Math, or anything closely related, was never an enjoyable subject for me. I was lucky though. I had one of my favorite teachers in high school for Algebra 1 and 2.