Open to Hope Articles

Do you want to read stories of others who have been where you are? Are you looking for bereavement help, and advice? Look no further. We offer over 7,000 articles written by our Open to Hope authors.

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How to Be Grateful in Grief

Posted on February 5, 2021 - by Catherine McNulty

Gratitude is a buzzword we hear all the time.   We hear it so much we often dismiss it.  To be honest, it’s a trend I ignored until a mentor told […]

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A Glimpse into Grieving in the New Year

Posted on January 18, 2021 - by Bob Baugher

If you are like most bereaved people, thinking about the future without your loved one is not pleasant. In thinking about the next year, some people shake their head saying, […]

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Eight New Year’s Eves Ago

Posted on January 16, 2021 - by Elizabeth Brady

There is a collective sigh of relief as we ring in 2021, and yet there is also mounting loss and unattended grief. For those of us who have been learning […]

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Focus on Hope

Posted on January 15, 2021 - by Jill Smoot

It came to me the other day. Almost as a shock. With all the craziness in this year of 2020. With faces hidden behind masks.  With people separated from family and […]

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Assembling My Grief Survival Kit: What’s In Yours?

Posted on January 15, 2021 - by Harriet Hodgson

My husband died two weeks ago, but I had been preparing for his death a long time. I was my husband’s caregiver and watched him summon courage when he learned […]

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Writing Happy Holiday Memories

Posted on December 23, 2020 - by Linda Freudenberger

I wrote this story as a happy Christmas memory…it especially holds true since my husband passed in 2017.  I found a Charlie Brown-like tree: pitiful, sparse, complete with Charlie, Snoopy, […]

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Widow Resolutions: The Four Gs

Posted on December 21, 2020 - by Kerry Phillips

The new year offers a time for reflection and looking ahead. For the widowed community, it can be a double-edged sword: wanting to move forward while holding onto the precious […]

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Change: The Unwanted Gift

Posted on December 19, 2020 - by Bernie Siegel

“What the caterpillar calls the end of the world, the Master calls a butterfly. ” – Richard Bach Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 — To everything there is a season; And a time […]

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4 Things to Remember About Grief

Posted on December 17, 2020 - by Peggy Bell

Losing a spouse is one of the most difficult life changing events a person will experience. It brings with it a huge amount of stress. We find ourselves dealing with […]

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Stages of Grief: Real of Not?

Posted on December 14, 2020 - by Peggy Bell

Excerpt from Life After Loss For Widows: Lifting the Veil of Grief You may have heard there are stages of grief we all go through. If you google it, you […]

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